It’s not that King Charles’ visit to the nation’s capital on the 250th anniversary of America’s independence isn’t important. It’s just that, to Rep. Ro Khanna, justice for the survivors of Jeffrey Epstein’s abuse and sex trafficking should matter just as much.
“He is here for the 250th anniversary,” Khanna told MS NOW on Tuesday, before a roundtable with Epstein survivors and victim advocates on Capitol Hill. “But I think the question is: why is he not taking this opportunity to recognize the survivors, to make sure that people understand that no one is above the law?”
Khanna continued that “you don’t have to be born a king to have your rights protected,” adding that, just because you’re the king’s brother — like Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, formerly known as “Prince Andrew” — that doesn’t “give you the right to treat women and young girls and Americans as dispensable.”
Andrew is accused of sexually abusing Virginia Giuffre when she was 17, after she was trafficked by Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell. Those allegations, and Andrew’s repeated appearance in the Epstein files, led to King Charles formally stripping his brother of his title and royal honors in late 2025. Andrew was subsequently arrested for suspicion of misconduct in public office in February.
At the time, King Charles took the rare step of releasing a public statement — with his own name on the quote — saying he supports the investigation and that “the law must take its course.”
But King Charles — and for that matter President Donald Trump, who also appears in the unredacted Epstein files “over a million times,” according to Rep. Jamie Raskin, D-Md. — have sought to put the Epstein files behind them, as they celebrate the United States’ 250th anniversary of independence.
“You would expect this to be a moment for the king to give a message to the world that he stands with survivors,” Sky Roberts, Giuffre’s brother, said at the roundtable on Tuesday, just hours before King Charles addresses a joint session of Congress.
Khanna’s effort to shift the focus of the king’s visit to Epstein comes a year into his bipartisan blitz to release the Epstein files.
Seeking to keep the Epstein issue top of mind, Khanna sent a letter to the king ahead of his Washington visit asking for a private audience on behalf of the Epstein survivors.
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Ali Vitali is MS NOW’s senior congressional correspondent and the host of “Way Too Early.” She is the author of “Electable: Why America Hasn’t Put a Woman in the White House … Yet.”
Lillie Boudreaux
‘ The preceding article may include information circulated by third parties ’
‘ Some details of this article were extracted from the following source www.ms.now ’
