Former US President Bill Clinton and his wife, Hillary Clinton, who earlier served as Secretary of State, have agreed to testify before Congress in the investigation linked to late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. The confirmation came from Bill Clinton’s former deputy chief of staff, who shared the update on social media. In a short post, he wrote, “The former President and former Secretary of State will be there.”
Bill Clinton’s name appears in the Epstein files released by the US Department of Justice. However, the former Democratic president has strongly denied any involvement in wrongdoing. Reportedly, Bill Clinton has never been accused by Epstein’s survivors either. He also claimed having no knowledge of Epstein’s sex crimes.
Bill and Hillary Clinton agree to testify in Epstein probe
This move comes just days before the Republican-led US House of Representatives was expected to vote on holding both Bill and Hillary Clinton in criminal contempt. Lawmakers had accused the couple of resisting legal summonses for several months.
The House Oversight Committee, which is controlled by Republicans, had already approved a measure last month to hold the Clintons in contempt. The committee first subpoenaed the Clintons in August. Other subpoenas went to several former top Justice Department officials, including former Attorneys General Merrick Garland, Loretta Lynch, Eric Holder, William Barr, Jeff Sessions, and Alberto Gonzales. Former FBI Directors James Comey and Robert Mueller were also called to testify.
‘No one is above the law,’ says Committee chief
Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer said the action was meant to send a strong message. In his statement, Comer said the committee wanted to make it clear that “no-one is above the law.” Earlier, lawyers representing the Clintons had pushed back against the committee’s subpoenas. They described them as “unenforceable” and said the couple had already shared the “limited information” they had regarding Epstein.
Comer said on Monday night that although the Clintons’ attorneys agreed to terms for testimony, the details were still unclear. He added that no dates for their depositions had been provided. “The only reason they have said they agree to terms is because the House has moved forward with contempt. I will clarify the terms they are agreeing to and then discuss next steps with my committee members,” Comer said.
On Friday, the Justice Department released over 3.5 million pages of files connected to Epstein. Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche said this represents about half of the more than six million documents collected. Many of the released documents were redacted. Earlier, in December, the first set of files included numerous photos of Bill Clinton.