NEWS: Oversight Dems Speak To Reporters About Hillary Clinton's Testimony To Epstein Probe

[0:08] Thank you. I'm ranking member Robert Garcia for Oversight Democrats. I'm going to make some [0:12] brief statements, as will my colleagues, and then perhaps a question or two, and then we're [0:18] going to get back to the deposition. As a reminder, this deposition has now gone on for [0:22] about two hours, two hours plus, two and a half hours, and so it will continue throughout the [0:27] day. And so I'm going to be also respectful of not being specific, but we do have some overall [0:33] statements to make. And a lot of this obviously ties into what the Secretary has already put out [0:38] herself in her opening statement. I just want to begin by just clarifying and putting emphasis [0:44] on something that's very important, and it's something the Secretary herself has said. [0:49] Secretary Clinton never met Jeffrey Epstein. She never visited the island. She never flew on his [0:56] plane. She also had no knowledge of Jeffrey Epstein's horrific crimes, so zero knowledge [1:04] of any wrongdoing. And you've also all heard that directly from her. Secretary Clinton is also [1:13] completely cooperative. [1:14] She's cooperating with the deposition and the committee and is answering questions in full [1:22] faith and in good faith. What is not acceptable is oversight Republicans breaking their own [1:31] committee rules that they established with the Secretary and her team, which you've all reported [1:37] you've seen by releasing photos. Not acceptable, and it was gracious of the Secretary and her team [1:43] to continue the deposition. What we also want to say at this very moment is it's becoming more [1:51] and more difficult for us to understand what's going on in this country and what's going on in [1:55] the United States. And what we want to understand every single day is questions continue to build [2:02] around this DOJ and the White House and the focus of the majority. We want to understand right now [2:09] where the missing FBI files are. These are files that accuse the President of the United States [2:19] about serious, serious accusations around sexual abuse. And the fact that they're not in the files [2:26] that have been apparently either removed or discarded is incredibly concerning. [2:28] Thank you. [2:30] And so we're calling on Attorney General Pan Bondi to immediately release those files. [2:35] And lastly, I want to also add that this committee has now set a new precedent [2:42] about talking to presidents and former presidents. And we're demanding immediately that we ask [2:50] President Trump to testify in front of our committee and be deposed in front of oversight Republicans [2:56] and Democrats. And that should happen immediately. He is the person that appears almost more than [3:00] anyone else in the committee, and it needs to happen right now. [3:04] Do you distinguish at all between a president and a former president and a sitting president? [3:09] I mean, is there something in there? Because they will say, Wait a minute, we know what the court ruled on his immunity. [3:15] We should, we should depose the person that is mentioned in the Epstein files, almost more than any other person [3:22] next to Ghislaine Maxwell, and that's Donald Trump. [3:24] We're going to have a couple comments and then we're going to go ahead. [3:27] I'm going to answer a couple questions. [3:29] Thank you. [3:30] I'm going to answer a couple questions. [3:32] Thank you. [3:32] Thank you. [3:33] House Republicans need to get serious about this investigation. [3:38] I understand now fully why Secretary Clinton wanted to make this deposition and her hearing public, [3:46] because the reality is we are talking to the wrong person today. [3:50] Who we should be talking to instead are people who are actually mentioned in the files, [3:54] people who have made misleading statements about their relationship with Jeffrey Epstein. [3:58] Earlier today, Chairman Comer mentioned being open to talking to Secretary Lutnick. [4:03] Well, let's get him in. Let's talk to Secretary Lutnick instead. [4:06] Let's talk to someone who is neighbors with Jeffrey Epstein, who actually associated with Jeffrey Epstein, [4:11] not someone who had never, ever met Jeffrey Epstein to their knowledge. [4:15] And so let's try to talk about people who will help us with our investigation. [4:19] And let's release the two and a half million files so we can know who else to talk to [4:22] and so we can do right by the victims and actually bring justice. Thank you. [4:26] Thank you. I'm Congresswoman Yasemin Ansari representing Arizona's 3rd District. [4:32] I am extremely... [4:35] extremely appalled by the Republican Chairman's behavior today [4:40] and by the behavior of the entire committee and how un-serious they are about this investigation. [4:48] Let's remind the country about what we are actually talking about. [4:52] Jeffrey Epstein, Ghislaine Maxwell, and a list of many rich and powerful people [4:59] from around the United States and around the world abused and raped [5:05] 2,000 people who were children, many of whom were children at the time. [5:10] And today we are sitting through an incredibly un-serious clown show of a deposition [5:17] where members of Congress and the Republican Party are more concerned about getting their photo op [5:23] of Secretary Clinton