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A newly released video shows former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton storming out of the room during her deposition for the House Oversight Committee’s Jeffrey Epstein probe last week, after exploding at Republican lawmakers for allowing a photo of her to leak.
“I’m done with this. If you guys are doing that, I am done,” Clinton said loudly after the leak was brought to her attention. “You can hold me in contempt from now until the cows come home. This is just typical behavior.”
The outburst came in response to a photo of Clinton from inside the deposition room that was posted by right-wing influencer Benny Johnson. Johnson said in his X post that Rep. Lauren Boebert, R-Colo., took the photo.
Someone off camera then said the deposition would go off the record, and Boebert can be heard in the background saying she did take a photo before the deposition began.
“Oh for heaven’s sake,” Clinton cut in exasperated, thumping her fist on the table. “It doesn’t matter. We all are abiding by the same rules.”
Boebert can be heard saying she would take down the photo.
“Yeah, well,” Clinton responded aggressively as her lawyer asked to take a break.
“I’m done,” she said again, leaving the table.
The screen then promptly cut to black for a few seconds before the deposition appeared to resume moments later.
The stunning moment was part of nearly five hours of footage showing Clinton being deposed by lawmakers investigating the government’s handling of Jeffrey Epstein’s case.
Clinton stayed behind closed doors with both Republicans and Democrats from the 11 a.m. hour on Thursday, emerging to speak to reporters a little after 5:30 p.m. that evening.
The former first lady and Obama administration official told lawmakers she had no recollection of ever meeting Epstein and that she only knew his accomplice, Ghislaine Maxwell, as an acquaintance.
It occurred a day before her husband, former President Bill Clinton, was similarly deposed behind closed doors for the committee’s Epstein probe.
When the testimony resumed, Clinton’s lawyer accused the Oversight majority of “violating its own rules” with the photo leak.
“I’d like to just say, for the record, we find it unacceptable, we find it unprofessional, and we find it unfair,” the lawyer said, noting the Clintons themselves pushed for a public hearing in the first place. “We are here in good faith, we are counting on good faith from all the members.”
Committee Chairman James Comer, R-Ky., can be heard responding, “I’ve advised my members that no photos or videos during the deposition can be released. I understand the posted photo was taken before the deposition started. That will not happen again. And we will look forward to continue with the deposition.”
He also countered that the committee was “disappointed that the, secretary’s opening statement was leaked to the press, before she even gave her opening statement.”
“It was not leaked to the press, it was provided, as with other witnesses” Clinton’s lawyer responded. “What we don’t want is a secretary to be treated any differently than other witnesses.”
At another point in time, someone on the Democratic side could be heard asking Clinton about the photo leak.
“I will confess that I had some concerns about whether the majority on the committee would treat me fairly and would, you know, fairly convey what I say and what I did and how I looked and how I responded,” Clinton responded, again noting the decision to have a closed deposition rather than a public hearing.
“So it was disappointing, and I regret that it happened, and it violated your rules. But, that’s not the real concern I have. The real concern is, get busy, focus on the people that have something to tell you that can tell you about intelligence, money, and crimes, and get them before you. And whenever possible, do it in public.”
She was then asked if President Donald Trump should be deposed in the probe, to which Clinton answered, “Absolutely.”
Clinton noted both in her opening statement and in comments to the press after the deposition that she had never met Epstein and only knew his accomplice Ghislaine Maxwell as an “acquaintance.”
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