Hillary Clinton wants Prince Andrew to appear before Congress. The 78-year-old former presidential candidate called on the disgraced royal to appear before the House Oversight Committee over his ties to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, and she wants the hearings held where everyone can see them.
Clinton is scheduled to testify on February 26. Her husband, former President Bill Clinton, follows the next day. Both agreed to appear, and both have pushed for the proceedings to be public rather than closed-door depositions.
Hillary Clinton told the BBC to "get the files out," accusing the process of being slow-walked. She then offered what might be the most self-assured statement of her political career:
We have nothing to hide. We have called for the full release of these files repeatedly. We think sunlight is the best disinfectant.
Coming from a Clinton, that line does a lot of heavy lifting.
Bill Clinton has been described as the first former U.S. president to be compelled to testify in a case like this, though the couple's public posture suggests it was voluntary. The framing is careful: show up willingly, demand transparency loudly, and hope the cameras capture cooperation rather than culpability.
The facts, however, are stubborn. Bill Clinton flew on Epstein's private jet, infamously dubbed "the Lolita Express," several times in the early 2000s after leaving office. According to The U.S. Sun, the latest tranche of Epstein files released by the Department of Justice included a photograph of Clinton in a hot tub alongside an unidentified woman. Another photo shows him cutting a cake for a woman on what appears to be a private jet. Yet another released image places him alongside Ghislaine Maxwell.
The former president claims he fully severed ties with Epstein before Epstein was arrested, has expressed regret about the relationship, and denies any knowledge of Epstein's criminal activity. Hillary Clinton's name, notably, has not appeared in any of the released Epstein files.
None of that means the Clintons are guilty of anything beyond spectacularly poor judgment in their associations. But the demand for "sunlight" rings hollow from a family that spent decades perfecting the art of managing what the public sees and when. Calling for transparency is easy when you've already reviewed what's in the files.
The more explosive material centers on Andrew, the 65-year-old former Duke of York, who has been an ever-present figure in the latest document release. And unlike the Clintons, who are at least showing up, Andrew has offered nothing but silence and blanket denials of wrongdoing.
The allegations are serious and specific:
If the document-sharing allegations bear out, they go far beyond personal misconduct. Passing classified trade and military reconstruction files to a convicted sex offender would constitute misconduct in public office, an offense that carries a maximum punishment of life in prison under UK law.
Thames Valley Police confirmed last week that it is assessing multiple claims about Andrew and his involvement with Epstein. Seven police forces are reportedly investigating the Epstein files. Director of Public Prosecutions Stephen Parkinson told the Sunday Times he had "total confidence" detectives would do their jobs thoroughly, adding plainly:
Nobody is above the law.
Former Prime Minister Gordon Brown has been leading calls for a formal inquiry into Andrew's ties to Epstein, describing the situation as "by far the biggest scandal of all." Brown cited 90 flights on Epstein's private jet that came into the UK carrying girls from across the globe. That number has not been independently documented, but the claim itself signals the scale of what British authorities may be sitting on.
There is something almost poetic about Hillary Clinton positioning herself as the champion of full disclosure in the Epstein saga. This is the woman whose private email server became a national scandal precisely because of her allergy to transparency. Now she lectures Congress about sunlight.
But conservatives should resist the temptation to focus exclusively on Clinton theatrics. The real story is what these files contain and who has been protected. The Trump administration's release of Epstein documents represents exactly the kind of institutional accountability that Washington has resisted for years. The files are out. The names are surfacing. The question now is whether the legal system, on both sides of the Atlantic, will follow the evidence wherever it leads.
The British royal family appears to understand the gravity. The King reportedly stands ready to support the police. Prince William and Catherine have said they are "deeply concerned" about the continuing revelations. Those are carefully worded statements from an institution that chooses every syllable, and they suggest the palace knows this is not going away.
The February 26 and 27 hearings will be the first real test of whether Congress treats this investigation with the seriousness it demands. The Clintons want cameras. Fine. Let the public watch. Let every answer, every pause, every pivot be recorded.
But the hearing that actually matters is the one that hasn't been scheduled. Prince Andrew has dodged accountability for years, hiding behind royal privilege and a settlement that offered no accountability. Hillary Clinton, whatever her motives, is right about one thing: he should testify.
Whether he ever will is another matter entirely. The palace has a long history of protecting its own, and Andrew has shown no appetite for the kind of public reckoning the moment requires. Ninety flights into the UK. Girls from across the globe. Confidential government documents allegedly funneled to a pedophile.
The files are out. The names are known. Silence is no longer a strategy. It's an indictment.
