A nervous Mike Johnson at a press conference, sweating under bright lights, avoiding eye contact with reporters, papers labeled "Epstein Files" visible on a table behind him.
Mike Johnson Squirms While Being Pressed on Why He Hasn't Sworn in Adelita Grijalva, Thus Triggering the Release of the Epstein Files
House Speaker Mike Johnson has found himself in an increasingly uncomfortable position as he faces mounting pressure over his refusal to swear in Representative-elect Adelita Grijalva—a delay that appears strategically timed to prevent the release of Jeffrey Epstein-related documents.
The Stalling Tactics
As of October 2025, Johnson has repeatedly postponed Grijalva's swearing-in ceremony, citing the ongoing government shutdown as justification. "This is the process of the House, we'll do it as soon as we get back to business," Johnson stated during recent questioning, appearing visibly uncomfortable when pressed on the timing.
The Speaker's explanations have grown increasingly strained as journalists and political opponents point to the obvious connection: Grijalva's signature would be the crucial 218th on a bipartisan petition to force a House vote on releasing files from the Justice Department's Epstein investigation. On the campaign trail, Grijalva had explicitly committed to supporting this petition, making her swearing-in a potential turning point in the long-stalled effort to uncover the full truth about Epstein's network.
Defensive Posturing
When confronted with allegations that he's deliberately blocking Grijalva to prevent the Epstein files from seeing daylight, Johnson dismissed the claims as a "partisan manufactured thing." He insisted that Republicans are already working on releasing the documents through the House Oversight Committee, though critics note this process has shown little progress.
In one particularly awkward exchange, Johnson reiterated that the delay "has nothing to do with that at all," referring to the Epstein files petition. "We will swear her in when everybody gets back. It's a ceremonial duty," he stated, though his body language suggested anything but ceremonial indifference to the matter.
Mounting Pressure
The Speaker's stalling has sparked outrage among Grijalva's supporters and transparency advocates. Democrats have marched to Johnson's office chanting "Swear her in," while Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes has threatened legal action to compel the oath of office.
The situation has become a political lightning rod, with Johnson's squirming responses doing little to quell suspicions that he's acting as a gatekeeper for powerful interests who would prefer the Epstein documents remain buried. As the government shutdown continues, the pressure on Johnson only intensifies, leaving him increasingly cornered between his procedural excuses and the growing public demand for transparency about one of the most notorious sex trafficking cases in modern history.
The prompt for this was: Mike Johnson squirms while being pressed on why he hasn't sworn in Adelita Grijalva, thus triggering the release of the Epstein files.
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