Clinton depositions spur Democrats’ demand for Donald Trump’s Epstein files testimony

The top Democrat on the U.S. House Committee on Oversight and Accountability on Thursday called on Republicans to subpoena President Donald Trump to testify in their investigation into the Jeffrey Epstein files, arguing that the current president appears more frequently in the records than former President Bill Clinton.

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Out Rep. Robert Garcia of California made the remarks outside the Chappaqua Performing Arts Center, in upstate New York, where former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton sat for a closed-door deposition as part of the GOP-led inquiry. The former president is scheduled to be deposed on Friday.

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“I want to be very clear that we have said from day one that we want to talk to former President Bill Clinton,” Garcia told reporters. “And the other person we want to talk to is current President Donald Trump.” He added that “the person who actually appears more times in the files than the former president, who we want to speak with, is President Donald Trump.”

Garcia said Republicans should “join us in demanding” that Trump appear before the committee, adding: “Let’s get President Trump in front of our committee to answer the questions that are being asked across this country from survivors, from those who have been brutally attacked and raped sometimes as children. Let’s release the files.”

Hillary Clinton’s deposition took place near her home in Chappaqua, at a venue selected by the Republican majority, Garcia said. “The majority controls where and how the depositions are done,” he said.

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Clinton has previously denied any knowledge of Epstein’s criminal conduct and has said she does not recall meeting him. The committee has sought testimony from both Clintons as part of its review of materials connected to the late financier, who died in federal custody in 2019 while awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges.

Garcia also renewed calls for Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick to testify, alleging that Lutnick had not fully disclosed past contacts with Epstein. “We want to hear from Howard Lutnick,” Garcia said, questioning the secretary’s prior statements about his communications with Epstein.

Lutnick had publicly said he met Epstein once, as neighbors in New York City in 2005, and that he has avoided him since. However, after the Department of Justice released several million documents, Lutnick was forced to admit that he had communicated with the convicted pedophile as recently as 2012 when he traveled to Epstein’s private Caribbean island.

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The Oversight Committee’s Republican chairman, Rep. James Comer of Kentucky, has described the investigation as an effort to examine who may have had knowledge of or contact with Epstein and his associates. Republicans have kept Thursday’s deposition closed to the public.

Democrats, meanwhile, have argued that the inquiry should not single out one political figure and have pressed for broader disclosure of records tied to Epstein’s network. Garcia said Democrats would seek to ensure the investigation remains “nonpartisan,” while reiterating that Trump’s testimony should be part of that effort.

“Anyone that has any information — whether they’re Republicans or Democrats — we want a nonpartisan investigation,” he said. “And that’s going to include ensuring that President Trump comes before our committee.”