Republicans on the House Oversight Committee have released video of depositions with former President Bill Clinton and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton conducted as part of the panel’s investigation into the Jeffrey Epstein files.
The Clintons were deposed separately last week behind closed doors after fighting subpoenas from the Republican-controlled committee. Both agreed to sit for hours of testimony only after being threatened with contempt of Congress charges; they had asked to testify publicly.
Over hours of testimony, the Clintons each denied prior knowledge of Epstein’s crimes before his 2008 guilty plea in Florida to state charges of soliciting prostitution from an underage girl. “I saw nothing, and I did nothing wrong,” Bill Clinton said in an opening statement shared ahead of his deposition Friday in Chappaqua, N.Y.
While neither has been accused of wrongdoing, Bill Clinton appears multiple times in the trove of Epstein records released by the committee, including in photos. He told lawmakers he met Epstein in 2001 or 2002 after leaving the White House, saying he was introduced by former Treasury Secretary Larry Summers. Clinton described their relationship as “cordial” but not a friendship, and said he cut ties with Epstein before the 2008 conviction.
Clinton acknowledged traveling on Epstein’s plane but said those trips were tied to his humanitarian work for the Clinton Foundation. “I thought we had an understanding about the airplane that — that he would let me use the airplane to set up my AIDS program around the world if I agreed to talk to him about economics and politics,” he said, adding they never discussed sensitive government topics. He told the committee he never witnessed Epstein abusing young women or girls and never discussed sexual acts with him.
Asked about a photo from the files showing him in a hot tub beside an unidentified person, Clinton said the image was taken on a trip to Brunei for the foundation’s AIDS initiative, that he did not know the other person and did not engage in sexual activity with them.
In her deposition, Hillary Clinton denied ever meeting Epstein. Speaking to reporters afterward, she said she answered the committee’s questions fully and reiterated she had “no prior relationship with the convicted sex offender.” She acknowledged knowing Epstein’s former associate Ghislaine Maxwell as a casual acquaintance but said Epstein “wasn’t on my radar” and she did not recall talking with him.
The Clintons spent weeks fighting the subpoenas; Bill Clinton said he agreed to testify because “America was built on the idea that no person is above the law, even presidents – especially presidents.” Democrats on the committee seized on that argument, saying Clinton’s appearance sets a precedent that should require President Joe Biden’s predecessor, Donald Trump, to answer lawmakers’ questions. Trump also appears in the Epstein files and denies knowledge of Epstein’s crimes; Democrats have raised questions about missing Epstein-related records tied to Trump, as previously reported by NPR.
Sam Gringlas contributed to this report.