Hillary Clinton to testify in closed-door US House panel in Jeffrey Epstein probe; will Bill Clinton appear?

Former U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is set to give closed-door testimony on Thursday before a congressional panel probing disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein and his associate Ghislaine Maxwell, as reported by AFP.

The Clintons had initially rejected subpoenas ordering them to testify in the panel's probe, but the Democratic power couple eventually agreed to do so after House Republicans threatened to hold them in contempt of Congress.

Will Bill Clinton appear?

Former President Bill Clinton is expected to appear the following day before the Republican-led House Oversight Committee to answer questions about his ties to Epstein, who died in a New York jail cell in 2019 while awaiting trial, AFP reported.

Democrats say the investigation is being weaponized to attack political opponents of Republican President Donald Trump -- himself a former Epstein associate who has not been called to testify -- rather than to conduct legitimate oversight.

Trump and Bill Clinton, both 79, feature prominently in the recently released trove of government documents related to Epstein, but have each said they broke ties with the financier before his 2008 conviction in Florida as a sex offender.

Mere mention in the files is not proof of having committed a crime.

The Clintons called for their depositions to be public but the committee insisted on questioning them behind closed doors, a move Bill Clinton denounced as akin to a "kangaroo court."

Hillary Clinton, 78, who lost the 2016 presidential election to Trump, said in an interview with the BBC last week that she and her husband “have nothing to hide.”

She met Maxwell "on a few occasions," she said, but never had any meaningful interactions with Epstein.

The depositions are being held in Chappaqua, New York, where the Clintons reside. Dozens of journalists have converged on the wealthy hamlet to cover the unprecedented hearing.

The Secret Service had erected metal barricades around the arts center where the deposition will take place, with the Clintons expected to enter through a side door shielded by a white tent.

Sex trafficking

Bill Clinton has admitted to taking several flights on Epstein’s plane in the early 2000s for humanitarian work connected to the Clinton Foundation but maintained that he never visited Epstein’s private Caribbean island.

Maxwell, 64, is currently serving a 20-year prison sentence for sex trafficking.

She recently appeared via video link before the House Oversight Committee but declined to answer questions, citing her Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination.

Her attorney, David Markus, said Maxwell would be prepared to speak publicly if granted clemency by Trump.

Epstein built connections with influential business leaders, politicians, celebrities, and academics.

The disclosure of files related to his case has triggered global fallout, including high-profile arrests in Britain, such as those of former prince Andrew and Peter Mandelson, the former UK ambassador to the United States.

Many high-profile Americans have had their reputations damaged by ties to Epstein and resigned from their positions, but Maxwell remains the only individual convicted in connection with the late financier.

(With inputs from AFP)