Former President Bill Clinton appeared under subpoena before the House Oversight Committee for a roughly four-and-a-half-hour deposition focused on his relationship with convicted sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell. The deposition followed a protracted legal battle — Clinton initially failed to appear for a January 13, 2026 deposition, prompting the committee to vote a contempt report before he agreed to testify. His wife, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, had testified the day prior.
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Relationship with Epstein
Clinton testified that he first recalls meeting Epstein around 2002, when he boarded Epstein’s plane for the first trip connected to his foundation’s global AIDS initiative. He said former Harvard president Larry Summers called him to say Epstein — described as a wealthy investment advisor who had donated millions to Harvard for brain research — wanted to discuss economics and politics, and would provide his aircraft for Clinton’s foundation trips in exchange for roughly an hour of conversation per long-haul flight.
Clinton described taking four or five international trips on Epstein’s plane to Africa, Asia, and Northern Europe between 2002 and 2003, plus one domestic flight from Florida to New York. He said his Secret Service detail accompanied him on every trip.
Clinton characterized his relationship with Epstein as “cordial” and “friendly” but said he did not consider Epstein a friend. He described Epstein as “interesting and curious” early on but said Epstein eventually seemed to lose genuine interest in what Clinton cared about — the AIDS work — and was “going through the motions.” Clinton said he moved on to other supporters who were more passionate about the foundation’s mission.
Clinton testified his last flight on Epstein’s plane was in 2003, and that he had no direct contact with Epstein after Epstein’s 2006 arrest.
Denials of Wrongdoing
Clinton repeatedly and categorically denied under oath:
Ever witnessing Epstein sexually abuse or assault anyone
Ever having sexual contact with anyone introduced by Epstein or Maxwell
Ever visiting Epstein’s Little St. James Island in the U.S. Virgin Islands
Ever discussing young women or girls with Epstein
Having any knowledge of Epstein’s crimes before the 2008 prosecution
Ever attempting to influence media coverage of Epstein
Ever advocating for leniency in Epstein’s legal cases
Receiving money, financial advice, or loans from Epstein
When asked about Virginia Giuffre’s allegation that she saw Clinton on Epstein’s island with two young girls, Clinton denied ever visiting the island. He responded “Hell no” when asked whether he pressured Vanity Fair to kill Epstein stories, as alleged in a Giuffre email.
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