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House Oversight Chairman James Comer announced this week that he will move forward with contempt proceedings after former President Bill Clinton and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton declined to comply with subpoenas tied to the committee’s Jeffrey Epstein probe. The Clintons’ lawyers refused in-person depositions and instead offered written answers, a move Comer called unacceptable and defiant of lawful congressional process. The decision to escalate shows Republicans are finally pushing back against the long-standing culture of celebrity immunity in Washington.
Comer set new deposition dates — January 13 for Bill Clinton and January 14 for Hillary Clinton — and when those dates were missed the committee announced it would proceed toward a contempt vote next week. Republicans on the committee have grown increasingly frustrated by delays and what they see as stonewalling tactics from witnesses with powerful legal teams. This isn’t politics as usual; it’s a test of whether our institutions will treat the elite the same as every other citizen.
The Clintons’ legal argument that the subpoenas are “invalid and legally unenforceable” and that written submissions suffice is thin cover for avoidance. Democratic defenders cry partisanship, but partisanship cannot be a safe harbor from accountability when victims and the public demand answers about a decades-long corruption of justice surrounding Epstein. If precedent matters, then members of both parties should welcome transparency instead of reflexively defending the well-connected.
A contempt citation would escalate the matter to the full House and ultimately to the Department of Justice, which must decide whether to prosecute — a step that finally places the question of enforcement where it belongs. Comer has also pressed for unredacted files and a full accounting of the Department of Justice’s handling of Epstein-related documents, and the public deserves to know whether law enforcement failures were the result of incompetence or favoritism. Washington can no longer afford secret exceptions for powerful political dynasties.
Predictably, the Clintons framed the committee’s actions as partisan harassment, a familiar playbook meant to distract from the substance of the subpoenas. That accusation doesn’t answer why photos and travel logs related to Epstein have surfaced publicly and why former associates and officials are being asked to come forward under oath. The pattern of deflection and delay only deepens suspicion and fuels the demand for a fair, transparent investigation.
Republicans who have long warned about a two-tiered justice system are finally seizing a moment to force the issue; failing to follow through would be a betrayal of oversight promises and a blow to public confidence. The Committee should press ahead with contempt if the Clintons remain noncompliant, and the Department of Justice should not sweep potential obstruction under the rug. Americans deserve truth and accountability, not protective cover for the politically powerful.
