Epstein File Vote: Relationships Across Political Divides Work Says Ro Khanna

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India-West News Desk

WASHINGTON, DC – “I think Ro Khanna is a brilliant human being… on the right side of history,” an Epstein survivor told CNN after the House overwhelmingly voted to release the Jeffrey Epstein files. Her voice shook as she spoke. For her, and for many others, the 427-1 vote felt like a reclamation of power, one she repeatedly credited to a trio of lawmakers: Ro Khanna (D-CA), Thomas Massie (R-KY), and Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA). The former two authored the bill and forced the vote on the House floor without support from party leadership.

That vote, so lopsided it resembled the tally for a ceremonial resolution rather than a major political confrontation, amounted to a remarkable defeat for former President Donald Trump during his second term, CNN noted.

But in the shadow of that political shock was Khanna’s own quiet satisfaction. CNN had noted earlier in the day that his Republican co-sponsors were trending online while he was not. Khanna insisted to the media outlet he had made peace with that, explaining that minimizing his own visibility helped build trust with Republicans whose support was necessary for the discharge petition to succeed.

For him, the vote validated a strategy he has pursued for years: maintain relationships across ideological divides, and keep conversations going even when colleagues roll their eyes.

Khanna told CNN that some Democrats had initially dismissed the issue, urging him to focus on other hot button issues, including conventional economic concerns, instead of the Epstein records. But he says it was a chance to confront an elite culture that shields powerful men at the expense of vulnerable girls. And as he met more survivors, hearing stories they had buried for years, the cause became personal. He described the meetings with them as emotionally devastating.

His approach throughout blended persistence with tactical improvisation. He avoided attacking Republicans he hoped to work with, including Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, whom he barely knew before this issue but now texts regularly. When Massie signaled that Colorado Rep. Lauren Boebert might sign the discharge petition if she didn’t have to wait in line to do so, Khanna simply pulled the document from a Democratic colleague and let her walk over. These small maneuvers, he told CNN, showed that a Democrat could build bipartisan coalitions without sacrificing convictions.

Even after the vote, Khanna’s ambitions extend beyond the Epstein files. He is already discussing with Greene a potential bipartisan push to block private equity firms from buying single-family homes.

For now, he is confident the administration will not be able to sidestep the mandate for full release of the Epstein records. Too many former officials, lawyers, and survivors know what the files contain for selective editing to go unnoticed. The survivors’ determination, he believes, will keep the pressure on.