On Wednesday Kentucky Republican James Comer, chairman of the House Oversight Committee, sent a subpoena to Ghislaine Maxwell to try and get her testimony from behind bars in federal prison in Tallahassee.
🚨 I have issued a subpoena to Ghislaine Maxwell for a deposition to occur at Federal Correctional Institution Tallahassee on August 11, 2025.
— Rep. James Comer (@RepJamesComer) July 23, 2025
The Department of Justice is cooperating and will help facilitate the deposition at the prison. pic.twitter.com/N0J6Gul37g
Scripps News caught up with Tennessee Congressman Tim Burchett, one of the Republicans on the committee, who has been pushing for the disclosure and release of more of the Epstein files.
"100%. If I'm allowed, I'll be front and center. I'm the one that called for the subpoena. I wrote a letter to Comer a week or two before to get her in there," Burchett said. "I want to know the money trail. I want to know who's involved. I want to know why they're involved. I want to know how they gathered these girls — the travel arrangements — and just start peeling back the layers of the onion. The problem you're going to have, of course, is that she's going to lie. Well, yeah, she probably will. But if she does, she goes back to her original sentence."
RELATED STORY | DOJ seeks to question Jeffrey Epstein confidant Ghislaine Maxwell
Also on Wednesday, a subcommittee within House Oversight voted to subpoena the Trump administration's Department of Justice to release files related to its investigation into Epstein.
The 8-2 vote, which will still need signature by Chairman Comer, would seek to subpoena all DOJ records related to the investigation.
The developments come in the wake of a continued effort, mostly by Democrats, calling for the release of the Epstein files.
House Speaker Mike Johnson this week sent congressional lawmakers home early and canceled voting that was scheduled for Thursday.
The decision follows Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., introducing the Epstein Files Transparency Act, which would require the government to publicly release all documents related to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
Speaker Mike Johnson has declined to bring the bill to the floor for a vote, saying he wants to give the administration “space” to release what it can independently. In response, Massie has launched a discharge petition — a procedural tool that allows lawmakers to bypass leadership and force a vote on the House floor. The petition must be signed by a majority of House members to advance.
RELATED STORY | House to begin August recess early amid dispute over Epstein files legislation
