1983 – Former President Gerald Ford testifies before Congress, establishing the last time a former president voluntarily appears before a congressional committee until the 2026 Clinton depositions [1].

2019 – Jeffrey Epstein is arrested on federal sex‑trafficking charges and dies by suicide a month later, prompting the creation of the Justice Department’s “Epstein Files” and a multi‑year congressional investigation [21].

2021 – Ghislaine Maxwell is convicted of recruiting and trafficking teenage girls for Epstein; her conviction is upheld and she begins a 20‑year sentence, later becoming a target of House Oversight subpoenas [2].

July 23, 2025 – The House Oversight Committee issues subpoenas to former President Bill Clinton and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton demanding deposition testimony in its Jeffrey Epstein investigation, launching a months‑long standoff [22].

December 13, 2025 – Committee Chairman James Comer warns that failure to appear for depositions will trigger contempt of Congress proceedings, accusing the Clintons of “delayed, obstructed, and largely ignored” staff efforts [19].

December 15, 2025 – Comer proposes January 13 and 14 as deposition dates, threatens contempt if the Clintons do not comply, and Democrats on the panel release DOJ photos showing Bill Clinton with Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell [10].

January 8, 2026 – The Oversight Committee expands its probe, issuing subpoenas to Les Wexner and Epstein estate executors Darren Indyke and Richard Kahn to trace financial links and alleged trafficking connections [21].

January 13, 2026 – Bill and Hillary Clinton issue an eight‑page letter declaring the subpoenas “invalid and unenforceable,” refuse to attend scheduled depositions, and state they will fight any contempt charges; Speaker Mike Johnson declares their defiance “contempt of Congress” [13][14][15][18][20].

January 14, 2026 – Hillary Clinton skips a deposition, prompting Chairman Comer to announce imminent contempt proceedings; Johnson reiterates that “defying a congressional subpoena is contempt” and vows a full House vote [8][13].

January 21, 2026 – The Oversight Committee votes to advance criminal contempt resolutions against both Clintons and schedules Ghislaine Maxwell’s virtual deposition for February 9; Speaker Johnson pledges to bring the measures to the full House floor [7][12][17].

January 22, 2026 – The committee formally votes to hold Bill Clinton (34‑8) and Hillary Clinton (28‑15) in contempt, a step that would refer the case to the Justice Department for possible prosecution; House Speaker Nancy Pelosi privately rebukes Democrats for supporting the vote and urges full release of Epstein files [3][6]; the DOJ confirms Maxwell will testify virtually on Feb 9 [2].

February 3, 2026 – Bill and Hillary Clinton agree to closed‑door, videotaped depositions on February 26 and 27, satisfying Comer’s “no‑time‑limit, fully transcribed” terms and averting an imminent contempt vote; the Clinton spokesperson posts on X that they “have accepted every single term” [1][4][5][11][15][16].

February 4, 2026 – The agreement is publicly confirmed, noting that the Clinton depositions will be the first compelled testimony of a former president since Gerald Ford in 1983, underscoring the unprecedented enforcement of congressional subpoenas [1].

Early February 2026 – Attorney General Pam Bondi is scheduled to testify before the House Judiciary Committee, adding another high‑profile witness to the broader congressional effort to examine the Justice Department’s handling of the Epstein case [12].

February 9, 2026 – Ghislaine Maxwell appears via remote deposition before the Oversight Committee, invokes her Fifth Amendment rights and declines to answer substantive questions, as anticipated by Chairman Comer [2].

February 26, 2026 – Hillary Clinton provides her sworn, video‑recorded deposition, reiterating she never knew of Epstein’s crimes and maintaining that the subpoenas are politically motivated [1].

February 27, 2026 – Bill Clinton testifies in a closed‑door, transcribed deposition, becoming the first former president compelled to sit for congressional testimony since Gerald Ford, while asserting he cut ties with Epstein years before the 2019 arrest [1].