As scrutiny over Donald Trump’s connections to sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein refuses to fade, House Republicans are redirecting attention to a familiar political target: Bill and Hillary Clinton.
On Friday, House Oversight Committee Chair James Comer (R-Ky.) issued an ultimatum to the former president and former secretary of state, demanding they appear for depositions in Congress’ investigation into Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell. The move comes as pressure mounts on the Trump administration over newly released Epstein-related documents — and as public skepticism grows over what the government may still be hiding.
“It has been more than four months since Bill and Hillary Clinton were subpoenaed to sit for depositions related to our investigation into Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell’s horrific crimes,” Comer said in a statement released by the committee. “Throughout that time, the former President and former Secretary of State have delayed, obstructed, and largely ignored the Committee staff’s efforts to schedule their testimony.”
Comer framed the standoff as an accountability issue, but critics say the timing tells a different story. With Trump named repeatedly in Epstein-related files and facing sustained backlash over his administration’s handling of the scandal, Republicans appear eager to shift the spotlight elsewhere.
“If the Clintons fail to appear for their depositions next week or schedule a date for early January, the Oversight Committee will begin contempt of Congress proceedings to hold them accountable,” Comer added.
The Kentucky Republican set a Dec. 17 deadline for the Clintons to respond.
Comer has been sharpening his rhetoric for months. In August, he labeled Bill Clinton a “prime suspect” in the Epstein investigation and warned him not to defy a congressional subpoena. Clinton’s spokesperson denied any wrongdoing, but the accusation landed hard — especially as Trump’s own relationship with Epstein continued to resurface in news coverage.
That contrast became more pronounced on Friday when Democrats on the Oversight Committee released 19 new photos tied to the case. One image showed Epstein with Bill Clinton and Ghislaine Maxwell, who is now serving a 20-year federal prison sentence for her role in the trafficking scheme. Other photos, however, told a broader and more politically inconvenient story.
Epstein was also seen with former Treasury Secretary Larry Summers, conservative activist Steve Bannon, Microsoft founder Bill Gates, and others — including President Trump.
“These disturbing images raise even more questions about Epstein and his relationships with some of the most powerful men in the world,” Democrats wrote in a post on X. “Time to end this White House cover-up. Release the files!” they added.
The renewed focus on the Clintons comes just weeks after Democrats forced a vote on the Epstein Files Transparency Act, requiring the Justice Department to release documents related to Epstein. While the move was billed as a transparency win, it followed months of resistance from the administration and intense bipartisan pressure in Congress.
Epstein died by suicide in 2019 while awaiting trial on federal sex trafficking charges involving underage girls. Earlier this year, the Justice Department and FBI issued a joint memo that appeared to close the book on the case, triggering outrage from lawmakers on both sides of the aisle who demanded the release of grand jury testimony and investigative records.
Initially, Trump and his allies pushed back. That stance shifted only after a bipartisan discharge petition gained momentum and overwhelming votes in both the House and Senate forced the issue.
Even so, Trump has repeatedly lashed out at critics for linking him to Epstein and has denied any connection to the crimes — a denial that has done little to quiet public suspicion. Recent polling shows more than half of Americans disapprove of how the Trump administration has handled the controversy. A Reuters/Ipsos poll found that 70 percent of respondents believe the government is hiding information about Epstein’s connections.
Against that backdrop, Republicans’ aggressive pursuit of the Clintons is drawing sharp criticism. To skeptics, the message is clear: by keeping the spotlight trained on the Clintons, the GOP may be hoping to muddy the waters — and pull attention away from the uncomfortable questions still surrounding Trump and Epstein.
Whether that strategy holds up may depend less on who testifies next, and more on what the long-promised files ultimately reveal.
