Congress
Hillary Clinton defies subpoena, skips deposition in congressional Epstein inquiry
The House Oversight and Government Reform Committee will vote next week to hold former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in contempt of Congress after she defied a subpoena and failed to appear Wednesday morning for her scheduled deposition.
It follows former President Bill Clinton’s refusal the day before to comply with a subpoena and sit for an interview with lawmakers as part of their investigation into Jeffrey Epstein — an outcome that resulted in Comer’s pledge to hold him in contempt of Congress, too.
“I think what’s most disappointing to the Oversight Committee is the fact that we have, in good faith, negotiated with the Clintons’ attorney for five months,” Comer (R-Ky.) told reporters. “We felt like Hillary Clinton could offer some information on [Epstein associate Ghislaine] Maxwell.”
Comer said his panel would vote on contempt for both Clintons during a markup slated for next Wednesday, which would then be brought to the House floor. A contempt vote could have implications ranging from symbolic to criminal. But the Justice Department has already shown an interest in prosecuting President Donald Trump’s political adversaries, signaling there could be grave consequences for the couple — especially Hillary Clinton, who ran against Trump in 2016.
In a public letter to Comer sent Tuesday, Bill and Hillary Clinton argued the subpoenas issued to them over the summer were invalid and maintained the exercise was designed to embarrass and put them in prison. They also said they have already given Congress whatever information they have about Epstein, the late convicted sex offender with whom Bill Clinton had a documented rapport.
Comer also said Wednesday his panel would depose Maxwell, Epstein’s co-conspirator who is now serving a 20-year sentence for her part in the sex trafficking scheme. He had previously indicated he did not intend to call her up to sit for an interview after issuing her a subpoena because her legal team had indicated she would not cooperate with their questioning.
A committee spokesperson said the panel had reached out to Maxwell’s attorney to schedule a deposition as a result of lawmakers’ renewed interest, but is still expected she would invoke her Fifth Amendment rights. The deposition would require members and staff to visit Texas, where Maxwell remains incarcerated.
Congress
Former White House counsel Kathryn Ruemmler called to testify in House Oversight’s Epstein investigation
The House Oversight and Government Reform Committee is requesting that Kathryn Ruemmler, the former White House counsel under President Barack Obama and the exiting top lawyer at Goldman Sachs, speak with investigators about her relationship with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
Ruemmler will soon resign from Goldman Sachs amid the mounting scrutiny over her close relationship with Epstein. Material released by the Justice Department revealed that Epstein called her when he was arrested for sex crimes.
“Due to public reporting, documents released by the Department of Justice, and documents obtained by the Committee, the Committee believes you have information that will assist in its investigation,” said Oversight Chair James Comer in a letter to Ruemmler obtained by Blue Light News.
He requested that she appear for a transcribed interview on the morning of April 21, but that date could be subject to change.
Goldman Sachs declined to comment. Ruemmler, through a spokesperson, has said she regrets knowing Epstein. She has not been charged with any misconduct.
The letter was reported earlier by The Wall Street Journal.
Ruemmler is one of a number of powerful public figures in the U.S. who has faced consequences for their relationships with Epstein.
Brad Karp, the former chair of the legal giant Paul Weiss, left his post atop the firm amid the fallout over his communications with Epstein.
Earlier Tuesday, Comer announced Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick has agreed to speak with his panel after correspondence released by DOJ showed that Lutnick maintained ties to Epstein following the disgraced financier’s 2008 sex crime conviction.
Lutnick has not been charged with any wrongdoing.
Congress
Trump takes aim at banks over crypto bill talks
President Donald Trump on Tuesday accused the banking industry of holding up landmark cryptocurrency legislation, writing on social media that Wall Street firms “need to make a good deal with the Crypto Industry” to unstick a pending digital asset bill in the Senate.
His post comes as White House officials are working to resolve a lobbying spat between the banking and crypto sectors over whether digital asset exchanges should be able to offer rewards programs that pay yield to users who hold dollar-pegged digital tokens known as stablecoins. The dispute has stalled pending crypto market structure legislation in the Senate.
“The Banks are hitting record profits, and we are not going to allow them to undermine our powerful Crypto Agenda that will end up going to China, and other Countries if we don’t get The Clarity Act taken care of,” he said, referring to the market structure bill, which would establish a new regulatory framework favorable to crypto companies.
Trump’s post is a win for the crypto industry, which is fighting against a lobbying effort by the banking industry to bar any type of yield payments on stablecoins. He effectively sided with the crypto industry’s position, writing that “Americans should earn more money on their money” — a line that crypto executives have used to argue in favor of their rewards programs. Banks warn that allowing consumers to earn yield on stablecoins could spark deposit flight from traditional financial institutions and threaten lending.
Despite Trump’s new position, the stalled market structure bill likely still does not have the votes to advance in the Senate without a resolution to the stablecoin yield fight that banks are satisfied with.
The talks over the issue, which are being mediated by White House crypto adviser Patrick Witt, have dragged on past an unofficial March 1 deadline by which administration officials hoped to resolve the dispute. The White House convened a series of meetings featuring representatives from the two industries, but an agreement has remained elusive.
“The U.S. needs to get Market Structure done, ASAP,” Trump wrote.
He also said a previously signed law dubbed the GENIUS Act, which created new rules for how stablecoins are regulated, “is being threatened and undermined by the Banks, and that is unacceptable — We are not going to allow it.”
The crypto industry “cannot be taken from the People of America when it is so close to becoming truly successful,” he wrote.
Congress
House Ethics trial for Cherflius-McCormick postponed as lawmaker seeks new lawyer
The House Ethics Committee has postponed its planned public trial for Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick — the Florida Democrat facing accusations that she stole millions in FEMA funding — to later this month.
A hearing of an adjudicatory subcommittee of the Ethics panel was pushed from this Thursday to March 26 after the lawmaker’s “counsel in the matter withdrew from representing her before the adjudicatory subcommittee,” according to a committee press release.
“Representative Cherfilus-McCormick asked for a brief continuance to allow her to retain new counsel,” the statement continued.
Lawmakers on the Ethics Committee, which adjudicates allegations of misconduct against House members and staff, were poised to meet to determine whether the allegations against Cherfilus-McCormick have been proven by “clear and convincing evidence.” There, the committee’s counsel and Cherfilus-McCormick’s counsel could have made their respective cases.
It’s highly unusual for the panel to operate in the open, let alone convene a trial. The last time House Ethics met in such a capacity was in 2010 to consider the case of late-Rep. Charlie Rangel, a New York Democrat accused of a number of charges, including inappropriately soliciting funds and financial disclosure violations.
Rangel’s situation had parallels to that of Cherfilus-McCormick. At the time, Rangel was irate over the Ethics Committee’s handling of the matter, claiming he was denied due process because he could not hire a lawyer in time for the hearing. At one point, he threatened to exit the room and left.
“I don’t think it’s fair that I participate in any type of proceeding if in fact what you are basically telling me that the political calendar will not allow you enough … time to allow me to get a lawyer at this crucial point in my life,” Rangel said, alluding to the fact that the Ethics Committee was rushing to conclude its business before the end of the legislative session.
The panel nearly unanimously voted to censure Rangel for his conduct, which the House approved shortly afterward.
Cherfilus-McCormick, like Rangel, had previously asked for the proceedings against her to be delayed. Her then-lawyer argued that the Justice Department’s criminal proceedings necessitated a stay in the Ethics Committee’s work. The Florida Democrat cited, among other examples, former Florida GOP Rep. Matt Gaetz, whose own case pending before House Ethics case was paused after a request from DOJ.
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