Republican Question's Mike Johnson's Motives For Delaying Epstein Vote: 'Why Would Releasing the Files Cause Political Pain?'

A Republican lawmaker publicly questioned House Speaker Mike Johnson's motives after he shut down the House early amid efforts by lawmakers to force a vote to release the Epstein files.

Kentucky Rep. Thomas Massie and California Rep. Ro Khanna created a discharge petition earlier this week which would lead the House to vote on whether or not to release the Epstein files if it receives enough signatures, as calls to do so ramp up.

The House Speaker denied claims that he closed the House for August recess early, telling reporters on Wednesday, "No one in Congress is blocking Epstein documents. No one in Congress is doing that."

The day prior, Johnson had bashed Massie's efforts, saying he disagreed with Republican-on-Republican attacks. Although the push to release the files has largely been led by Democrats, there have been some Republicans who have also supported the release.

"Some people, I try to protect them from themselves. They kick and scream and bite their own colleagues. Some people seem to enjoy trying to inflict political pain on their teammates," Johnson said at a news conference.

"I don't understand Thomas Massie's motivation, I really don't. I don't know how his mind works, I don't know what he's thinking," he continued.

The Louisiana Republican argued that Massie could have brought the petition up during the Biden administration, adding that he had "some concern" about a Republican not only doing so during the Trump administration, but also by teaming up with a Democrat.

"I also try to follow the scripture, and it says 'bless those who persecute you,'" Johnson said. "I don't know what else to say about it. We're for maximum transparency, we're engaging in that right now."

On Friday, Massie addressed Johnson's comments, questioning his statements and opposition to his resolution to release the files.

"I have questions after watching this video: Why would releasing the Epstein files cause political pain to congressmen, does avoiding political pain take priority over justice, and how exactly is the Speaker being [persecuted] by a vote on the Epstein files?" he wrote on X.

As Massie's tweet raked up tens of thousands of likes, the Kentucky Republican responded with a bullseye emoji to a comment that read, "If the Epstein files are just 'conspiracy nonsense'... why is every branch of government working overtime to bury them?"

The Trump administration has faced continued pressure to release the files after a memo by the Department of Justice and FBI earlier this month declared that the sex offender killed himself and had no client list.

Following the report, President Donald Trump pushed for his supporters to move on, but later called for the DOJ to release any approved grand jury testimony after the Wall Street Journal published a report alleging that Trump gave Epstein a drawing of a naked woman in a birthday message.

Originally published on Latin Times