The Northern Kentucky congressman appeared on NBC's "Meet the Press" Sunday alongside Democratic colleague Rep. Ro Khanna of California to talk about the duo's discharge petition to force a vote on the release of the full files on Epstein.

Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) says on Meet the Press that he questions why releasing the Epstein files would be “politically painful” for his party after Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) called for an early recess,

Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky is leading a bipartisan push to force a vote on releasing all files related to the death of Jeffrey Epstein. The move has been drawing criticism from House leadership in recent days.

Kentucky GOP Rep. Thomas Massie has blasted the Justice Department for its handling of the Jeffrey Epstein case. Speaking with NBC’s Meet the Press, the Kentucky representative addressed a July 6 memo from the Department of Justice (DOJ) and Federal Bureau of Investigation concluding that Epstein died by suicide in jail while awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges in 2019 and that no “client list” of wealthy co-conspirators exists.

Massie also said he believes Republicans will lose their slim majority in the midterm elections next year if they do not take a vote on releasing the files.

The lawmaker's comments underscore the divisions within the Republican Party over the files relating to Jeffrey Epstein.

Speaker Mike Johnson ripped Rep. Thomas Massie over his fellow Republican's ongoing efforts to seek the release of the Department of Justice's files regarding Jeffrey Epstein. The post House Republican Dragged by Mike Johnson Fires Back at Speaker Over Epstein Files: ‘I Have

Congress isn't likely to change course, as was made clear after Trump’s election victory during an intraparty rift over recess appointments that split the GOP.