After months of refusing to appear in person, Bill and Hillary Clinton have agreed to testify before Congress. The shift came only after lawmakers moved toward a vote that could have held them in criminal contempt.
The House Oversight Committee had pressed them for weeks to answer questions about Jeffrey Epstein under oath. That pressure paused a growing legal confrontation between Congress and two former national leaders. It also placed the Epstein inquiry back at the center of Washington politics.
The House Oversight Committee, led by Republicans, is reviewing how past investigations into Epstein were handled and whether warnings were ignored. The Clintons initially rejected in-person subpoenas, arguing they lacked a clear legislative purpose and were politically motivated. In response, the House Rules Committee advanced contempt resolutions, raising the stakes and accelerating the timeline.
Once the threat became concrete, the Clintons reversed course. Bill Clinton’s deputy chief of staff, Angel Ureña, confirmed on X that both would appear before the panel. After that announcement, lawmakers suspended the contempt vote while clarifying the terms of the testimony.
House Speaker Mike Johnson called the decision a good development. Oversight Chair James Comer said he would still determine next steps with his committee. The dispute underscored how procedural battles often shape high-profile investigations.
On substance, Bill Clinton has acknowledged flying on Epstein’s private jet several times in 2002 and 2003 for Clinton Foundation work. He insists he never visited Epstein’s island and had no knowledge of his crimes. Hillary Clinton has said she never flew on the plane, never visited the island, and had no meaningful interactions with Epstein.
Neither Clinton has been accused of criminal wrongdoing by survivors of Epstein’s abuse. The Justice Department has just released what it called its final tranche of Epstein-related files, adding thousands of pages to the public record. Lawmakers have said those documents will continue to shape the scope of the investigation.
