House panel votes to hold Clintons in contempt in Jeffrey Epstein probe
Former President Bill Clinton and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on January 20 at the US Capitol in Washington
By Annie Grayer, CNN
(CNN) — Lawmakers have taken the next step toward holding Bill and Hillary Clinton in contempt of Congress for refusing to comply with a subpoena to testify in the congressional Jeffrey Epstein investigation.
The Republican-controlled House Oversight Committee voted to send the effort to the full House for a vote. House Speaker Mike Johnson, who supports holding the Clintons in contempt, has committed to having the chamber weigh in on the resolutions.
Some Democrats joined with Republicans in voting to hold the former president in contempt. The vote to hold the former secretary of state in contempt was also bipartisan. But fewer Democrats supported that move, with some arguing she should be allowed to submit written testimony or should not have faced a subpoena for testimony in the first place.
Ultimately, however, it was moot as Republicans had the votes to send both to the full House.
The panel’s action marks an escalation in its feud with the Clintons over testimony in the bipartisan Epstein investigation. A successful contempt vote by the GOP-controlled House would be both symbolic — as rebukes to the Clintons — and could also be used as a tool to compel them to testify. It could also have legal consequences if the House votes and the courts or the Justice Department decide to take up the matter.
A vote by the full House would set up a referral to the Department of Justice, which would then have to decide whether to prosecute.
“Former President Clinton and Secretary Clinton were legally required to appear for depositions before this committee. They refused,” House Oversight Chair James Comer said during Wednesday’s committee meeting.
The former president sought a last-minute off-ramp to prevent the contempt proceedings from moving forward. Clinton proposed a limited interview with the top two lawmakers on the committee, according to a letter from the Clintons’ attorneys sent to Comer, which was obtained by CNN.
In a statement, Comer called the offer from the Clintons’ team “unreasonable” and said he planned to move forward with holding them in contempt.
On January 16, Clinton’s attorneys offered to make the former president available for an interview with Comer and the top Democrat on the panel, Rep. Robert Garcia, “on areas within the scope” of the panel’s Epstein probe, according to the letter. On January 19, Clinton’s counsel followed up to say staff could also attend the interview.
“You rejected those offers, and rather than provide counter offers, chose the spectacle of a contempt proceeding,” Clinton attorneys Ashley Callen and David E. Kendall wrote.
In a statement, Comer said that “the Clintons’ latest demands make clear they believe their last name entitles them to special treatment. The House Oversight Committee’s bipartisan subpoenas require the Clintons to appear for depositions that are under oath and transcribed.”
Even though negotiations between the two sides broke down, Comer told reporters after his panel advanced contempt proceedings that “there’s an opportunity” for the two sides to reach an agreement. He noted the Clintons have two weeks before the matter will receive a final floor vote.
Garcia said that he wants to hear from the Clintons but questioned why Comer was not pushing as aggressively for testimony from Epstein co-conspirator Ghislaine Maxwell, who has also been subpoenaed by the committee. Garcia also questioned why Comer was not holding the Justice Department accountable for not releasing all of the Epstein files in its possession by December 19, when the law required.
“Let’s be clear. We want to talk to President Bill Clinton. We want him to answer our questions. We also want Ghislaine Maxwell to answer our questions. We also want to understand why Pam Bondi refuses to release all the files,” the Democrat said.
After the committee meeting, Comer said he was not defending the attorney general for how the Department of Justice has slow-walked the release of the Epstein files. But, he said, he did not see reason to hold her in contempt of Congress even though the deadline mandated by law to release all of the files has passed.
“No one on our side is defending Bondi,” Comer told reporters.
Although a number of Democrats agreed that Bill Clinton should answer questions from the committee about his previous relationship with Epstein, many argued that the panel should also interview Trump for the same reasons.
Comer said that Trump has “answered a lot of questions” about Epstein but when it was pointed out those questions have not been under oath, the Republican chairman added, “There’s never been a sitting president come under oath in an Oversight Committee hearing. But we’ll see how this plays out. We want to get the truth.”
While Comer said he hasn’t seen anything “that implicates President Trump,” he didn’t rule out needing to speak with the president.
“I go back to what (former Attorney General) Bill Barr said: If there had been any evidence of wrongdoing by President Trump that would come out. But look, as the documents come in and more evidence is revealed, then we’ll go from there. No one’s above the law. And we’re not going to leave any box unchecked,” Comer said.
During the committee meeting, Comer announced that Maxwell is expected to appear for a closed-door deposition on February 9. She is expected to assert her the Fifth Amendment rights against self-incrimination and not testify.
Comer also claimed that the Clintons’ lawyers proposed to not have an official transcript — which a spokesman for Bill Clinton disputed.
Comer said that not having an official transcript would be “insulting to the American people” who want answers about Epstein. The GOP majority’s X account argued that the Clintons “demanded that there be only one staffer ‘to take notes’ for each side during an ‘interview.’”
Angel Ureña, the Clinton spokesman, responded to Comer on X, saying: “We never said no to a transcript. Interviews are on the record and under oath. Whether it was written or typed isn’t why this is happening. If that were the last or only issue, we’d be in a different position. You keep misdirecting to protect you-know-who and God knows what.”
This story has been updated with additional details.
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