Congress
9 Democrats vote to hold Bill Clinton in contempt of Congress for evading Epstein testimony
Nine Democrats on the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee voted with Republicans Wednesday to recommend holding former President Bill Clinton in contempt of Congress for defying a subpoena to testify as part of the panel’s investigation into convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
Three Democrats sided with Republicans in voting for a separate measure to recommend also holding former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in contempt.
Their votes underscore the continued pressure Democrats are under to remain consistent in their calls for transparency and accountability in the Epstein case — no matter the person or the party affiliation or the dire consequences.
The contempt reports now head to the House floor. Assuming the measures advance, the administration could choose to prosecute the former first couple, which could lead to potential jail time for one or both.
For Hillary Clinton especially, it could mark the culmination of President Donald Trump’s decadelong hostility towards his 2016 political rival, who he repeatedly called to be put behind bars for using a private email server while leading the State Department.
“No witness – not a former president or a private citizen — may willfully defy a duly issued congressional subpoena without consequence,” said House Oversight Committee chair James Comer (R-Ky.). “But that is what the Clintons did, and that is why we are here today.”
Reps. Maxwell Frost of Florida, Raja Krishnamoorthi of Illinois, Summer Lee of Pennsylvania, Emily Randall of Washington, Lateefah Simon of California, Melanie Stansbury of New Mexico and Rashida Tlaib of Michigan, alongside Reps. Stephen Lynch and Ayanna Pressley of Massachusetts, joined Republicans in voting in favor of holding Bill Clinton in contempt. Two Democrats — Yassamin Ansari of Washington and Dave Min of California — voted “present.”
Lee, Stansbury and Tlaib voted in favor of holding Hillary Clinton in contempt, with one Democrat, Min, recording himself as “present.”
Comer issued subpoenas to the Clintons as part of his committee’s Epstein probe. Though Bill Clinton has not been implicated in any illegal activity, he had a well-documented relationship with the late disgraced financier and lawmakers on both sides of the aisle have been eager for information about what he might know.
But Republicans have sought to position Epstein as an alternative bogeyman to Trump, who also has not been accused of coordination in Epstein’s sex trafficking scheme but has been at the center of Democrats’ focus in demanding all federal case files related to Epstein be released.
The Clintons have maintained that Comer’s subpoenas are not tied to a legitimate legislative purpose and are therefore invalid. They have also accused Comer of pursuing partisan antics designed to put them in prison.
Like other public figures who received subpoenas from the Oversight panel in the Epstein probe, the Clintons submitted sworn declarations to the panel. In their written statements, the former first couple attested to their lack of knowledge about the criminal activities of both Epstein and his associate, Ghislaine Maxwell.
The Clintons also, through their legal team, negotiated with the panel for months to determine terms for an appearance before lawmakers and staff investigators. Bill Clinton had offered to sit down for an interview with Comer and his staff, but Comer rejected the proposed conditions.
In a statement on social media Wednesday morning before the contempt vote, a Clinton spokesperson said, “We have offered to help, we have helped, and to this very moment we are ready to help. But the Republicans REFUSE to say YES.”
Rep. Robert Garcia (D-Calif.), the committee’s top Democrat, voted against the contempt resolutions, saying he also wanted Bill Clinton to answer his panel’s questions but arguing Comer was applying different standards to witnesses.
“Where is the pressure to get [Attorney General] Pam Bondi to release the files?” Garcia said. “Instead, you are focusing the committee’s focus on whoever you perceive to be you, your enemies and the enemies of Donald Trump.”
Congress
Suozzi: ‘I failed’ when voting to pass DHS funding bill
Rep. Tom Suozzi (D-N.Y.) on Monday said he regretted his vote last week for a funding bill for the Department of Homeland Security, amid intense backlash surrounding the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown in Minnesota.
“I failed to view the DHS funding vote as a referendum on the illegal and immoral conduct of ICE in Minneapolis,” he said in a statement. “I hear the anger from my constituents, and I take responsibility for that. I have long been critical of ICE’s unlawful behavior and I must do a better job demonstrating that.”
Suozzi was one of seven Democrats who crossed party lines to join Republicans in narrowly passing the DHS funding bill in a 220-207 vote. The bill funded agencies including FEMA and the Coast Guard — and ICE, keeping it funded at $10 billion for the fiscal year.
