The former secretary of state's long-awaited testimony hit a snag early on when Boebert violated protocol by taking photos inside the closed-door hearing
Credit: ROBYN BECK/AFP via Getty; Anna Moneymaker/Getty
Hillary Clinton's long-awaited testimony in the House of Representatives' Jeffrey Epstein probe hit a snag early on, when Republican Rep. Lauren Boebert reportedly broke the rules by taking pictures of the former secretary of state and sending them to conservative podcaster Benny Johnson.
The testimony was closed, meaning members of the press were not allowed in the room, and it was not broadcast live or livestreamed. However, Boebert snapped pictures of both Clinton and her House Oversight name tag from her seat further down the table. She sent them to Johnson, who added his The Benny Show watermark and posted them to X.
"BREAKING: The first image of Hillary Clinton testifying under oath about Jeffery [sic] Epstein to the Republican Oversight Committee," Johnson captioned the pic. "This is the first time Hillary has had to answer real questions about Epstein. Clinton does not look happy. Photo provided by Rep. Lauren Boebert."
The photo leak reportedly caused the deposition to be temporarily paused.
When news began to spread that the hearing had been disrupted, Johnson correctly noted that both Secretary Clinton and her husband, former President Bill Clinton, had campaigned to have public hearings, but were denied.
"This is insane," he wrote in another X post. "The deposition is being filmed. Hillary wanted it to be done LIVE on TV. The entire deposition will be released soon. Rep. Boebert gave me permission to post photo with credit. Hillary is trying to get out of answering questions about Epstein because of a pic!?!"
Boebert also chimed in, sharing Johnson's post and adding, "Benny did nothing wrong. Proceeding with deposition."
Reporters covering the deposition claimed that Boebert's sharing of the photo was "unauthorized" and in violation of House rules. Clinton staffers told Daily Mail reporter Victoria Snitsar Churchill that rules read at the top of the deposition barred Boebert's action.
MS NOW's Ali Vitali reported that, after the news of the leak broke inside the deposition, Hillary asked that the press be allowed in for the remainder of her testimony. However, House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer reportedly wouldn't allow it.
Last month, the Clintons released a lengthy public letter announcing their refusal to appear for their originally scheduled testimonies, conceding that it might lead Comer to hold them in contempt.
"We've tried to give you the little information we have. We've done so because Mr. Epstein's crimes were horrific," they wrote. "If the Government didn't do all it could to investigate and prosecute these crimes, for whatever reason, that should be the focus of your work — to learn why and to prevent that from happening ever again."
They added, "You accepted the least from those who know the most but demand the most from those who know the least. To say you can't complete your work without speaking to us is simply bizarre."
They also noted that they had previously shared statements with Comer that were similar to ones the chairman had already accepted from seven or eight former law enforcement officials who had been subpoenaed and subsequently excused from testimony.
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Bill and Hillary were first subpoenaed in August 2025. When the DOJ released some of the Epstein files in December 2025, Bill was featured in multiple photographs. He has denied any wrongdoing.
Hillary's closed-door deposition on Thursday, at her home in Chappaqua, N.Y., precedes her husband's deposition under the same circumstances on Friday, Feb. 27.
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