MICHEL MARTIN, HOST:
Today, House Speaker Mike Johnson is sending lawmakers home early for their annual August recess.
SACHA PFEIFFER, HOST:
Johnson is trying to avoid dragging out a fight among Republicans over releasing the details of federal investigations into Jeffrey Epstein. And Johnson defended the decision to shut down the House floor during the fight to release the records.
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MIKE JOHNSON: We have a moral responsibility to expose the evil of Epstein and everybody who was involved in that, absolutely. And we're resolved to do it. But we also have an equal moral responsibility to protect the innocent.
PFEIFFER: Republicans hope the controversy will die down while they're away, but some are betting that won't be the case.
MARTIN: NPR congressional correspondent Claudia Grisales has been following this and is with us now to tell us more about it. Good morning, Claudia.
CLAUDIA GRISALES, BYLINE: Good morning, Michel.
MARTIN: So the Republican-led House was due to leave Thursday for more than a month. They've already voted on some of their biggest priorities, and they were planning to get out of town by the end of the week anyway. Is leaving a day early really a big deal?
GRISALES: It really is. It's pretty rare to see the House floor paralyzes like this, even for a day, and they've been blocked all week from taking up significant bills. And this comes in a crucial last week before an extended recess, leaving House Republicans with pretty tight deadlines on pretty big legislation when they get back in September. And this is all tied to a controversy Republicans fueled during the 2024 campaign, including President Trump promising they'd force a release of Justice Department files tied to the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, but they've yet to do so. And in a political calculation, Democrats on the House Rules Committee have forced a series of votes on the matter, even drawing some GOP support. So Republican leaders responded by effectively shutting down this panel. They're responsible for sending major, high-profile bills to the floor. And as a result, they're sending the House home early.
MARTIN: So as you've just told us, this has eaten up a lot of oxygen on Capitol Hill and beyond. Is it realistic to think that taking a break is going to actually let things die down?
GRISALES: It may not be. Many say the opposite will happen, and it's already happening. For example, Missouri GOP Senator Josh Hawley told reporters this week he's hearing about it from his constituents, and he's not alone. And another member - this is in the House, Kentucky Republican Thomas Massie - he's often tussling with the administration on a variety of issues. And now he's helping lead a bipartisan petition that could force a vote to release the Epstein records. Massie told me that this so-called discharge petition could trigger this vote when they come back.
THOMAS MASSIE: I think this will build momentum. I don't think it will dissipate. I think that Americans want to see justice and transparency.
GRISALES: And he says this is a watershed moment for Johnson, and it's such a significant decision before them that it could cost the party the midterm elections for control of the House.
MARTIN: So we - obviously, we know that Democrats are very interested in this, for obvious reasons. But what about within the Republican conference? How does this divide break down?
GRISALES: It's a pretty deep divide. We've seen Johnson trade barbs with Massie, saying he doesn't understand his mind and, bless his heart. So this is clearly an issue many Republicans do not want to talk about. However, we've seen Massie collect even more Republican signatures for his petition. And some of the more vocal members of the party, such as Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia, say this is a betrayal to Republican voters. So the House may be going home, but this headache may not be going home any time soon for the Republican Party.
MARTIN: That is NPR's Claudia Grisales. Claudia, thank you.
GRISALES: Thank you. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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