"Mr. Speaker, it's been a year since the president signed the Epstein Files Transparency Act, and the government continues to withhold over three million files," Massie began a brief address to the House.
The northern Kentucky congressman proceeded to peel off a list of names, 14 to be exact, saying they should be investigated for crimes linked to Epstein.
"Perhaps hearing these names will shame the Department of Justice into delivering justice. I yield back," he concluded.
The Republican representative, who was ousted by a Trump-backed opponent in the primaries, told CNN the Epstein Transparency Act II shifts its focus to state officials, notably attorneys general.
"The one in New Mexico hasn't got any cooperation from the U.S. Attorney General, which is almost unprecedented. And he believes he can prosecute some of these crimes under state law if he could get the cooperation of the federal government," Massie said. "And so we didn't really anticipate that problem with the first Epstein Files Transparency Act."
Epstein Files Transparency Act II was written with the advice and counsel of the survivors’ lawyers and the New Mexico Attorney General to ensure it will provide the tools needed to provide closure for survivors and convictions of the perpetrators.https://t.co/ojtVfI5tMc
— Thomas Massie (@RepThomasMassie) September 2, 2026
Massie is using the same mechanism he employed to get the first Epstein Transparency Act passed, a maneuver known as a discharge petition. It would require 218 member signatures.
The congressman described the vote math as similar to the first petition, though two representatives need to be sworn in, and the departure of former Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene would require a different GOP representative to sign on.