Sometimes in politics the worst wounds are self-inflicted.
The Epstein files and the government shutdown seem, at first glance, to be unrelated. They are two separate issues. One is about keeping the government funded and open. The other is a refusal by Donald Trump and his party to fulfill a campaign promise that they would release the files on one of America’s most high-profile sex criminals.
Reps. Thomas Massie (R-KY) and Ro Khanna (D-CA) created this problem for Speaker Johnson with their resignation request, which would force the House to vote on legislation forcing the Justice Department to release the entire Epstein files.
A discharge request requires 218 signatures to reach the House of Representatives and force a vote.
A few weeks ago, Adelita Grijalva won a special election to fill the remainder of her late father’s term in Arizona’s Third District. Grijalva had already promised to sign the discharge petition, becoming the 218th signature needed to force a vote.
The Trump White House is determined to halt the resignation request, so Grijalva did not win a seat, even though there is recent precedent for Johnson incumbents winning special elections when the House was not in session.
After the Arizona special election results were certifiedAttorney General Kris Mayes threatened to sue Speaker Johnson if he did not immediately seat Grijalva. a threat that it is clear Johnson had not anticipated. The speaker became even more unhinged when asked why he doesn’t want the Arizona House Democrat to seat him.
During an interview on CNBC, Johnson was asked why he didn’t place Grijalva and there were some obvious signs of cracking.
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