than actually getting to the truth and holding anyone accountable. [5:29] I also want to talk about the reporting from this week and the fact that we now know that the [5:35] Department of Justice in their ongoing cover-up, the most egregious coverup in American history, [5:42] intentionally seemed to have redacted or withheld more than 50 pages of allegations from a minor against President Trump. [5:51] Do not forget that Kash Patel went in front of the Senate judiciary committee [5:56] and said under oath [5:58] that the FBI had no credible allegations of any other people being involved in this investigation. [6:05] this child sex trafficking operation. [6:08] These documents that the Department of Justice [6:10] intentionally has withheld from the American public [6:13] in regard to the allegations against President Trump [6:16] came from the FBI. [6:17] The FBI had interviewed this witness four times. [6:22] You do not do that if it is not serious. [6:25] So Kash Patel needs to be immediately brought back [6:28] before the Oversight Committee. [6:29] He needs to answer these questions again, [6:32] and we need answers immediately. [6:34] Again, America is watching. [6:35] Young people in this country are watching [6:37] to see if powerful people will continue [6:39] to protect other powerful people [6:41] and whether or not Congress will actually hold [6:45] these perpetrators accountable. [6:46] Thank you. [6:50] Wesley Bell, Missouri's first congressional district. [6:53] And as a former prosecutor, [6:56] I've been involved in leading investigations [6:59] and serious offenses, and this ain't it. [7:03] What we're seeing is political theater. [7:05] What we're seeing, [7:06] is folks that are looking for headlines and tweets [7:10] as opposed to doing the business of going about [7:15] getting justice for the victims in this case, [7:18] and survivors in this case, I should say, as well. [7:22] And I think that that's what I think some of our friends [7:24] on the other side are losing sight of, [7:26] is that we are here to make certain that justice is served. [7:32] And it's important for us, and as Oversight members, [7:35] to do our job to ensure that all the evidence, [7:41] any information is heard, and that any victims, [7:45] any survivors' voices are heard as well. [7:49] And that's what we're supposed to be doing. [7:51] And so what we're seeing today is a, [7:54] we have not learned one new thing. [7:57] The secretary is here. [7:59] She is more than happy to have all of you come in there [8:03] and into this deposition and hear her out. [8:05] Thank you. [8:05] But there are those on the other side of the aisle [8:09] who do not want that for whatever reason. [8:11] And so we're gonna continue to push for justice. [8:13] We're gonna continue to work to make certain [8:16] that the victims and survivors are given their due [8:19] and their voices are heard, [8:20] and that justice is ultimately served. [8:25] Thank you. [8:26] I'm James Walkinshaw from Virginia's 11th District. [8:28] The Trump administration's treatment of the survivors [8:33] of Jeffrey Epstein's crimes has been a callous disregard. [8:38] We've seen that in his refusal to release the files. [8:41] We saw that this week at the State of the Union [8:44] with his refusal to acknowledge the survivors [8:47] who were in the chamber. [8:50] One of the things that's been confirmed today [8:52] is that in addition to having no relationship [8:56] with Jeffrey Epstein, [8:58] Secretary Clinton had, has no relationship [9:01] with Ghislaine Maxwell. [9:04] But there are important questions we should be asking [9:06] the Trump administration about Ghislaine Maxwell. [9:09] And I hope that our Republican colleagues will join us [9:13] in asking these questions. [9:15] Why is it that Donald Trump has refused to rule out [9:20] the pardon, the clemency, [9:22] that Ghislaine Maxwell is campaigning for? [9:26] We held a deposition in this committee with Ghislaine [9:28] Maxwell, she used that deposition as an opportunity [9:31] to campaign for a pardon. [9:33] Chairman Comer then walked out before many of you [9:37] and gave her talking points [9:39] as to why she should get a pardon. [9:42] Donald Trump needs [9:43] to expect Attorney General Bondi [9:45] to release all the files, [9:47] to unredact the illegal redactions, [9:51] and he needs to unequivocally rule out a pardon [9:56] for Ghislaine Maxwell, who is a monster, [9:59] convicted of child sex trafficking. [10:02] Why has he not ruled out pardoning her? [10:05] Why did the Deputy Attorney General spend hours with her? [10:09] And then why was she transferred [10:10] to a cushy, lower security prison? [10:13] Those are important questions. [10:15] We should be asking about Ghislaine Maxwell. [10:17] We no longer have to ask whether there's any relationship [10:20] between Secretary Clinton and Ghislaine Maxwell. [10:23] There was not. [10:24] Can you give us a different answer? [10:25] I'm gonna answer a couple questions. [10:26] I'm gonna answer a question. [10:28] One second, one statement, then one question. [10:30] Last thing I'm gonna say, [10:31] and then I'm gonna begin with a question, [10:32] is we wanna make a very clear demand right now, [10:36] which is that the full transcript, unedited, [10:40] of the Secretary's questions and the answers [10:43] need to be released by the majority in the next 