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WASHINGTON (CN) — The House Oversight Committee on Tuesday issued congressional subpoenas to former President Bill Clinton, Hillary Clinton and eight other former White House officials as it ramps up a probe into the late financier and pedophile Jeffrey Epstein.
The move comes as Democrats, and now some Republicans, push for transparency from the government on its investigation into Epstein and his co-conspirator Ghislaine Maxwell, despite resistance from House Republican leadership and President Donald Trump.
Subpoenas signed by Oversight Committee Chair and Kentucky Representative Jim Comer compel ten former federal officials to testify in depositions starting this month and continuing into the fall.
Targets include former attorneys general Merrick Garland, Bill Barr and Eric Holder, as well as ex-FBI director James Comey, special counsel Robert Mueller, and other top Justice Department officials across three presidential administrations, in addition to the Clintons.
In his letter to former President Clinton, Comer cited his “own admission” that he flew on Epstein’s private plane on four separate occasions and said that Clinton was “allegedly close” with Maxwell.
“Given your past relationships with Mr. Epstein and Ms. Maxwell, the Committee believes that you have information regarding their activities that is relevant to the Committee’s investigation,” the Kentucky Republican wrote.
The subpoena to Hillary Clinton, who served as secretary of state under former President Barack Obama, also tied her to Epstein and Maxwell, but Comer also noted that lawmakers believed her position as head of the State Department may have provided her knowledge about federal efforts to “combat international sex trafficking operations of the type run by Mr. Epstein.”
The Oversight Committee chairman told each subpoenaed official their deposition would support the Justice Department’s ongoing Epstein investigation.
COmer added that the House probe could help “inform legislative solutions” to strengthen the federal response to sex trafficking and reform how non-prosecution and plea deals are used in sex crime cases, referencing the 2008 agreement that granted Epstein legal immunity.
The House also subpoenaed the Justice Department, demanding it redact and release all documents related to the Epstein investigation, including any communications with the Biden administration.
Congressional lawmakers, particularly Democrats, have ramped up pressure in recent weeks, especially after the Trump administration opted not to release a long-awaited batch of Epstein-related documents. Lawmakers in both chambers have pushed measures to compel the White House to make the files public, urging Republicans to support them.
The Oversight Committee’s subpoenas follow growing Democratic pressure. Late last month, the panel’s federal law enforcement subcommittee voted 8–2 to authorize the effort, with two Republicans joining Democrats in support of a motion by Pennsylvania Representative Summer Lee.
Republican leaders have mostly dismissed efforts to force the release of the Epstein files. House Speaker Mike Johnson said he wants to give the White House time to review the documents and called Democrats’ push for disclosure “nonsense.”
“This is a serious matter,” Johnson said during a news conference last month. “We are not going to let them use this as a political battering ram.”
The House Speaker also voiced frustration with GOP colleague, Kentucky Representative Thomas Massie, who led a bipartisan effort to force the release of Epstein documents.
Though Trump had previously urged Republicans to move on from the issue, the White House is now working to disclose records from the 2019 prosecution, including efforts to unseal grand jury materials. The president has since said that he would like to see the Epstein files released.
Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche has also interviewed Maxwell, who is serving a 20-year prison sentence for her role in aiding Epstein’s sex trafficking scheme. Federal authorities last week moved Maxwell from a Florida prison to a lower-security facility in Texas.
Epstein died in federal custody in 2019, which authorities have long ruled a suicide.
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