Suozzi expressed his regret amid mounting tensions following federal immigration operations in Minnesota and the killing of a second U.S. citizen protester, 37-year-old ICU nurse Alex Pretti, on Saturday.
“The senseless and tragic murder of Alex Pretti underscores what happens when untrained federal agents operate without accountability,” Suozzi said. “President Trump must immediately end ‘Operation Metro Surge’ and ICE’s occupation of Minneapolis that has sown chaos, led to tragedy, and undermined experienced local law enforcement.”
Before the weekend killing, the DHS funding was slated to be part of a six-bill package that seemed likely to pass in the Senate. But Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said over the weekend that Democrats would not help advance the current package if it included the DHS funding — significantly raising the risk of a partial government shutdown at the end of the week.
Rep. Laura Gillen (D-N.Y.), another one of the seven House Democrats who voted for the DHS package, called for DHS Secretary Kristi Noem’s impeachment following Pretti’s killing.
“Another U.S. citizen has been killed at the hands of ICE and there must be accountability, which is why Secretary Noem must be impeached immediately,” Gillen said in a statement Sunday. “Under her leadership, ICE has targeted U.S. citizens and children and killed Americans.”
But Vicente Gonzalez (D-Texas), another member of the group of breakaway House Democrats, defended his vote in a video message Monday, calling the footage out of Minnesota “appalling” but defending voting for the DHS funding.
“ICE has all the resources they need that they got from that big ugly bill Republicans passed last year, that I voted against,” he said, adding he voted for funding for agencies like FEMA and the TSA.
Congress
Republicans offer early support for Trump’s Minnesota pivot
Some Republicans on Capitol Hill expressed relief after President Donald Trump announced Monday he would send border czar Tom Homan to handle immigration enforcement in Minnesota after Department of Homeland Security agents shot and killed a second U.S. citizen there.
Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) praised the move Monday, saying “we need a new set of eyes and someone with his experience to help turn around the problems of the moment and the future.”
“Tom is the right man to find a way to de-escalate the situation,” he added.
A growing number of Hill Republicans have been pushing publicly and privately for a lowering of the temperature, including from the federal government, after DHS agents shot and killed 37-year-old Alex Pretti in Minneapolis on Saturday.
GOP lawmakers largely view Homan as a more practical enforcer of Trump’s mass deportation plans as some grow increasingly wary of how Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and Border Patrol commander Gregory Bovino are handling the campaign, according to six GOP lawmakers granted anonymity to discuss internal conversations.
“There needed to be a change,” said one of the GOP lawmakers. But other at-risk Republicans have been wary to publicly embrace Homan, who has denied reports that he took a $50,000 bribe from federal agents.
Congress
Trump says Justice Department is investigating Ilhan Omar
President Donald Trump on Monday said the Justice Department is investigating Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.).
Trump made the announcement on Truth Social, writing: “the DOJ and Congress are looking at ‘Congresswoman’ Illhan Omar, who left Somalia with NOTHING, and is now reportedly worth more than 44 Million Dollars. Time will tell all.”
It is the latest attack the president has levied at Omar, and the most recent instance of the president directing an investigation into his political rivals.
Trump has previously said Omar should be jailed or deported to Somalia, where she was born, though Omar has been a U.S. citizen since 2000. He has also linked Omar to government services fraud investigations in Minnesota, accusing her of being “one of many scammers,” despite no clear evidence linking her to the cases.
Tensions have only grown between the two as immigration officials continue to patrol the city of Minneapolis, which Omar represents.
Omar’s net worth skyrocketed in the last year, and House Oversight Chair James Comer (R-Ky.) recently told the New York Post that he plans to launch an investigation into what caused the dramatic spike.
According to financial disclosures filed last year, Omar’s net worth principally increased due to her spouse — and not her work with the government. She disclosed her spouse taking in anywhere between $6 million and $30 million in partnership income from a venture capital firm and a winery.
Members of Congress’ and their spouses’ sources of income and assets are traditionally disclosed in broad ranges, not as a specific dollar amount.
Omar has previously denied the allegations of anything untoward and has said Trump has a “creepy” obsession with her.
Trump also announced Monday that he is sending border czar Tom Homan to Minneapolis. Residents have flooded the streets of the city this month, protesting the shootings of Renee Good, who was killed by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer Jan. 7, and Alex Pretti, who was killed by a Border Patrol agent Saturday.
Neither the DOJ nor Omar’s office immediately responded to requests for comment.
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