House GOP plans to hold Hillary Clinton in contempt of Congress over Epstein inquiry

House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer said on Wednesday the panel plans to move forward with contempt of Congress proceedings against former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton after she defied a subpoena for a deposition as part of the panel's probe into convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

It comes a day after Comer, a Republican, said the committee plans to hold former President Bill Clinton in contempt of Congress as well after he refused to appear for a scheduled deposition. Comer said the committee will vote next Wednesday on holding the Clintons in contempt of Congress.

"Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton joined her husband in defying a bipartisan, lawful congressional subpoena to show up today," Comer said, later adding, "We're going to hold both Clintons in criminal contempt of Congress."

Comer, asked if he'd be willing to have the Clintons appear for a public hearing, said"that's something we can talk about."

On Tuesday, the Clintons sent the committee a scathing four-page letter that potentially signaled a protracted fight with Congress over a move they blasted as "partisan politics."

"Every person has to decide when they have seen or had enough and are ready to fight for this country, its principles and its people, no matter the consequences,"theClintons wrote in the letter. "For us, now is that time."

The Clintons blasted Comer, saying in the letter that, "There is no plausible explanation for what you are doing other than partisan politics."

"We are confident that any reasonable person in or out of Congress will see, based on everything we release, that what you are doing is trying to punish those who you see as your enemies and to protect those you think are your friends. Continue to mislead Americans about what is truly at stake, and you will learn that Americans are better at finding the truth than you are at burying it," they wrote.

For months, Republicans on the committee have demanded that the Clintons provide testimony to lawmakers, citing the former president'stravels on Epstein's private aircraft in the early 2000sand the Clinton "family's past relationship"with Epstein and his associate, Ghislaine Maxwell. The panel initiallyissued subpoenas for the Clintons on Aug. 5to appear in October.

David Kendall, a lawyer for the Clintons, has argued that the couple has no information relevant to the committee's investigation of the federal government's handling of investigations into Epstein and Maxwell, and should not be required to appear for in-person testimony.Instead, Kendall said, they should be permitted to provide the limited information they have to the committee in writing.

Hillary Clinton "has no personal knowledge of Epstein or Maxwell's criminal activities, never flew on his aircraft, never visited his island, and cannot recall ever speaking to Epstein. She has no personal knowledge of Maxwell's activities with Epstein," Kendall wrote."President Clinton's contact with Epstein ended two decades ago, and given what came to light much after, he has expressed regret for even that limited association," an Oct. 6 letter to the committee says.

Neither Bill Clinton nor Hillary Clintonhas been accused of wrongdoing and denies having any knowledge of Epstein'scrimes.No Epstein survivor or associate has ever made a public allegation of wrongdoing or inappropriate behavior bythe former president or his wifeinconnection with his prior relationship with Epstein.

Comer wrote in a letter to Kendall in October that the committee is "skeptical" that the Clintons have only limited information and stated it was up to the committee, not the Clintons, to make determinations of the value of the information.

Last month, in response to the Epstein Files Transparency Act, the Justice Departmentreleased several photographs of former President Clintonapparently taken during his international travels with Epstein and Maxwell from 2002 to 2003, although the released photographs contained no information identifying when or where they were taken.Following that disclosure, aspokesperson for the two-term Democratic president arguedthatthe Trump administration released those images to shield the Trump White House"from what comes next, or from what they'll try to hide forever."

To hold someone in contempt of Congress, the Oversight Committee would first mark up and then vote to advance the contempt resolution. Once the committee approves the resolution, which is expected given the GOP majority, the resolution now could go to a vote in the full House.

A simple majority is needed to clear a contempt resolution on the floor. Notably, it does not require passage in the Senate.

The resolution, if passed, would direct the speaker of the House to refer the case to the U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia -- under the Department of Justice -- for possible criminal prosecution.