On Thursday as House Oversight Committee Republicans deposed former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton regarding the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein behind closed doors, Clinton released her four-page opening statement to the public.
The statement criticized the Oversight Committee for not ensuring the full release of the Epstein Files from the Department of Justice, and for not getting to “the bottom of reports that DOJ withheld FBI interviews in which a survivor accuses President Trump of heinous crimes.”
Here is my opening statement to the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee today. pic.twitter.com/NZSF2epcI5
— Hillary Clinton (@HillaryClinton) February 26, 2026
Clinton also chided the Committee for not demanding testimony “from prosecutors in Florida and New York about why they gave Epstein a sweetheart deal and chose not to pursue others who may have been implicated.”
She added, “What is being held back? Who is being protected? And why the cover up?”
The Tennessee Holler jumped on the reminder of the “sweetheart deal” and reminded its followers on social media (see news clips below) that Republican Alex Acosta, the former U.S. attorney for the Southern District of Florida who gave Epstein that deal in 2008 was later “rewarded with a Trump cabinet position” and “is now on the board of Newsmax.”
Seems like more people should be aware Alex Acosta, who has “no remorse” about giving Epstein a sweetheart deal— and was rewarded with a Trump cabinet position… is now on the board of Newsmax
pic.twitter.com/lNPtQfoRbV
— The Tennessee Holler (@TheTNHoller) February 27, 2026
[In 2017, Trump nominated Acosta as Secretary of Labor and he was confirmed by the Senate (60–38). Following Epstein’s arrest on sex trafficking charges in 2019, Acosta “faced fresh calls to resign” and did so. In March 2025, Acosta joined the board of directors of Newsmax.]
As the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York (SDNY), Republican Geoffrey Berman charged Epstein with sex trafficking of minors and conspiracy to commit sex trafficking of minors in July 2019. Berman’s prosecution of Epstein brought renewed attention to Acosta’s handling of Epstein’s case in Florida and fueled the pressure on Acosta to resign from the Labor Department. Berman oversaw the case until it was dismissed following Epstein’s death in August 2019.