Clinton Accuses GOP of Diverting Focus from Trump’s Epstein Ties Amid Congressional Testimony

By [Your Name] | Tuesday, 17 February 2026

Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has accused House Republicans of using her and former President Bill Clinton to divert attention away from President Donald Trump’s alleged connections with Jeffrey Epstein, the late financier.

In a recent interview held in Berlin at the annual World Forum, Clinton stated she views renewed scrutiny of her family as politically motivated. The House Oversight Committee, chaired by Republican James Comer, has demanded testimony from both Clintons as part of an inquiry into Epstein’s political and financial networks. Following negotiations, the committee abandoned a planned contempt motion after the Clintons agreed to participate in closed-door depositions.

“Look at this shiny object,” Clinton said during the interview, “We’re going to have the Clintons—even Hillary Clinton—who never met the guy.” She acknowledged meeting Epstein associate Ghislaine Maxwell “on a few occasions.”

Bill Clinton confirmed knowing Epstein but stated he severed contact over two decades ago. Neither he nor Hillary Clinton has been accused of wrongdoing by Epstein’s victims and both have denied awareness of his sex trafficking operations. Trump, who appears in the files, repeatedly denies wrongdoing and claims he cut ties with Epstein decades ago.

When asked about Clinton’s remarks, Trump asserted he had “nothing to hide” and suggested Democrats were being “pulled in” by the scandal. Clinton is scheduled to testify before Congress on February 26, followed by Bill Clinton on February 27—marking the first time former presidents have appeared in congressional proceedings since Gerald Ford in 1983.

During her interview, Clinton also accused the Trump administration of a “cover-up” regarding Epstein-related documents and urged officials to release more materials: “Get the files out. They are slow-walking it.” The White House countered that the administration had already released thousands of pages and “done more for the victims than Democrats ever have.”

A recent Department of Justice release of millions of pages tied to Epstein, following Congress’s passage of the Epstein Files Transparency Act, has sparked bipartisan criticism over withheld information. The DOJ acknowledged approximately three million pages were excluded due to privacy concerns, including medical records and graphic abuse material. Republican Representative Thomas Massie, a co-sponsor of the law, urged the department to disclose internal memos regarding past charging decisions involving Epstein and his associates.

Earlier this month, Clinton criticized Republicans for turning oversight into a distraction on social media, challenging Comer to hold a public hearing rather than a closed-door deposition. Epstein died in a New York jail cell in 2019 while awaiting trial on federal sex trafficking charges.