Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton spent more than six hours Thursday in a closed-door deposition with the Republican-led House Oversight Committee, which subpoenaed her and former President Bill Clinton as part of its probe into convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Bill Clinton is scheduled to testify Friday.
After the deposition at the Chappaqua Performing Arts Center in New York, Clinton said she wished the hearing had been public and that she and her lawyers have asked for transcripts and video to be released as soon as possible. “It was disappointing that they refused to hold a public hearing so I wouldn’t have to be out here characterizing it for you,” she told reporters. “You could have seen it for yourself. We had asked for that.”
Clinton described the questioning as “repetitive” and said she would not appear before the committee again, even if a public hearing were offered. She repeatedly denied knowing Epstein and said she never visited his island, home or offices. While photographs of Bill Clinton appear in Epstein’s files and the former president had a friendship with Epstein, Bill Clinton has not been accused of wrongdoing.
Clinton said lawmakers eventually strayed to off-topic matters, including UFOs and the debunked “pizzagate” conspiracy alleging Democrats ran a child sex-trafficking ring. She expressed confidence that Bill Clinton knew nothing of Epstein’s criminal activity and said his association with Epstein ended years before Epstein’s criminal history emerged. She also criticized the 2008 plea deal Epstein received in Florida.
Committee Chair Rep. James Comer (R-Ky.) said he expects the deposition video to be made public within 24 hours and that the transcript will be released after Clinton’s attorneys review it, per standard deposition rules. The deposition was briefly halted after a conservative influencer posted a photo from inside the room, but questioning resumed with participation from both parties.
Republicans on the committee called the session productive, saying Clinton answered most questions but lamenting the delay in securing testimony from the Clintons. Comer said Clinton often responded, “I don’t know, you’ll have to ask my husband,” and said he has many questions for Bill Clinton, predicting the former president’s deposition may last even longer.