Hillary Clinton deposition paused as Bill Clinton prepares for rare closed-door testimony in Epstein probe

The House Oversight Committee’s recent lineup of depositions has thrust the Clintons back into the center of an inquiry into Jeffrey Epstein. hillary clinton’s private deposition was paused after a lawmaker shared a photo from inside the closed-door session, and former President Bill Clinton is set to be deposed the following day as the committee presses questions about ties to Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell.

Hillary Clinton deposition paused after photo leak

The deposition of Hillary Clinton was paused when Republican Rep. Lauren Boebert sent a photo of the closed-door proceeding to an influencer who then posted it online. The influencer identified the source of the image, saying Boebert had provided it. The committee’s rules forbid outside press or photographers from taking photos during closed-door sessions.

Boebert, R-Colo., left the deposition and was defiant in remarks to reporters. She violated committee protocol by sharing the photo with a conservative influencer and later responded to a question about why she had shared it with the retort, "Why not?" She also said, sarcastically, that she admired Clinton's blue suit and wanted to show it to everyone.

The deposition is being recorded on video; Committee Chair James Comer has said the recording will only be released after Clinton's attorneys have had a chance to review it.

Bill Clinton to face lawmakers in Chappaqua

Former President Bill Clinton is scheduled to be deposed by members of the Republican-led House Oversight Committee in a closed-door setting in Chappaqua, New York, where the Clintons have a house. That session will come one day after the committee questioned Hillary Clinton for around six hours about what she knew regarding Epstein and Maxwell.

Committee Chair James Comer, R-Ky., said he expected the former president's deposition to take even longer than Hillary Clinton’s session. The appearance would mark the first time a sitting or former president has testified before members of Congress in more than 40 years.

What the sworn declarations say

In sworn declarations filed last month, both Bill Clinton and Hillary Clinton told the committee they had "no personal knowledge" of any "criminal activities" by Epstein or Maxwell. Hillary Clinton has said she has no recollection of ever having met Epstein.

Bill Clinton acknowledged that he flew on Epstein's plane in 2002 and 2003 while traveling internationally for the Clinton Foundation. In his declaration, he said Epstein offered a plane that was "big enough to accommodate me, my staff and my U. S. Secret Service detail, in support of visiting the Foundation's philanthropic work. " He also said, "I do not recall speaking to Mr. Epstein for more than a decade prior to his 2019 arrest" on sex trafficking charges.

Island trips, emails, photos and criminal outcomes

While President Donald Trump has accused Bill Clinton of taking dozens of trips to Epstein's private island in the Caribbean, Bill Clinton's declaration states he was never there. A White House chief of staff said last year that Trump was wrong about that. Emails from Epstein released under a transparency measure also indicated Bill Clinton did not go to the island, and Maxwell said in an interview with a top Justice Department official last year that he had never been there.

Files released in the Epstein probes include numerous pictures of Bill Clinton with Epstein and Maxwell. In some of those images, Bill Clinton appears in a hot tub, swimming in a pool with Maxwell, and sitting at a table with a woman sitting on his leg. The pictures are undated and unclear as to where they were taken; none suggest any wrongdoing. Epstein pleaded guilty in Florida in 2008 to state charges of soliciting a minor and later died in jail while awaiting trial on federal sex trafficking charges. Maxwell was convicted of sex trafficking charges in 2021 and is serving a 20-year prison sentence.

Subpoenas, standoffs and the historical context

The Oversight Committee subpoenaed the Clintons and several former top Justice Department officials in August. After months of back-and-forth, the former first couple agreed to testify as the House was moving toward voting on contempt resolutions for them. It remains uncommon for a sitting or former president to appear before Congress: the last to do so was former President Gerald R. Ford in 1983, when he testified before a Senate subcommittee about planning for the bicentennial of the Constitution. Ford had also answered questions from Congress as president in 1974 when he appeared before a House subcommittee about his pardon of Richard M. Nixon.

Separately, a Democratic-led House committee that investigated the Jan. 6, 2021, riot subpoenaed President Trump to testify in 2022; he challenged that subpoena.

Scene at Chappaqua and what to watch next

Vehicles of the motorcade believed to be carrying former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton arrived at the Chappaqua Performing Arts Center on the day hillary clinton appeared for a deposition in the House Oversight Committee investigation of the late financier and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein in Chappaqua, New York, on Feb. 26, 2026. The immediate next step is the closed-door deposition of Bill Clinton in Chappaqua, which the committee expects to run longer than the prior session; the handling of the leaked photo and the timing of any release of recorded testimony will shape how the inquiry proceeds.