Former President Bill Clinton and his wife Hillary are among several notable individuals who have received legal summonses from a congressional committee looking into the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
Republican James Comer, who chairs the House Oversight Committee, issued the subpoenas to the Clintons and eight other people.
The committee is investigating Epstein's background after the Trump administration chose not to release additional federal documents concerning the deceased financier.
That choice led to backlash from both Trump supporters and some Democrats, who rejected the justice department's claim that there was no "incriminating client list" in the Epstein materials.
In light of a split between Trump and certain supporters regarding Epstein, the bipartisan committee recently voted to issue the subpoenas.
Additionally, the panel has summoned the justice department for records related to Epstein.
Attorneys for Ghislaine Maxwell, Epstein's associate currently serving a 20-year sentence for sex trafficking, have stated she is willing to testify before the influential investigatory committee, with proper legal protections. However, her planned deposition on 11 August has been postponed indefinitely.
The Epstein legal matters have unfolded over two decades, beginning with scrutiny from Florida police and the Federal Bureau of Investigation over allegations of sexual misconduct in the early 2000s.
Comer mentioned in letters to each individual that the committee needs to "conduct oversight of the federal government's enforcement of sex trafficking laws in general and specifically its management of the investigation and prosecution of Mr. Epstein" and Maxwell.
He also noted that depositions will commence this month and continue into the autumn, with Bill Clinton set for 14 October.
Former Attorneys General Merrick Garland, Loretta Lynch, Eric Holder, and Alberto Gonzales were also summoned, as were Jeff Sessions and William Barr, who each led the justice department during Trump's initial term. Former FBI Directors James Comey and Robert Mueller also received subpoenas.
The Clinton administration began before the Epstein investigation, yet the couple’s detractors have consistently questioned their ties to Epstein.
A spokesperson has confirmed that Bill Clinton made four trips with staff aboard Epstein's private plane in 2002 and 2003 and met Epstein in New York during that period. Clinton further visited Epstein's New York residence around that same time.
The letters sent to the Clintons reference these events, along with other purported encounters and associations, as grounds for their summons.
Referencing flight logs, U.S. media have previously reported that Clinton traveled on Epstein's jet as many as 26 times, occasionally without his Secret Service detail.
In 2019, a representative declared that the former president "knows nothing about the horrific crimes Jeffrey Epstein confessed to in Florida years ago, or those with which he has been recently charged in New York."
The Clinton Foundation and Bill Clinton's press office have not yet responded to a request for comment.
The Department of Justice declined to comment.
The committee is requesting all documents and communications from the department regarding Epstein and Maxwell that pertain to human trafficking, exploitation of minors, sexual abuse, or similar activities, along with files related to the US criminal cases against both Maxwell and Epstein, as well as documents from a 2007 non-prosecution agreement concerning Epstein and federal investigations involving the former financier.
It is currently uncertain whether the individuals mentioned by Comer will appear before the committee and, if they do, whether their testimony will be public.
In the past 200 years, only four former presidents have been subpoenaed by congressional committees, with only two of them providing testimony.
Notably, during a televised hearing, the committee investigating the Capitol riot on January 6, 2021, voted to subpoena Trump, who subsequently filed a lawsuit to block it. The subpoena was withdrawn when the committee was disbanded.
Federal prosecutors charged Epstein with sex trafficking of minors and other offenses in 2019, during the initial Trump administration.
He took his own life in jail that August, leading many to immediately question the details surrounding his death.
Earlier this summer, Attorney General Pam Bondi declared that her department had found no evidence supporting the long-speculated client list after a review.
She also mentioned that evidence indicated Epstein died by suicide and announced that no further files would be released.
These statements caused outrage among some of Trump's supporters, who had pledged to release records related to Epstein during his campaign.
The dispute among House Republicans regarding the case became so heated that Speaker Mike Johnson had to send lawmakers home early in July to prevent a vote on the release of the Epstein files.
As calls increased for the Trump administration to disclose more Epstein records, the Justice Department recently met with Maxwell. A source familiar with the discussions informed CBS News, the BBC’s US partner, that Maxwell did not name Trump while discussing Epstein's misconduct.
Officials from Trump’s team are considering whether to make the transcript and audio of the interview public, according to the source from CBS.
The Justice Department is currently working to disclose grand jury transcripts from Maxwell's case. On Tuesday, Maxwell's attorney stated that she was against the release of the transcripts.
“Jeffrey Epstein is deceased. Ghislaine Maxwell is not,” wrote Maxwell's attorneys in a legal filing.
“Any public interest in Epstein cannot warrant a significant breach of grand jury confidentiality in a case where the defendant is alive, has legal options available, and retains her due process rights.”
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