WASHINGTON (TNND) — The House Oversight Committee released the full depositions of former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and former President Bill Clinton centered on the committee’s investigation into the Epstein files on Monday.
Throughout the more than four hour hearing, the former first lady maintained that she did not have a relationship nor ever met convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, who killed himself in 2019. Clinton grew annoyed and angered at times, and at one point stormed out of the hearing. Here are the top ten moments from the hearing.
A photo of Clinton taken inside of the deposition was posted on social media by conservative commentator Benny Johnson. He said in his post that Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-CO) had taken the photo. Boebert contended she took it before the hearing started.
One of Clinton’s attorneys asked the committee to explain why the photo of Clinton was taken and posted online when it was against the committee’s rules.
“If you guys are doing that, I am done,” Clinton said. “You can hold me in contempt from now until the cows come home. This is just typical behavior.”
At one point, Clinton banged her fist on the table and wagged her finger in the air at Boebert after she said the photo was taken before the hearing began,
“It doesn’t matter,” Clinton said. “We all are abiding by the same rules!”
A lawmaker asked Clinton if she considered Epstein inviting her husband onboard his private jet a donation to the Clinton Foundation.
“Well, I don’t know what the rules are under the 501C3 regulations, but it was certainly a gift,” Clinton said. “And he was one of a number of people who provided transportation so that Bill could do the work he was doing.”
Clinton accused the committee of using her as “a distraction” from Trump’s ties to Epstein. She claimed that Trump’s name appeared “tens of thousands of times.”
The former Secretary of State claimed that the Committee knew she “had no knowledge” about Epstein, but subpoenaed her to “distract from President Trump’s actions, to cover them up despite legitimate calls for answers.”
“If this committee is serious about learning the truth about Epstein’s traffic and crimes, it would not rely on press gaggles to get answers from our current president on his involvement,” Clinton said
“It would ask him directly under oath about the tens of thousands of times he shows up in the Epstein files. If the majority was serious, it would not waste time on fishing expeditions,” Clinton continued. “There is too much to be done. What is being held back? Who is being protected and why the cover up.”
The former first lady reiterated that her sworn declaration she made on January 13 remains the same. She had never met Epstein.
“I had no idea about their criminal activities,” Clinton said, referring to Epstein and his accomplice Ghislaine Maxwell. “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.”
A committee member instructed Clinton to review an email sent by a Clinton staffer to Epstein requesting he help facilitate “a discreet” meeting between Clinton and former French President Nicolas Sarkozy in New York.
Epstein responded to the email saying no meeting with Hillary Clinton will be “discreet.” The lawmaker asked Clinton if she was “aware” of this email.
“I am not aware, and I find it kind of weird, because I know Sarkozy, he would not have needed, you know, if somebody was seeking a meeting with me and Sarkozy, he would not have needed to go through anybody else,” Clinton said. “He could have contacted me directly.”
A lawmaker brought up an FBI document reviewing an interview with a victim of Epstein’s. The victim said in the interview that Epstein coached her to say another victim was lying about Bill Clinton’s visits to the island.
“That is not accurate,” a lawyer for Clinton stated. “The record will reflect in the court report. Reporter can read it back with respect to whether or not President Clinton had ever been on Epstein Island. If somebody had represented that, that would not be accurate.”
A lawmaker continued to explain that parts of the document are redacted and that they were trying to get to the “bottom” of this.
A lawmaker asked Clinton if she would give her perspective on seeing photos of her husband Bill on the beach getting massages from women.
“When you knew that Jeffrey Epstein was involved in some of these trips and these things, did it concern you at all,” a lawmaker asked.
“I am here not to offer my opinion,” Clinton said. “I am here to answer specific questions to the best of my ability.”
The lawmaker asked again.
“I am not going to speculate,” Clinton said.
“You didn’t have any feelings about young women massaging your husband?” the lawmaker asked a third time.
“I am not going to offer opinions or speculation about anything I have no context for,” Clinton responded.
Hillary is “tired” of hearing the same questions “over and over again”
“I am so tired of answering that question, if you have one scintilla of evidence to the contrary, put it forward,” Clinton responded. “I have never been on his island period. I’ve never been in his homes, his offices. Anything.”
“I don’t know how many times you have to say the same thing over and over and over again, and I just am struggling with the relevance of all of this, But no,” Clinton continued.
Clinton said she “appreciated” a question about Epstein’s possible foreign ties, telling the committee that it should subpoena the CIAM DNI and any counter intelligence unit within the Justice Department.
“I think you have to cast a wide net, and now that, as you describe, the government in the UK is investigating both Andrew Mountbatten and Peter Mendelson, maybe they would cooperate with you in their investigation, and maybe, you know, you could reach out to the intelligence agencies of other countries that you’re looking at,” Clinton said.
“Israel has been mentioned,” Clinton continued. “I don’t think Iran is going to cooperate, but I think or Russia, but I think you could, you know, certainly go to the UK and go to Israel and see if they would be at all helpful to you.”
“Would you consider Ms. Maxwell a friend,” a lawmaker asked.
“No,” Clinton said.
“Would you consider her a friend of President Clinton,” the lawmaker asked.
“You’d have to ask him that,” Clinton said.
Maxwell was one of Clinton’s friends at her daughter Chelsea’s wedding in 2010.
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