Hillary Clinton’s closed-door deposition in the congressional Jeffrey Epstein investigation was paused Thursday after a right-wing influencer shared a photo of the former first lady during proceedings, which he said was given to him by GOP Rep. Lauren Boebert.
MAGA influencer Benny Johnson posted the photo of a stern-looking Clinton on his X account, which he said was provided by Boebert and appeared to be taken from where the Republican was sitting in the room.
“The first image of Hillary Clinton testifying under oath about Jeffery Epstein to the Republican Oversight Committee,” Johnson wrote on X. “This is the first time Hillary has had to answer real questions about Epstein. Clinton does not look happy.”
After the post, Clinton adviser Nick Merrill said that the hearing went off the record “while they figure out where the photo came from and why possibly members of Congress are violating House rules.”
While Clinton’s deposition is being recorded, it is closed-door, and videos and a transcript of the deposition will be released after they have been reviewed by attorneys, House Oversight Committee chairman Rep. James Comer said.
Clinton is being deposed in her hometown of Chappaqua, New York, while former President Bill Clinton is set to be questioned Friday. The couple wanted a public hearing, but Comer requested that the deposition be conducted privately.
The Independent has contacted Boebert’s office for comment.
In a post on X, the congresswoman defended Johnson’s decision to post the photo, though she did not confirm that she was the one who sent it to him.
“Benny did nothing wrong,” the Colorado Republican wrote. “Proceeding with deposition.”
Johnson claimed Boebert gave him permission to post the photo “with credit” and accused Clinton’s team of trying to “weasel out of answering questions.”
Rep. Robert Garcia of California, the top Democrat on the committee, said sharing the photo with Johnson was “unacceptable.”
“Republicans [are] breaking their own committee rules that they established with the secretary and her team,” Garcia told reporters Thursday afternoon.
“It was gracious of the secretary and her team to continue the deposition,” he added.
Clinton has not been accused of any crimes in connection with Epstein and denies wrongdoing.
In her opening statement to the committee, Clinton said she did not recall ever meeting Epstein and had “no idea” about the crimes of the sex offender and his accomplice, Ghislaine Maxwell.
“I do not recall ever encountering Mr. Epstein. I never flew on his plane or visited his island, homes or offices,” Clinton’s said in the statement that was posted on her social media account.
Republican Rep. Nancy Mace was one of the lawmakers who quizzed Clinton about her husband Bill Clinton and Epstein, according to CNN.
The South Carolina congresswoman asked the former secretary of state “whether the former first lady had any feelings about young women massaging her husband,” according to the network.
A source in the room told CNN that Clinton responded that she would not speculate “about things she was not present for,” and that she was not there “to talk about feelings.”
The Democrat earlier accused lawmakers of not taking their inquiry into Epstein’s alleged sex trafficking operation seriously.
“If you are new to this issue, let me tell you: Jeffrey Epstein was a heinous individual, but he’s far from alone,” Clinton said. “This is not a one-off tabloid sensation or a political scandal. It’s a global scourge with an unimaginable human toll.”
Clinton also took aim at President Donald Trump in her opening statement and called for lawmakers to question him under oath.
Trump is not accused of any wrongdoing in relation to Epstein.
“If this Committee is serious about learning the truth about Epstein’s trafficking crimes, it would not rely on press gaggles to get answers from our current president on his involvement; it would ask him directly under oath about the tens of thousands of times he shows up in the Epstein files,” Clinton said.
Trump is mentioned in the Epstein files because he was once friends with Jeffrey Epstein. However, the two stopped being friends long before Epstein was investigated and convicted in Florida of prostitution.
This is a breaking news story and will be updated with new information
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