Hillary Clinton Questioned by Congressional Committee About Ties to Epstein
Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton was questioned for over six hours on Thursday regarding her family's ties to Jeffrey Epstein. While the deposition was closed to the public, several of the lawmakers in the room later spoke with the media, offering a glimpse of what transpired. Here is a look at the contentious interview.
Hillary Clinton Appears in Front of House Oversight Committee to Discuss Epstein Connection
Hillary Clinton emerged from the questioning with members of the House Oversight Committee, saying that she had "answered every one of their questions as fully as I could based on what I knew." She used the time with the media to reiterate that she had never met Epstein. The deposition took place near the Clintons' home in Chappaqua, New York.
While the Clintons had originally resisted testifying in what they said was a GOP witch hunt aimed at them, they changed their mind when it became clear that they could be held in criminal contempt of Congress by not appearing. Former President Bill Clinton is scheduled to testify about the same Epstein-related issues on Friday.
Thursday's interview is now distinguished as one of the most high-profile interactions between the House Oversight Committee and those connected to Epstein. Hillary Clinton has continued to maintain that she has no connection to the late convicted sex offender and his proven criminal activities. She also criticized the Republican-led committee for insisting on conducting the deposition in private and without a media presence.
Clinton told reporters gathered outside the Chappaqua Performing Arts Center that “I don’t know how many times I had to say, ‘I did not know Jeffrey Epstein.'” Although she admitted to knowing Ghislaine Maxwell, she described her as a mere acquaintance. The Clinton family has been scrutinized for inviting Maxwell to their daughter Chelsea's 2010 wedding. However, Hillary Clinton said on Thursday that the convicted accomplice to Epstein was just a guest of somebody who had been invited to the event.
Tensions High from the Start at the Deposition
Not surprisingly, Thursday's deposition did not come without a fair amount of drama. During her opening statement, Clinton questioned the Republican lawmakers why they had not questioned others with proven ties to Epstein, including President Donald Trump.
The situation only went downhill from there. The proceedings were forced to pause briefly after a conservative podcaster posted a photo from the interview that was provided to him by GOP Rep. Lauren Boebert. Democrats said that the distribution of the photo from inside the deposition room was a violation of House rules.
Rep. James Comer, chairman of the House Oversight Committee, recognized the fact that the deposition was not open to the media. Comer said that he would attempt to publish a video of the proceedings on Friday. The Republican representing Kentucky called the interview "productive." However, he also criticized Clinton for referring too many questions about her husband back to him.
On the other side of the political aisle, Democratic Rep. Robert Garcia praised Clinton for “completely cooperating with the deposition and the committee. The top-ranking Democrat on the committee said that Clinton answered the questions in good faith.
Republican Rep. Nancy Mace of South Carolina told reporters after the deposition that Clinton answered all of the questions. According to a source inside the deposition room, Mace asked Clinton several questions about her husband, including her feelings about the photos in the Epstein files showing him being massaged by young women. The former secretary of state simply said that she was not going to speculate about any event where she was not in attendance, also noting that she was not discussing feelings at this time.
It has been widely reported that Bill Clinton traveled on Epstein’s private aircraft at least 16 times. He was also pictured at least twice in the Epstein case files recently released by the U.S. Justice Department, including a photo of him in a jacuzzi with an unidentified woman. It should be noted that Bill Clinton has never been accused by members of law enforcement of any crime related to Epstein. A spokesperson for the former president said that he cut ties with Epstein long before his arrest in 2019.
This deposition has been in the works for a long period of time. Both the Clintons and members of the House Oversight Committee agreed to five key topic areas for each of the depositions. These five areas include discussions about the alleged mismanagement of the investigation into Epstein and Maxwell, the suspicious circumstances surrounding Epstein's death while in prison, how the federal government can fight sex-trafficking rings, how Epstein and Maxwell tried to bribe people into protecting their illegal activities, and potential violations of ethics rules by elected officials surrounding the case.
Like his wife, Bill Clinton will also appear for his Friday deposition in Chappaqua.
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