Ghislaine Maxwell is scheduled to be deposed by lawmakers in early August, a top Republican shared as fears percolate that notorious convicted sex trafficker could be harmed in prison.
House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer announced issuing a subpoena for Maxwell to testify on August 11 at the Tallahassee facility where she is serving her prison sentence.
The scheduled high-stakes meeting comes one day after Republican Rep. Tim Burchett of Tennessee pushed to have Maxwell subpoenaed after accusing the administration of hiding the full Epstein files.
And Maxwell may want to talk, according to a source who told the Daily Mail ‘she would be more than happy to sit before Congress and tell her story,’ though her lawyer has made no commitment.
‘If Ms. Maxwell agrees to testify before Congress and not take the 5th—and that remains a big if—she would testify truthfully, as she always has said she would and as she will with Mr. Blanche,’ Maxwell’s lawyer David Markus told the New York Sun. ‘The truth should not be feared or preemptively dismissed.’
The rush to get testimony from Epstein’s protege comes as some lawmakers have raised concern about her protection.
‘I requested that she be placed immediately into protective custody and monitored – by guards as well as working surveillance equipment – around the clock, so that our justice system does not again fail the survivors of this Epstein nightmare,’ Republican Rep. Scott Perry posted on X.
Donald and Melania Trump with Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell
Republican Rep. Tim Burchett of Tennessee asked the Oversight Committee to vote on subpoenaing Ghislaine Maxwell on Tuesday. The panel quickly approved his request
Maxwell, shown above with sex offender and accused child trafficker Jefferey Epstein, was a longtime partner of the disgraced financier. She is currently serving a 20-year sentence for sex trafficking
Trump’s closest allies and rank-and-file members – including House Oversight Chairman James Comer, Anna Paulina Luna, Nancy Mace and Marjorie Taylor Greene – backed the subpoena for Maxwell.
The move makes it possible that Maxwell’s deposition could be recorded and even televised, though Comer has not shared whether it will be.
It comes as the White House has been cagey about releasing the full Epstein files, setting up a stand-off between Republicans and Trump. The administration was rocked with more bad news Wednesday as the Wall Street Journal reported Trump was informed he appears in the Epstein files by his Attorney General Pam Bondi.
‘As for the Congressional subpoena, Ms. Maxwell is taking this one step at a time,’ her lawyer said. ‘She looks forward to her meeting with the Department of Justice, and that discussion will help inform how she proceeds.’
Burchett’s move puts both Trump and GOP leadership in a sticky situation, powerless to control what the imprisoned Epstein accomplice will say.
He originally asked Oversight Chairman James Comer to allow Maxwell to testify in a public, televised hearing.
This undated trial evidence image obtained December 8, 2021, from the US District Court for the Southern District of New York shows British socialite Ghislaine Maxwell and financier Jeffrey Epstein
The committee approved Burchett’s motion for Maxwell’s deposition, meaning the 63-year-old who is serving a 20-year-sentence for sex trafficking may have a chance to air her story to members of Congress craving more information on the sordid saga.
If it is similar to recent depositions done by the committee, there is a chance her testimony could be recorded, even televised. Recent depositions of former aides to Joe Biden have been recorded as the Oversight Committee probes the Democrat’s mental acuity and whether his diminishing abilities were covered up by staff.
‘We just got to get to the bottom of this thing, folks,’ the Tennesseean said in a video he posted on X after the successful vote. ‘It’s four years and, you know, we don’t need to tolerate this stuff anymore.’
‘I get the blow back about folks up here are going to be mad at me, but ultimately, with all sincerity, excuse me, I’m answering my Creator on this issue,’ he said.
The push for Maxwell’s testimony comes amid extreme pressure on Capitol Hill to release files related to the financier’s crimes and death.
The House canceled votes on Thursday due to complications with Epstein.
The Rules Committee, which determines what bills make it to the House floor for votes, has been paralyzed since Democrats on the panel have continuously worked to force Republicans to vote against the Epstein files being released.
Rank-and-file members like Reps. Luna and Greene backed the move to subpoena Maxwell
The political jockeying has frustrated GOP members on the panel, some of whom have sided with Democrats on rules committee votes to avoid pushing back against the release of the high-profile documents.
Already Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., has introduced a bill that would force the Department of Justice to release most of its files on Epstein, but Republican leadership have so far blocked those efforts, knowing that such a vote would enrage Trump and put GOP members in a difficult position.
But come this fall, Speaker Mike Johnson and his team will be close to powerless to stopping Massie’s measure.
If the Kentucky lawmaker’s bill garners at least 218 co-signers – and almost all Democrats and some Republicans have already said they’d vote for it – then it will receive a vote on the House floor.
Tennessee Republican Rep. Thomas Massie has introduced a bill to force the DOJ to published all its files on Jefferey Epstein
A vote on the Epstein Files Transparency Act (EFTA) is expected once Congress returns from summer recess in September.
The only material in the files that would be withheld are portions relating to abuse or death, personal identifiable information of victims and content that would jeopardize active federal investigations or compromise national security.
Passage of the legislation would force the DOJ to post the Epstein documents online within 30 days.
According to the legislative text, any redactions made in the documents would need to be explained in a memo.
