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Legal Showdown Looms as Arizona Threatens Lawsuit Over Unsworn Representative
Washington D.C. – The already heated debate surrounding the release of the Jeffrey Epstein files has taken a dramatic turn, with Arizona’s top legal official threatening a lawsuit against House Speaker Mike Johnson. The contention centers on Johnson’s refusal to swear in Representative-elect Adelita Grijalva, a Democrat from Arizona, a move that the Grand Canyon State’s Attorney General, Kris Mayes, asserts is politically motivated and directly linked to the push for the Epstein documents.
During an appearance on CNN’s Laura Coates Live, Attorney General Mayes, 55, minced no words, stating her readiness to take Speaker Johnson, 53, to court if Grijalva, 54, is not swiftly sworn into office. “I really think that we are going to have no other choice, Laura, except to take Speaker Johnson to court if he refuses to respond to us, if he doesn’t quickly swear in Adelita Grijalva, again depriving her of the ability to help her constituents,” Mayes told Coates, 46.
The timing of Johnson’s decision has raised eyebrows, coming amidst a bipartisan effort in Congress to compel the executive branch to release the long-awaited Epstein files. While Johnson maintains his decision is unrelated to the files, Mayes vehemently disagrees, suggesting Grijalva’s unsworn status is a strategic blockage. “No other reason that I can think of except that perhaps she’s the final vote to discharge the Epstein files, and it’s not fair for Mike Johnson to be holding the state of Arizona hostage because he doesn’t wanna release the Epstein files,” Mayes asserted.
The impact of Grijalva’s absence from her rightful seat is already being felt in Arizona, particularly with recent flooding. “We’ve had some flooding out here in Arizona. She has no way to help those people in southern Arizona who have been impacted by that flooding,” Mayes highlighted, emphasizing the tangible consequences for Grijalva’s constituents.
The legislative push for the Epstein files gained momentum with Representative Thomas Massie’s proposed bill, which would mandate the Department of Justice to release information concerning Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell within 30 days, while safeguarding victim identities. This bill, initially promising, has stalled in the Congressional process, with the vacant Arizona seat proving a significant hurdle in reaching the necessary threshold for a vote. Grijalva’s election now pushes the House past that threshold, making Johnson’s refusal to swear her in even more impactful.
Beyond the political maneuvering, Grijalva’s initial experience in Washington D.C. was reportedly fraught with logistical issues. Upon her arrival, her congressional office was reportedly without working phone lines, internet, or computers, prompting Attorney General Mayes to send a scathing letter to Speaker Johnson.
In the letter, Mayes accused Johnson and his staff of providing “ever-shifting, unsatisfactory, and sometimes absurd stories” regarding Grijalva’s unsworn status. The letter concluded with a firm demand: “We thus demand that Ms.
Grijalva be immediately sworn into office and admitted to her rightful seat. We ask that within two days of the date of this letter, you provide this Office with your assurance of when and where that will take place, which must be immediate and prior to the date the House comes back into regular session.
Should you fail to provide such assurance, we will be forced to seek judicial relief to protect Arizona and the residents of its Seventh Congressional District.”
As the deadline approaches, all eyes remain on Speaker Johnson and whether he will accede to Arizona’s demands or face a potentially landmark legal battle.