Former President Bill Clinton and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton agreed to testify in a House investigation into convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
As per Independent, Rep. James Comer, chair of the House Oversight Committee, had been preparing criminal contempt of Congress charges against the Clintons for allegedly defying a congressional subpoena when their attorneys emailed the committee, stating the couple would comply and “will appear for depositions on mutually agreeable dates.”
The attorneys asked Comer to halt the contempt proceedings. Comer, however, said he was not immediately dropping the charges, which could carry fines and even jail time if approved by the House and prosecuted by the Department of Justice.
“We don't have anything in writing,” Comer told reporters, noting he was open to the Clintons’ offer but that “it depends on what they say.”
The last-minute negotiating came as Republican leaders were advancing the contempt resolution through the House Rules Committee, a final hurdle before it headed to the House floor for a vote.
It was potentially a grave moment for Congress, the first time it could hold a former president in contempt and advance the threat of prison time.
Bill Clinton’s relationship with Epstein has reemerged as a focal point for Republicans amid the push for a reckoning over Epstein, who killed himself in 2019 in a New York jail cell as he faced sex trafficking charges.
