Lawmaker suggests Epstein may have targeted former US President Clinton in ‘honeypot’ intelligence operation

ISTANBUL

US Republican Rep. Anna Paulina Luna suggested Friday that the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein may have been operating as an intelligence asset, running a “honeypot” operation targeting powerful figures, including former President Bill Clinton.

“Earlier, I said, and I’m sure some people on this committee also believe, that Jeffrey Epstein was an intelligence asset and running some form of a honeypot operation,” she said during testimony before the House Oversight Committee.

“I do believe that President Clinton, as well as the Secretary, were potentially targets of that operation,” Luna said at a news conference outside the ongoing closed-door deposition, in reference to Bill and Hillary Clinton, who served as US secretary of state and testified before the committee on Thursday. “We will leave it at that, and I look forward to seeing you all react to the depositions, as I think this is information that’s important and belongs to the American people.”

She praised the former president’s conduct under questioning before the committee that is investigating Epstein, calling it a “silver lining” and noting there is no evidence of criminal wrongdoing.

“Like Nancy has said and the chairman, there is nothing that we are seeing where there is criminal involvement or reason to believe the president has any wrongdoing, and that is why we are not supporting this crazy theory in bringing him into all of this,” said Luna, referring to her Republican colleague Nancy Mace.

The Florida lawmaker framed her remarks as personal observations, not committee conclusions, and stressed that there is no evidence of criminal wrongdoing by Clinton. She expressed hope that removing partisanship from the investigation could allow Congress to “actually … get justice.”