Bill and Hillary Clinton agreed to testify to Congress about ties to Epstein. Refusal threatened them with a criminal case

Photo: Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images

Former US President Bill Clinton and his wife Hillary (who served as Secretary of State) agreed to testify to the US House Oversight Committee. This body, at the initiative of Republicans, is investigating the ties of convicted pedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein with influential figures, according to the BBC.

In millions of documents published by the US Department of Justice in the Epstein case, Clinton is mentioned numerous times, and there are also photographs of the former president with the financier.

However, victims of Epstein's actions have never filed charges against the ex-president or his wife, and the Clintons themselves say they knew nothing about his crimes.

The Deputy Chief of Staff for Bill Clinton announced on his social networks: "The former president and former Secretary of State will appear there."

The last time a former US president testified before a congressional committee was in 1983, and that was Gerald Ford.

The House of Representatives, where Republicans hold the majority, intended to vote on holding the Clintons in contempt for refusing to appear at a hearing following a subpoena issued by the Oversight Committee.

The U.S. Congress has the right to detain those who refuse to provide testimony or produce documents. Congress can also send a request to the Department of Justice to prosecute those in contempt or ask a court to issue an order compelling compliance with a subpoena issued by lawmakers.

Contempt of the U.S. Congress is a criminal offense punishable by a fine of up to $100,000 and imprisonment for up to one year.

The head of the Oversight Committee, Republican James Comer, said that the Clintons had been summoned to testify about five months ago but never appeared. The committee then voted to hold them in contempt, with several Democrats supporting the decision.

What the Clintons say

The Clintons' lawyers said that the subpoenas issued to them could not be fulfilled and explained that the couple had already provided the "limited information" about Epstein that they possessed.

The Clintons insisted they chose not to testify to Congress because these hearings have clear political motivation. "They are merely an attempt to disgrace political opponents at the behest of President Trump," the former president and secretary of state believe.

On Monday, Bill Clinton's official spokesperson, Angel Ureña, stated that the couple would appear at the congressional hearings. "They negotiated in good faith, and you did not," he wrote to the Oversight Committee. "They told you everything they knew under oath, but you don't care about that. They are waiting for the opportunity to set a precedent that will apply to everyone."

Joint photos of Clinton with Epstein were taken during various periods from the 1990s to the early 2000s, i.e., before Epstein was arrested on charges of transporting people for sexual exploitation.

In one photo, the former president is depicted in a pool at Epstein's villa; in another, he is likely lying in a bathtub.

Clinton's representatives insist that he ceased all ties with Epstein before his crimes became known.

However, they admit that Bill Clinton flew on Epstein's private plane four times in 2002 and 2003, and also met with the financier in New York in 2002. At that time, he also visited the millionaire's New York apartment.

American media reported that Clinton flew on Epstein's plane much more often: more than 20 times, and sometimes without the accompaniment of Secret Service agents, which he was entitled to for protection as a former president.

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