A political and legal standoff is intensifying in Washington as former President Bill Clinton and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton refuse to comply with House Oversight Committee demands to testify about their past ties to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, raising the prospect of a contempt of Congress confrontation just days before scheduled depositions.
The Republican-led committee, chaired by Rep. James Comer of Kentucky, ordered Bill Clinton to appear for questioning in Washington on Dec. 17, with Hillary Clinton scheduled the following day. The Clintons' attorneys have flatly rejected the summons, arguing the investigation is politically motivated and designed to shield President Donald Trump from scrutiny over his own relationship with Epstein.
In a sharply worded letter to the committee, the Clintons' lawyer, David Kendall, accused Republicans of conducting a "weaponised legislative investigation" and said the effort was aimed at deflecting attention away from Trump. "President Trump has consistently sought to divert attention from his own relationship with Mr. Epstein, and unfortunately, the committee appears to be complicit," the letter stated.
Kendall further alleged selective enforcement by the committee, claiming that while the Clintons face imminent deposition deadlines, subpoenas issued to other high-profile figures had been quietly withdrawn. That pattern, he argued, underscored what he described as a partisan double standard rather than a good-faith oversight effort.
The renewed congressional focus has been fueled by flight logs, visitor records and unsealed court documents that show Bill Clinton maintained extensive contact with Epstein after leaving the White House. Records cited in the inquiry indicate that Clinton flew on Epstein's private aircraft at least 26 times and that Epstein visited the White House on 17 recorded occasions during Clinton's presidency.
Additional scrutiny has come from a 2016 email attributed to Epstein that resurfaced during the investigation. In the message, Epstein claimed he had severed ties with Clinton, writing: "He swore, with whole-hearted conviction to me that he had done something." Epstein added: "He had forgotten that he also swore the exact opposite to me only weeks before."
Political tensions escalated further after Democrats on the Oversight Committee released a batch of previously unseen photographs linked to Epstein. One image showing Bill Clinton standing alongside Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell has drawn particular attention, reigniting debate over Clinton's past association with the pair.
The photo release also included images featuring figures such as Woody Allen, Bill Gates, Steve Bannon and Richard Branson, but Republicans have focused heavily on Clinton's appearance. President Trump has seized on the disclosures, framing them as evidence of Democratic hypocrisy.
"Now that the Democrats are using the Epstein Hoax, involving Democrats, not Republicans, to try and deflect from their disastrous SHUTDOWN, and all of their other failures, I will be asking A.G. Pam Bondi, and the Department of Justice... to investigate Jeffrey Epstein's involvement and relationship with Bill Clinton," Trump declared.
Trump expanded his criticism, adding: "This is another Russia, Russia, Russia Scam, with all arrows pointing to the Democrats." He continued: "Records show that these men, and many others, spent large portions of their life with Epstein, and on his 'Island.' Stay tuned!!!"
