Former First Couple, Bill and Hillary Clinton, have testified in the Jeffrey Epstein files investigation. The former US Secretary of State and First Lady was questioned by a congressional committee on Thursday, maintaining that she did not remember meeting the late sex offender and paedophile.
“I do not recall ever encountering Mr Epstein. I never flew on his plane or visited his island, homes, or offices,” Clinton said in a statement hours after sitting for the closed-door deposition with the House of Representatives Oversight Committee in Chappaqua, New York.
Hillary Clinton deposition’s transcript
Several Democrats, including Rep Robert Garcia of California, demanded that the full, unedited transcript of Hillary’s deposition be released. Democratic Reps Yassamin Ansari, Wesley Bell, Suhas Subramanyam, and James Walkinshaw joined him.
While it is unlikely that the full transcript will be released, we have put together a few portions from public statements and media reports.
What did Hillary Clinton say about Epstein?
Clinton addressed reporters, saying she was repeatedly asked the same questions during the seven-hour deposition. The 78-year-old was also asked about UFOs and the Pizzagate conspiracy theory.
“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 said. “You could have seen it for yourself. We had asked for that. We think it would have been better for the committee and its efforts to gather whatever information they are seeking.”
“I don’t know how many times I had to say I did not know Jeffrey Epstein. I never went to his island, I never went to his home, I never went to his offices,” she added.
Meanwhile, Rep Lauren Boebert on Thursday told Newsmax that Clinton evaded several questions about Epstein.
“Now, other topics that didn’t have much relevance, she could recall in great detail, but it was very difficult to get clear answers from the former secretary on some of these more difficult issues,” Boebert said.
“For seven months, we have been working with the Clintons through the Oversight Committee to get them in for an open public hearing. And they kept refusing and denying. And ultimately, we did threaten to hold them in contempt of Congress. And that was a bipartisan vote,” Boebert added. “Many Democrats voted present, and others voted to hold the Clintons in contempt of Congress. And once they saw that, they did agree to this style of deposition. So here we are in New York, deposing both of the Clintons,” the Republican lawmaker added.
During the hearing, Hillary Clinton accused House members of going on a ‘fishing expedition’ for information about Epstein.
“If the majority was serious, it would not waste time on fishing expeditions,” Clinton told the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee. “What is being held back? Who is being protected? And why the cover-up?”
Rep James Comer, who is leading the inquiry, countered by saying that the panel wanted to learn about how Epstein raised his money for the Clinton family foundation and why Ghislaine Maxwell attended Hillary’s daughter’s wedding.
“No one is accusing, at this moment, the Clintons of wrongdoing,” Comer told reporters before the deposition. “But we have a lot of questions.”
New update on Bill Clinton
Bill Clinton on Friday became the first former president to be testified by a House panel. The closed-door deposition took place in New York. The deposition is expected to be centered around the Democrat’s several trips on Epstein’s private plane before Epstein pleaded guilty in 2008 to Florida state charges that included procurement of a minor to engage in prostitution.
Epstein also donated $1,000 to Bill Clinton’s 1992 presidential campaign and $20,000 to Hillary Clinton’s 2000 US Senate campaign. A charity controlled by Epstein contributed $25,000 to the Clintons’ private foundation.
(With Reuters inputs)
