Bill Clinton Deposed in House Epstein Investigation

Most congressional precedents emanate from Capitol Hill.

Most presidential precedents arise from 1600 Pennsylvania Ave.

But a precedent that may echo through the halls of Congress and the White House for years materialized in recent days in the wooded, snow-covered town of Chappaqua, New York.

That's where former President Bill Clinton testified under subpoena before the House Oversight Committee as part of its investigation into Jeffrey Epstein. Lawmakers said the panel's ability to compel a former president to testify could set a new precedent in the future, including in matters involving President Trump and Epstein's files.

According to congressional historians, never before had a congressional committee deposed a former president. It was quite strange that former First Lady and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton testified the day before. Republicans noted that former President Clinton had previously acknowledged that he knew Epstein and had taken trips that included him.

“I don't remember ever meeting Mr. Epstein. I never flew on his plane or visited his island, his homes or his offices,” Hillary Clinton said after nearly six hours of closed-door testimony before the panel.

House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer, R-Ky., said Hillary Clinton declared “'You'll have to ask my husband'” more than “a dozen” times during her testimony before Bill Clinton's the next day.

There are no allegations of wrongdoing against any of the Clintons in connection with Epstein. But the former president's past ties to Jeffrey Epstein have raised questions from lawmakers.

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“It's very difficult to get people to attend these depositions of great power and great wealth,” Comer said. “It took us seven months, seven months, to get the Clintons here. But we have them here.”

“Here” was Chappaqua, about an hour north of New York City. The Clintons have resided in Chappaqua since President Clinton left office in 2001 and when Hillary Clinton ran for the Senate from New York in 2000. Hillary Clinton was a senator from New York from 2001 to 2009, when she became President Obama's first Secretary of State.

Former US President Bill Clinton speaks during the Clinton Global Initiative (CGI) 2025 in New York City, the United States, on September 24, 2025. (Kylie Cooper/Reuters)

More specifically, the “here” for the Clintons' testimony was not a nondescript office in the Rayburn House office building. House members questioned the Clintons at the Chappaqua Performing Arts Center, known locally as “ChappPAC,” a white structure with simple arches and Greek columns atop a hill above the Saw Mill River.

The Epstein investigation is serious and the unusual location underscored the extraordinary nature of the procedure.

Rep. Lauren Boebert, R-Colo., appeared to take a photo of Hillary Clinton during the statement and later shared it with conservative media outlets.

“I admire (Hillary Clinton's) blue suit. So I wanted to capture it for everyone,” Boebert said outside the venue.

“Why did you send the photo?” asked a journalist.

“Why not?” -Boebert replied-.

“We are witnessing an incredibly unserious and clownish statement, in which members of Congress and the Republican Party are more concerned about getting a photo op from Secretary Clinton than getting to the truth and holding anyone accountable,” charged Rep. Yassamin Ansari, D-Ariz.

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After concluding her testimony, Hillary Clinton told reporters that she found the “end” of the statement “quite unusual because they started asking me about UFOs and a series of questions about Pizzagate, one of the most vile and false conspiracy theories to spread on the Internet.”

This is a reference to a conspiracy theory that emerged during the 2016 presidential campaign between Hillary Clinton and President Trump. His defenders falsely claimed that Democrats operated a child sex trafficking ring out of the Comet Ping Pong pizzeria in Washington. Later, a North Carolina man drove to Washington, D.C. and shot inside the restaurant, telling authorities he was there to rescue the children.

Rep. Nancy Mace, R.N.C., claimed Hillary Clinton was “yelling” at lawmakers during the statement.

“She was unhinged,” Mace said. “And I hope President Clinton is less upset today than his wife was yesterday.”

Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, R-Fla., left the Chappaqua Performing Arts Center about 90 minutes after former President Clinton's statement to speculate about what may have been behind Epstein and his sex trafficking operation. Luna noted that she was speaking only for herself and not for other members of the committee.

Former Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton (L) and former President Bill Clinton arrive at the West Front of the United States Capitol on January 20, 2017 in Washington, DC. At today's inauguration ceremony, Donald J. Trump becomes the 45th president of the United States. (Win McNamee/Getty Images)

“It has become very evident even in the last 24 hours in the lines of questioning that Jeffrey Epstein was running an intelligence gathering operation,” Luna said. “I think it was a honey operation.”

Luna added that it was possible that a US intelligence ally was involved, although he did not provide evidence for that claim.

One of the five areas agreed upon to question the Clintons was how Epstein used his connections with powerful figures to cover up his crimes. That's why people like former President Clinton and President Trump have appeared in previously released Epstein-related documents.

The presidency is a unique position, and even President Trump expressed some sympathy for Bill Clinton's appearance before the Oversight Committee.

“I don't like to see him deposed. But they certainly persecuted me much more than that,” the president said.

When pressed on Friday, President Trump said he was not familiar with Epstein's files.

“I know nothing about the Epstein files. I have been totally exonerated,” President Trump said.

Republicans on the Oversight Committee were asked if they agreed with that statement.

“From all the evidence I've seen, he's long been exonerated,” Comer responded.

“Epstein's victims have exonerated President Trump. This is a trope that you guys are: a rabbit hole you're going down. But he's been exonerated time and time again by Epstein's victims,” ​​Mace said.

But Democrats questioned why the committee sought testimony from former President Clinton and not President Trump.

“There is a lot of email correspondence that includes President Clinton,” Comer said.

Rep. Robert Garcia, D-Calif., the top Democrat on the Oversight panel, argued that the measure sets a broader standard.

“Now there is a precedent,” Garcia said. “Now we want President Trump to come and testify under oath before the Oversight Committee. We want the First Lady, who we know also had a relationship with Jeffrey Epstein, to be sworn in and testify before the Oversight Committee. That's the new precedent that Republicans wanted to set here.”

Garcia added that President Trump “has not been exonerated and we have serious questions for President Trump.”

Rep. Suhas Subramanyam, D-Va., argued that the committee spoke to “the wrong chairman.”

It is unclear whether the panel will request testimony from President Trump. Democrats have indicated they would consider doing so if they win control of the House in the fall midterm elections.

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The separation of powers is a key component of the American constitutional system. Only a handful of presidents have ever testified before Congress, and none had previously been deposed as a former president.

The nation's history includes small communities that have acquired enormous political importance. Lawmakers and legal observers say Chappaqua could now join that list if presidential testimony before Congress becomes more common.

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