Former President Bill Clinton and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton testified regarding their ties to Jeffrey Epstein in separate, private depositions before the House Oversight Committee on Feb. 26 and 27. The depositions were held near their home in Chappaqua, NY.
The forced depositions follow the Clinton’s months-long, defiant battle against House Oversight Committee subpoenas. The Clintons were forced to comply after House Republicans set up a floor vote to hold the Clintons in contempt of congress. Despite their request for a public hearing to avoid rumors and false reporting, Chairman James Comer of the House Oversight Committee proceeded with private, videotaped depositions.
There is no public evidence or testimony that Hillary Clinton had a direct relationship with, or was involved in the activities of, Epstein, though she did concede that she had met Ghislaine Maxwell—one of Epstein’s coconspirators—multiple times. During the deposition, Hillary Clinton repeatedly testified she never met Epstein, never flew on his plane, and never visited his properties, calling the Republican-led House Oversight Committee’s handling of the Epstein files “partisan political theater.” Hillary Clinton’s deposition was quickly put on hold after Rep. Lauren Boebert leaked photos of the former Secretary State that were subsequently posted on social media by a conservative influencer, violating the committee’s rules for depositions. Among questions directly related to Epstein, Hillary Clinton was also asked about “Pizzagate,” a debunked conspiracy theory that high-level democratic leadership ran a sex-trafficking ring in a pizzeria in Washington, DC, and government information about UFOs that was declassified under Bill Clinton’s presidential administration.
Meanwhile, Bill Clinton stated he had no knowledge of Epstein’s crimes at the time of their association. He confirmed taking “four or five trips” on Epstein’s plane to Asia and Africa, as well as one from Florida to New York for his foundation, the Clinton Global Initiative. describing his relationship with Epstein as “cordial” and businesslike, rather than a close friendship. Clinton has repeatedly framed his professional relations with Epstein as purely transactional: Epstein would lend Clinton the usage of his private jet in exchange for Clinton’s conversation on a variety of subjects, including economics and politics.
Though being held in contempt of Congress can result in up to a 12 month prison sentence and $100,000 fine, it’s unclear what consequences would await the Clintons if conclusive and implicative evidence would arise.