Former US secretary of state Hillary Clinton testified for more than six hours behind closed doors on Thursday before the Republican-led House Oversight Committee as part of its investigation into Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell.The deposition, held in the Clintons’ hometown of Chappaqua, New York, followed months of tense back-and-forth between the former Democratic power couple and the committee. The Clintons had resisted the panel’s subpoena, dismissing it as politically motivated, before agreeing to testify as potential contempt-of-Congress proceedings loomed against them.It was the first time that a former president has been forced to testify before Congress. Former President Bill Clinton is scheduled to appear before the committee on Friday.
Hillary denies any knowledge of crimes
In an opening statement shared on social media, Hillary Clinton said she had no knowledge of the criminal activities of Epstein or Maxwell. “I had no idea about their criminal activities. I do not recall ever encountering Mr. Epstein,” she said.“I do not recall ever encountering Mr. Epstein,” she said in her prepared remarks. “I never flew on his plane or visited his island, homes or offices. I have nothing to add to that.”“Like every decent person,” she added, “I have been horrified by what we have learned about their crimes.”Clinton said Thursday she was confident her husband knew nothing of Epstein’s abuse of minors or other crimes. “I think the chronology of the connection that he had with Epstein ended years, several years, before anything about Epstein’s criminal activities came to light,” she said after giving what she described as a “long and very repetitive” deposition.
Questions on UFOs and ‘Pizzagate’
After her deposition, Hillary said that the questioning shifted after she repeatedly told House Republicans she did not know Jeffrey Epstein.She said the exchange became “quite unusual, because I started being asked about UFOs and a series of questions about Pizzagate, one of the most vile, bogus conspiracy theories that was propagated on the internet, that was serving as the basis of a member’s questions to me.”Pizzagate was a 2016 conspiracy theory built on the false claim that members of Clinton’s campaign team used coded emails to discuss child sex slaves allegedly held in the basement of Comet Ping Pong — a pizza restaurant in Washington, DC, that has no basement and no connection to child sex-trafficking.The conspiracy theory was promoted by far-right supporters of Donald Trump, including Jack Posobiec, until late 2016 when a man armed with an assault rifle, who believed the claims were true, entered the restaurant to “self-investigate” and fired a shot inside.Speaking to reporters after her deposition, Hillary said she answered every question that was asked of her.
Call for Trump to testify
Hillary accused the committee of targeting her to distract from Donald Trump.“You have compelled me to testify, fully aware that I have no knowledge that would assist your investigation, in order to distract attention from President Trump’s actions and to cover them up despite legitimate calls for answers,” she said in her opening statement.She said the committee should ask Trump “directly under oath about the tens of thousands of times he shows up in the Epstein files.”Trump was a one-time close friend of Epstein but has not been charged with any wrongdoing related to the disgraced financier, who died in a New York jail cell in 2019 while awaiting trial for sex trafficking.Hillary also accused the committee of an “institutional failure” that was designed to “protect one political party and one public official, rather than to seek truth and justice for the victims and survivors (of Epstein).”
Agreed areas of testimony
The Clintons and members of the House Oversight Committee agreed to five topic areas for the depositions. They are:
- alleged mismanagement of the federal government’s investigation into Epstein and Maxwell;
- the circumstances and subsequent investigations of Epstein’s 2019 death;
- the ways the federal government could effectively combat sex-trafficking rings;
- how Epstein and Maxwell sought to curry favor to protect their illegal activities;
- and potential violations of ethics rules related to elected officials.
The committee’s investigation has also sought to understand why the Department of Justice under previous presidential administrations did not seek further charges against Epstein following a 2008 arrangement in which he pleaded guilty to state charges in Florida for soliciting prostitution from an underage girl but avoided federal charges.
Disruption during deposition
The testimony was briefly halted after Rep Lauren Boebert shared a photograph of Hillary answering questions from inside the deposition room. The image was posted on social media by Benny Johnson.Hillary’s attorneys immediately asked to pause the proceedings, noting that she had been denied her request for a public hearing. The deposition resumed about 30 minutes later. Rep Suhas Subramanyam, D-Va., said the first hour of the deposition before the interruption had been an embarrassment to Republicans, turning up nothing of significance. “Secretary Clinton is puzzled as to why she’s here answering questions,” he said. “I’m trying to figure out what else to ask her. She doesn’t know much.”
Photos, flights and social events resurface
Hillary Clinton has previously said her husband flew with Epstein for charitable trips but that she did not recall ever meeting Epstein.Bill Clinton traveled on Epstein’s private plane at least 16 times, according to a CNN review, and was pictured with women in a jacuzzi in files released by the US Department of Justice. Several photos of the former president were included in the first tranche of Epstein files released in January, including a number of him with women whose faces were redacted. He was also pictured with Ghislaine Maxwell.Hillary Clinton acknowledged that she had interacted with Maxwell at conferences hosted by the Clinton Foundation. Maxwell, a British socialite and Epstein’s former girlfriend and confidant, also attended the 2010 wedding of the Clintons’ daughter, Chelsea Clinton.While exiting the event center where the deposition was held, Clinton told reporters that Maxwell had come to the wedding as a guest of someone else and that she had told the committee she only knew Maxwell “as an acquaintance.”Epstein survivors and lawyers representing them have said it is important for the Clintons, particularly the former president, to testify as lawmakers continue to examine the government’s handling of the case.
