Former United States President Bill Clinton and his wife, Hillary Clinton, have agreed to testify before Congress in an investigation into the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, a spokesperson for the former president has confirmed.
The decision, announced on Monday, could avert a planned vote by the Republican-led House of Representatives to hold the high-profile Democrats in contempt of Congress for refusing to appear. Such a move could have exposed them to possible criminal charges.
“The former President and former Secretary of State will be there. They look forward to setting a precedent that applies to everyone,” the Clintons’ deputy chief of staff, Angel Urena, said in a social media post.
Urena’s statement came in response to an earlier announcement by the House Oversight Committee, which accused the Clintons of “defying lawful subpoenas” and attempting to “dodge contempt by requesting special treatment”.
“The Clintons are not above the law,” the committee said.
Last week, the committee recommended that the couple be held in contempt for declining to testify in person about their past association with Epstein.
The Clintons had said they were willing to cooperate with the investigation but objected to appearing physically before lawmakers, describing the probe as a partisan effort aimed at shielding President Donald Trump, who was a longtime associate of Epstein.
House Speaker Mike Johnson welcomed the Clintons’ decision to testify but did not indicate whether the chamber would withdraw its planned contempt vote.
“That’s a good development,” Johnson said. “We expect everyone to comply with Congress’s subpoenas.”
Democrats have criticised the inquiry, accusing Republicans of weaponising the investigation to target Trump’s political opponents. They note that Trump, despite well-documented past ties to Epstein, has not been summoned to testify.
Trump had previously sought to block the release of investigative files linked to Epstein but later ordered their disclosure following pressure from his Make America Great Again (MAGA) supporters and some Republican lawmakers.
Bill Clinton has acknowledged flying on Epstein’s private jet several times in the early 2000s after leaving office, expressing regret over the association while maintaining he was unaware of Epstein’s criminal activities.
Hillary Clinton has said she had no meaningful interaction with Epstein, never travelled on his aircraft and never visited his private island.
The Epstein scandal continues to reverberate across US politics and has also spread to the United Kingdom, implicating prominent figures such as Prince Andrew and former UK ambassador to the US, Peter Mandelson.
British police said on Monday they are reviewing reports of alleged misconduct involving Mandelson, whose name reportedly appears more than 5,000 times in US Justice Department files related to Epstein.
Mandelson, who was dismissed as ambassador last year after emails surfaced showing close contact with Epstein, has apologised to victims and denied any wrongdoing.
