Hillary Clinton’s lawyers halt Epstein congressional inquiry

Former US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton briefly interrupted a congressional inquiry into her alleged involvement with late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, after a photo of her in the closed-door session was posted online by a conservative commentator.

Clinton’s testimony before the House Oversight Committee on Thursday was being filmed, the footage is expected to be released at a later date.

About an hour into the proceedings, podcaster Benny Johnson published a photo of the former secretary of state on his X account, claiming that this was the “first image of Hillary Clinton testifying under oath about Jeffrey Epstein to the Republican Oversight Committee.”

Upon learning about the post, Clinton’s attorneys demanded a halt to the deposition. “The hearing has been paused briefly while we figure out where the photo came from and why possibly members of Congress are violating House rules,” Clinton spokesman Nick Merrill told reporters.

Johnson claimed that “Hillary Clinton just STORMED out of the Epstein Deposition because I posted a photo of her testifying.” The commentator said that he had received the photo from Representative Lauren Boebert, and published it with her permission.

“This is insane. The deposition is being filmed and will be released in full. Hillary wanted it to be done LIVE on TV,” the conservative commentator added. Boebert defended the podcaster, saying that he “did nothing wrong.”

The proceedings eventually resumed around 30 minutes later, according to multiple media reports.

In her opening statement that Clinton published on X before the deposition began, the former secretary of state maintained that she “had no idea” about Epstein’s activities and does “not recall ever encountering” him.

Clinton also accused the GOP lawmakers of substituting an investigation with “partisan political theater,” aimed at distracting public attention from US President Donald Trump’s “actions” and “the tens of thousands of times he shows up in the Epstein files.”

The House Oversight Committee subpoenaed Clinton and her husband, former US President Bill Clinton, last year. The couple only agreed to appear after they were threatened with being held in contempt of Congress.

Bill Clinton is set to testify before the committee on Friday. The ex-president has acknowledged flying on Epstein’s private jet in the early 2000s, but denied any wrongdoing or knowledge of criminal activity.