After months of resistance, Bill and Hillary Clinton have agreed to testify before a House panel investigating convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
The depositions will be filmed and transcribed, a point of contention in the past between the Clintons and the members investigating crimes by Epstein and his associate Ghislaine Maxwell, and their connections to powerful people.
The former secretary of state and first lady will appear before the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee on Feb. 26. Her husband, the 42nd president, will appear on Capitol Hill to take questions from the committee on Feb. 27.
The late-breaking deal averted a House floor vote to hold both Clintons in contempt of Congress for dodging testimony since October. Last month, a bipartisan majority on the oversight committee approved contempt measures.
“Republicans and Democrats on the Oversight Committee have been clear: no one is above the law—and that includes the Clintons. After delaying and defying duly issued subpoenas for six months, the House Oversight Committee moved swiftly to initiate contempt of Congress proceedings in response to their non-compliance,” House Oversight Chairman James Comer, R-Ky., said in a statement Tuesday.
“Once it became clear that the House of Representatives would hold them in contempt, the Clintons completely caved and will appear for transcribed, filmed depositions this month,” Comer continued. “We look forward to questioning the Clintons as part of our investigation into the horrific crimes of Epstein and Maxwell, to deliver transparency and accountability for the American people and for survivors.”
The Clintons previously changed the terms of their deposition, originally scheduled in October, asking for a location change to New York and demanding no transcription of the former president’s testimony.
The House Rules Committee was meeting Monday to schedule a vote when the Clintons made a last-ditch offer to testify. The committee delayed a vote to advance the contempt proceedings until negotiations were settled.
On Tuesday morning, House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., announced the Clintons had a deadline of noon before the House would schedule a contempt vote this week.
Last month, the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee voted on a bipartisan basis to hold both the 42nd president and the former secretary of state in contempt of Congress after the two failed to appear for their rescheduled deposition.
Angel Urena, deputy chief of staff for former President Bill Clinton, asserted in an X post Monday that the Clintons “negotiated in good faith” and were ready to testify.
The House Rules Committee ranking member, Rep. Jim McGovern, D-Mass., said Monday that Congress should focus on President Donald Trump, who also had a past friendship with Epstein.
“Please, do not insult America’s intelligence by trying to make this conversation about the Clintons. First of all, the Clintons have publicly called for the government to release all, all the Epstein files, unlike Donald Trump, who said he would release them all, but then he backtracked,” McGovern said.
The Justice Department is in the process of releasing Epstein files after a bipartisan law was passed by Congress to compel the release.
“The Clintons want to cooperate. They sent written declarations of what they knew, and they were negotiating to testify under oath,” McGovern said. “When will President Trump testify?”
Contempt of Congress is a criminal charge punishable by up to a year in prison or a $100,000 fine.
On July 23, 2025, Republicans and Democrats on the House Oversight Subcommittee on Federal Law Enforcement unanimously approved a motion to issue subpoenas to ten individuals, including the Clintons, as part of its investigation into Epstein and his associate Ghislaine Maxwell.
“Subpoenas are not mere suggestions; they carry the force of law,” House Oversight and Government Reform Committee Chairman James Comer, R-Ky., told the House Rules Committee.
The 42nd president was once photographed in a swimming pool at Epstein’s estate, appearing with both Maxwell, who was convicted of helping Epstein perpetrate crimes, and another woman whose face was blocked out. The photo was published in a batch of Epstein files released by the Justice Department in December.
Comer argued that Hillary Clinton should also be questioned about Epstein, as she is a former secretary of state whose agency has an office to combat international sex trafficking.
The House Oversight Committee initially requested the 42nd president’s deposition on Oct. 14, 2025, while the former secretary of state’s was set for Oct. 9. Those depositions were later postponed to Dec. 17 and Dec. 18, respectively, but the Clintons said they had to attend a funeral at that time. The committee moved the dates once again to January 2026. The Clintons declined.
The Clintons argued in a letter to Comer that the move to require their testimony was partisan and could not be legally enforced.
Nine committee Democrats joined 25 Republicans to hold Bill Clinton in contempt of Congress, in a lopsided 34-8 vote. However, most committee Democrats objected to holding Hillary Clinton in contempt, with three Democratic members joining Republicans in a 28-15 vote.