24 hours. [10:46] We need the public and the American people [10:50] have a right to know exactly what she said, [10:54] what questions were asked of her, and how she responded. [10:57] That's transparency. [10:58] She herself requested that the press and the public [11:02] be allowed into the deposition. [11:04] That was denied. [11:06] And so at a very minimum, [11:08] they need to immediately release the full transcript, [11:10] and we're hopeful that tomorrow, for the former president, [11:13] that the press would be allowed in and the public as well. [11:15] That's been the request. [11:16] Thank you, Mr. Ranking Member. [11:17] How did that leaked photo get out, [11:19] and do you believe there should be any repercussions? [11:22] Well, the repercussions should come from the majority [11:24] and from Chairman Comer. [11:24] I mean, it was very clear that that leaked photo [11:27] was sent out by a member. [11:29] I think it's not hard to figure out what member that was [11:31] by looking at the photo. [11:32] And the fact that it was not just one photo, [11:34] it was one photo and then a second post [11:37] that also included a photo as well. [11:39] And so that was completely against the rules. [11:42] I think we're grateful that the Secretary [11:43] continued the deposition, but not acceptable. [11:47] You said that this is a very unserious question. [11:49] The Secretary's been clear that she said a few swole. [11:57] She clarified what those meetings were like. [12:00] Did she talk about Ghislaine Maxwell attending [12:02] her daughter's wedding? [12:03] Did you get any new insight? [12:06] I think, obviously, we can't get into specifics [12:08] about the answers, but we will get all those [12:11] as soon as the video is released. [12:13] And so we have to be very careful about giving specifics [12:16] of what was actually said in the deposition per committee rules, [12:19] which is why we're demanding right now that James Comer [12:22] and the Republicans release the full transcript. [12:24] Where all the questions that were asked [12:26] will be fully answered by Secretary Clinton. [12:28] What I can say is that she, again, never met Jeffrey Epstein, [12:31] never went to the island, never went to the plane, [12:33] and had no knowledge of any of his crimes. [12:35] This is completely unacceptable. [12:36] When it comes to Howard Lutnick, when Comer went in, [12:39] he said it's a possibility when I asked him [12:41] if Lutnick could be subpoenaed. [12:42] Mace then said she had an email printed out [12:44] that she wanted to ask Clinton about. [12:46] What was that line of questioning like in the room? [12:48] And was there any discussion about moving forward [12:51] on a request or a subpoena for Lutnick? [12:54] It is unacceptable that we have the Commerce Secretary [12:58] who has lied and lied and lied about his relationships [13:02] with Jeffrey Epstein, the fact that he went to the island, [13:05] he went on the plane, he went into business with Jeffrey Epstein [13:08] and yet sat there in a chair with a reporter [13:11] and lied to the American people. [13:12] He should resign today, he should be removed from office, [13:15] and at minimum should come before the committee. [13:17] I think everyone's been clear that we need to hear [13:18] from Howard Lutnick. [13:19] Can you give us a slide in the room, the questioning in the room? [13:21] I'm not, I want, I want, I want all [13:24] of the Secretary's responses to be released immediately, [13:27] or I want the press to be allowed in to get, to get details. [13:29] Can you give us a sense of what it was like in the room? [13:31] Is this a very tense deposition? [13:33] And also, can you give a little bit more color of what exactly happened [13:36] when this moment on social media is shared? [13:39] Was there back and forth about, [13:40] a forth about letting the press inside the room? [13:43] So yeah, what I can say is obviously everybody was very taken [13:47] aback by the committee, the committee rules being essentially not enforced [13:51] and certainly just broken immediately. [13:52] That is not acceptable. [13:54] Especially when the Secretary said from day one [13:56] that she wanted the press in the room. [13:59] When the incident happened, I think this is something [14:01] that can be reported, the Secretary's team continued [14:04] to demand, even after the incident, [14:06] to let the press into the room. [14:08] Because what was important for her is that her answers [14:11] to the questions not be edited, that the video not be edited. [14:15] And so we, we understand that and we're committed [14:18] to getting this video transcript out immediately. [14:20] And to be clear, she's answering every question. [14:22] To be clear, she's, she's, she's answering all the questions. [14:24] Has she taken the fifth at all? [14:25] To be clear, she's answering all the questions. [14:27] I think I can, I can safely say that she's not taking the fifth. [14:29] Mr. Garcia. [14:31] Last question. [14:32] In terms of her relation, her understanding [14:34] of her husband's relationship with Jeffrey Epstein, [14:36] is that something that she's been asked about? [14:38] I want the full transcripts to be released immediately. [14:40] I think, I think everything that she said [14:42] in her testimony will be cleared. [14:43] Thank you all. [14:45] Thank you so much for coming out.