House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) was confronted on Thursday with an open letter from the victims of the late billionaire financier and sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein, calling on him to stop obstructing the swearing in of Rep.-elect Adelita Grijalva (D-AZ).
Grijalva was elected weeks ago to the seat vacated when her father, Rep. Raul Grijalva, passed away earlier this year. Johnson has refused to seat her, insisting the House won't reconvene until the government shutdown ends. Many critics have speculated his real motive is to stave off the final vote needed for a bipartisan discharge petition to compel the Trump administration to release the Epstein case files, at least until he can get a Republican who signed on to back off.
Epstein survivors raked Johnson over the coals in their open letter.
"Grijalva was duly elected and certified to serve in the U.S. House of Representatives," stated the letter, signed by not just several Epstein victims but the family of the late survivor Virginia Giuffre. "Her constituents have spoken, and their voice deserves representation without further delay. The continued refusal to seat her is an unacceptable breach of democratic norms and a disservice to the American people. Even more concerning to us as survivors, this delay appears to be a deliberate attempt to block her participation in the discharge petition that would force a vote to unseal the Epstein/Maxwell files."
"The American public has a right to transparency and accountability and we, as survivors, deserve justice," the letter continued. "Any attempt to obstruct a vote on this matter by manipulating House procedure or denying elected members their seats-is a direct affront to that right and adds insult to our trauma."
"Speaker Johnson must stop using procedural tactics to protect the powerful and instead uphold the integrity of our democratic institutions," said the letter. "Our trauma is not a pawn in your political games. Every day you stall is another day survivors are denied justice, and the American people are denied the truth. Swear in Representative Grijalva and let democracy speak."
