Bill Clinton denies wrongdoing to US committee on Epstein

Former US president Bill Clinton denied wrongdoing to a congressional panel probing his links to Jeffrey Epstein, as Democrats seek to shift focus onto US President Donald Trump's own ties to the late sex offender.

Mr Clinton features prominently in the Epstein files but insists that he broke ties well before the disgraced billionaire's 2008 conviction for sex offenses.

"I saw nothing, and I did nothing wrong," Mr Clinton said in his opening statement, shared on social media.

The Republican chair of the House committee probing Epstein, James Comer, said "we believe this was a very productive deposition that President Clinton answered every question - or attempted to answer every question."

Mr Comer's Republican colleague Nancy Mace alleged there were "inconsistencies" in his testimony without providing specific examples.

Democrats on the committee have reiterated their call for President Trump, who also has documented links to Epstein, to be quizzed.

"Let's be real, we are talking to the wrong president," said Democrat committee member Suhas Subramanyam, who also emphasised that Mr Clinton had not dodged any questions.

In his statement, Mr Clinton did not name Mr Trump directly but said "no person is above the law, even presidents - especially presidents."

As for Mr Trump, he repeated his scepticism over the whole process, telling reporters he likes Mr Clinton "and I don't like seeing him deposed."

Being mentioned in the files released by the US Department of Justice does not imply wrongdoing and Mr Clinton - like Mr Trump - has not been accused of a crime or formally investigated.

Mr Clinton follows his wife, former secretary of state Hillary Clinton, who testified Thursday and defiantly called for Mr Trump to appear before the panel.

The politicians should ask President Trump "directly under oath about the tens of thousands of times he shows up in the Epstein files," she said.

The depositions are being held behind closed doors, with Mr Clinton likening the proceedings to a "kangaroo court."

The couple has called for them to be open and televised.

Mrs Clinton said she had never known Epstein or visited the properties where he hosted world celebrities and powerful business and political figures.

Mr Clinton has acknowledged extensive interactions with Epstein but said he never visited the financier's infamous private Caribbean island.

Epstein was convicted in 2008 for soliciting prostitution from a minor, but died in a New York jail cell in 2019.

The Clintons had initially rejected subpoenas ordering them to testify, but the Democratic power couple agreed to do so after House Republicans threatened to hold them in contempt of Congress.

'Turned him in'

Democrats say the investigation is being weaponised to attack Mr Trump's political opponents rather than to conduct legitimate oversight.

Previously unseen photographs from the files include one showing Mr Clinton reclining in a hot tub.

In another, Mr Clinton is pictured swimming alongside a dark-haired woman who appears to be Epstein's accomplice Ghislaine Maxwell.

Mr Clinton has acknowledged flying on Epstein's private plane several times in the early 2000s for Clinton Foundation-related humanitarian work.

"Jeffrey Epstein was in the White House 17 times while Bill Clinton was President. We know that Bill Clinton flew on Jeffrey Epstein's plane at least 27 times. So those are questions that we're going to ask," said Mr Comer.

Mr Clinton said in his opening statement "not only would I not have flown on his plane if I had any inkling of what he was doing - I would have turned him in."

The depositions are being held in Chappaqua, New York, home to the Clintons, where dozens of journalists and Secret Service officers have converged.