Hillary Clinton told a congressional panel that she “had no idea” about the criminal activities of Jeffrey Epstein, while urging lawmakers to compel President Donald Trump to testify under oath over his past association with the late financier.
The former US secretary of state made the remarks after spending several hours giving closed-door testimony to a House committee examining Epstein’s network and connections.
“I want to see the truth come out,” Clinton said after the deposition, calling for greater transparency in the investigation.
Her husband, former President Bill Clinton, is scheduled to testify before the committee on Friday.
The Clintons had initially resisted the committee’s subpoena, describing it as politically motivated, but later agreed to testify as the threat of potential contempt-of-Congress proceedings grew. Both the Clintons and Trump have denied any wrongdoing linked to Epstein.
Following more than six hours of questioning by members of the House Oversight Committee on Thursday, Clinton told reporters she was “disappointed” that her testimony was not made public, adding that doing so would have spared her from “having to be out here characterising it for you”.
She also praised committee chairman James Comer for raising what she described as serious and relevant questions about the scope of the inquiry, and for allowing her to outline areas she believes warrant further scrutiny.
“I appreciated that. I want to see the truth come out, so that was a reassuring way to end a very long, repetitive deposition,” she said of Comer.
Clinton said she also took issue with Republican members of the committee for failing to question other witnesses about Epstein or his convicted associate, Ghislaine Maxwell.
Bill Clinton has previously stated that he had no knowledge of Epstein’s crimes and severed ties with him roughly two decades ago.
He has said their interactions stemmed from charitable work following his presidency and has expressed regret over ever being associated with Epstein, who died in a New York City jail in 2019.
Ahead of Thursday’s hearing in Chappaqua, near the Clintons’ home, Hillary Clinton released her opening statement on X.
“I had no idea about their criminal activities,” she said of Epstein and Maxwell.
Her statement continued: “I do not recall ever encountering Mr Epstein. I never flew on his plane or visited his island, homes or offices. I have nothing to add to that.”
In the same statement, Clinton called on the House committee to summon Trump to testify directly under oath, noting that his name appears repeatedly in Epstein-related records.
Both Clintons’ names also appear in the files, though there is no suggestion that inclusion in the millions of Department of Justice documents implies any wrongdoing.
Thursday’s testimony was temporarily halted after a photograph from inside the closed-door session was leaked. Democratic lawmakers said the image, taken by Colorado Congresswoman Lauren Boebert, violated committee rules.
Boebert later acknowledged sending the photo to a conservative influencer and said it was taken before the deposition formally began.
Clinton said the incident prompted her legal team to pause proceedings to ensure no additional rules were breached.
During a break in the testimony, Democratic members of the committee defended Clinton to reporters gathered outside, arguing that the session had produced no new information.
They declined to disclose specific questions Clinton had been asked, instead characterising the proceedings as unproductive.
When pressed by reporters about the atmosphere inside the room, the committee’s top Democrat, Congressman Robert Garcia, said he wanted the full, unedited transcript of Clinton’s testimony released within 24 hours. He also renewed calls for Trump to testify — saying “that needs to happen right now”.
Congresswoman Yassamin Ansari, a Democrat from Arizona, described the hearing as a very “unserious clown show”, accusing Republicans of prioritising photographs of Clinton over “actually getting to the truth and holding anyone accountable”.
Bill Clinton appears in text messages and photographs released in phases by the Department of Justice during its disclosure of evidence gathered in federal investigations into Epstein.
The broader document release has highlighted Epstein’s connections with numerous high-profile figures, including after his conviction for sex crimes.
Such congressional depositions are typically held behind closed doors, though the Clintons pushed for their testimony to be public to prevent selective leaks.
Members from both parties were expected to brief reporters following Hillary Clinton’s appearance.
Bill Clinton’s testimony on Friday will mark the first time a former US president has appeared before a congressional panel since Gerald Ford did so in 1983.
