Hillary Clinton to Testify Before House Panel Investigating Epstein
Hillary Clinton is scheduled to appear on Thursday before a US House of Representatives panel investigating the crimes of the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
The former Democratic secretary of state and presidential candidate recently agreed, along with her husband, former President Bill Clinton, to testify before the House Oversight Committee.
Both had previously resisted demands to appear, describing the requests as politically motivated. Their decision to testify averted potential contempt-of-Congress proceedings against them.
Hillary Clinton has stated she does not recall meeting or speaking with Epstein. Bill Clinton, who did know Epstein, has denied any wrongdoing or knowledge of Epstein's criminal activities.
Bill Clinton has also said that he severed ties with Epstein two decades ago and expressed regret over ever being associated with the financier, who died in 2019.
He is expected to provide his own testimony on Friday.
The couple's recent announcement to provide testimony marked a reversal of their earlier defiant stance and came as a potential contempt vote loomed in the House.
Some Democratic members of the committee voted in favor of initiating contempt proceedings.
The Clintons have previously accused the panel's Republican leader, James Comer, of
"partisan politics"in his handling of the investigation. They described the legal summonses as
"nothing more than a ploy to attempt to embarrass political rivals, as President Trump has directed".
They insisted they had already submitted sworn statements covering the
"limited information"they possessed regarding Epstein.
Nonetheless, they will appear, according to a spokesperson for Bill Clinton, and
"they look forward to setting a precedent that applies to everyone".
James Comer stated that the effort to secure depositions from both Clintons was a bipartisan initiative to demonstrate that
"no-one is above the law".
Newly Released DOJ Files and Epstein's Connections
Bill Clinton appears in text and photographs recently released in stages by the US Department of Justice (DOJ) as part of its disclosure of material uncovered during federal investigations into Epstein's crimes.
The files broadly reveal the extent of Epstein's connections with multiple high-profile individuals, including associations that continued after his conviction for sex crimes.
As with others named in the files—including current President Donald Trump, who previously had his own association with Epstein—appearing in the documents does not imply any wrongdoing.
Details of the Hearings
The Clintons' hearings will take place in Chappaqua, New York, near their residence. Such depositions typically occur behind closed doors; however, the Clintons reportedly advocated for their testimony to be public to prevent selective leaks of their evidence to the media.
Both Democratic and Republican committee members are expected to address reporters following Hillary Clinton's deposition, scheduled for 11:00 EST (16:00 GMT).
The highly anticipated appearance by Bill Clinton on Friday will mark the first time a former US president has testified before a congressional panel since Gerald Ford did so in 1983.
