On February 27, 2026, former US President Bill Clinton went to the Chappaqua Performing Arts Center in New York to testify before the House Oversight Committee on Jeffrey Epstein-related cases. Although the Epstein dossier exposed numerous photos of him with Epstein and his associates, including bold photos of him in a hot tub, Clinton has always steadfastly denied any wrongdoing, claiming that he "saw nothing" and "did nothing wrong."
Before testifying, Clinton released a two-page opening statement on social media, making it clear that he cooperated in testifying because "I love my country" and believed that the victims of the Epstein case "not only deserve justice, but also healing." He mentioned in the statement that he grew up in a family of domestic violence. If he had known about Epstein's crimes, not only would he not have flown on his private plane, but he would have personally reported him and taken the lead in seeking justice for the victims.
Clinton emphasized that his acquaintance with Epstein was very brief and ended many years before Epstein's crimes were exposed, and that he had never witnessed any criminal behavior. "I saw nothing and did nothing wrong," he wrote in the statement. "Even with the benefit of hindsight, I don't see anything that made me hesitate." He also angrily defended his wife Hillary Clinton, saying that Hillary had nothing to do with Epstein and did not even remember meeting Epstein, and accused Republicans of not forcing Hillary to testify.
In the Epstein files exposed this time, there are many photos involving Clinton that have attracted attention. One shows Clinton swimming in a swimming pool with Epstein associate Ghislaine Maxwell and a woman whose face was blackened to conceal her identity; another shows Clinton reclining in a hot tub with his head in his hands, sitting next to an unidentified woman with her face blacked out; and yet another photo shows Clinton sitting on the lap of a woman whose face is blackened, at an unknown location. In addition, there are photos of Clinton with celebrities such as Kevin Spacey and Michael Jackson in the file.
Representative James Comer, Republican of Kentucky, chairman of the House Oversight Committee, told reporters before the testimony began that lawmakers will focus on asking Clinton about the photos, and will also ask about Epstein's relationship with the Clinton Foundation. Cuomo said the Justice Department has released a large number of relevant photos, and the committee hopes to use testimony to unravel many mysteries about Clinton's relationship with Epstein.
It is reported that Clinton and Epstein had connections in the 1990s. Epstein donated money to support Clinton's presidential campaign and also entered the White House during his tenure. After Clinton left office, Epstein continued to support the Clinton Foundation and allowed him to use private jets for international travel. Clinton's name also appeared in Epstein's flight logs, and his team said these trips were related to the work of the foundation. Clinton denied ever visiting Epstein's private island, there was no relevant record in the flight log, and the relationship between the two gradually ended in the early 2000s.
It is worth mentioning that Epstein’s associate and girlfriend Ghislaine Maxwell also attended the wedding of Clinton’s daughter Chelsea Clinton in 2010. Hillary Clinton previously testified that Maxwell was just a “guest of guests” at the time. After completing about six hours of testimony on February 26, Clinton blasted Republicans for performing "partisan political theater."
In his testimony, Clinton warned Republicans that he might repeatedly say "I don't remember" because the events in question happened so long ago, but that he would testify truthfully under oath. He also slammed Republican lawmakers for focusing too much on "photos from 20 years ago," emphasizing that he had no knowledge of Epstein's crimes. Although Clinton has repeatedly denied relevant accusations and was not accused of abuse in the Epstein case, as the files were exposed, his attention continued to rise, and this testimony became another fierce showdown between Clinton and the Republicans. In the end, he officially opened the testimony process with a fierce "Excuse me."
