Former US President Bill Clinton and his wife, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, on Tuesday refused to appear before the Republican-controlled House Oversight Committee as part of the Jeffrey Epstein investigation.
"Every person has to decide when they have seen or had enough and are ready to fight for this country, its principles and its people, no matter the consequences," they wrote in a letter to Chairman James Comer.
"For us, now is that time."
In the letter, they called the subpoenas "invalid," saying they had provided Comer with sworn statements similar to ones he had accepted from several other former law enforcement officials that he later excused from testifying, suggesting a double standard.
Accusing Comer of pursuing a process "designed to result in our imprisonment," the letter said: "We are confident that any reasonable person … will see, based on everything we release, that what you are doing is trying to punish those who you see as your enemies and to protect those you think are your friends."
Comer told reporters outside the committee room that the committee will initiate contempt of Congress proceedings next week against former President Clinton for defying a lawful, bipartisan congressional subpoena approved unanimously by both Republicans and Democrats.
"Bill Clinton did not show up, and I think it's important to note that this subpoena was voted on in a bipartisan manner by this committee. This wasn't something that I just issued as chairman of the committee. This was voted on by an entire subcommittee in a unanimous vote to subpoena former President Clinton and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton," Comer said.
Comer said that survivors of Epstein, a convicted sex offender who died in prison in 2019, deserve justice and answers.
"Refusing to comply with a bipartisan, duly authorized congressional subpoena in our Epstein investigation is unacceptable. No one is above the law," he later said on US social media company X.
Last July, in a voice vote, Republicans and Democrats on the Federal Law Enforcement Subcommittee unanimously approved a motion to issue subpoenas to 10 individuals, including the Clintons, for testimony related to the crimes perpetrated by Jeffrey Epstein and his associate Ghislaine Maxwell, who remains incarcerated for her crimes.
Epstein was found dead in his New York City jail cell in 2019 while awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges. He pleaded guilty in a court in the state of Florida and was convicted of procuring a minor for prostitution in 2008, but critics call the relatively minor conviction a "sweetheart deal."
His victims have alleged that he operated a sprawling sex trafficking network that was used by members of the wealthy and political elite.
Epstein's case has remained a politically charged issue in the US, with lawmakers and victims' advocates from across the spectrum demanding greater transparency about his network of associates and any individuals who may have facilitated his crimes.
President Donald Trump has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing related to Epstein. Their past social and business ties, as well as Epstein's extensive links to political, business, and academic figures in the US and abroad, have fueled calls for the broad release of official records.
