Democrats hoping for the smoking gun that would connect President Donald Trump to Jeffrey Epstein’s crimes were sorely disappointed Monday.
Testifying before the House Oversight Committee, former Attorney General Bill Barr reportedly said he never saw any evidence that would “implicate” the president, according to Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer (R-KY).
Comer spoke with reporters as the bipartisan investigation into the administration’s handling of the Jeffrey Epstein case kicked off.
(Video Credit: WAAY 31 News)
“What Attorney General Barr testified in there was that he never had conversations with President Trump pertaining to a client list,” Comer said, according to ABC News.
“He didn’t know anything about a client list. He said that he had never seen anything that would implicate President Trump in any of this, and that he believed, if there had been anything pertaining to President Trump, with respect to the Epstein list, that he felt like the Biden administration would have probably leaked it out. And I think that’s pretty much conventional wisdom among anyone that’s practical in this.”
Barr, who served as attorney general in Trump’s first administration as well as under George H.W. Bush, is the first of those subpoenaed to testify who appeared before the panel in the closed-door meeting.
Former Trump AG Bill Barr arrives for a closed-door interview – first deposition for House Oversight and Government Reform Committee probe into Jeffrey Epstein pic.twitter.com/yKJqamZGqH
— Howard Mortman (@HowardMortman) August 18, 2025
“Barr said he’s never seen any information that showed that he was in the files, and that he would be shocked if there was anything pertaining to President Trump that was negative that the Biden administration wouldn’t have leaked out prior to the presidential election,” Comer told reporters, adding that Barr said he “didn’t know anything about a client list.”
Naturally, Democrats criticized their Republican colleagues for their questioning of Barr.
“I have more questions now than I did before going in,” Rep. Suhas Subramanyam (D-VA) told reporters before Comer spoke with them. “Just generally, though, I think the Democratic side is doing most of the heavy lifting. I don’t think we’re learning much from the questioning from the House Republicans.”
“I think it’s unfortunate that the Democrats are trying to, seems to me, politicize this,” Comer said later when asked about the remarks.
The Committee has issued subpoenas to former President Bill Clinton, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, former FBI Directors James Comey and Robert Mueller, as well as former attorneys general Loretta Lynch, Eric Holder, Merrick Garland, Jeff Sessions, and Alberto Gonzales for “testimony related to horrific crimes perpetrated by Jeffrey Epstein.”
Comer explained to reporters that he expects to soon receive all of the documents related to the Epstein investigation.
We are working closely with @TheJusticeDept to obtain all the documents related to the Epstein investigation.
Chairman @RepJamesComer: “I expect to receive the documents very very soon.” pic.twitter.com/sWseOiSPo5
— Oversight Committee (@GOPoversight) August 18, 2025
“Attorney General Barr is answering every question, and I think that he’s being very transparent. That’s our goal with this investigation is to be transparent,” Comer said Monday.
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Originally from New York, Powers graduated from New York University and eventually made her way to sunny South Florida. Powers also contributes to BizPac Review.
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