(CHAPPAQUA, N.Y.) — Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s closed-door deposition with the House Oversight Committee in Chappaqua, New York, was briefly paused Thursday afternoon after a photo of her from inside the room was leaked, which is against committee rules.

The photo was posted by conservative social media influencer Benny Johnson who claimed it was provided by Republican Rep. Lauren Boebert.

ABC News confirmed that the deposition has resumed.

The former first lady and former President Bill Clinton are participating in depositions as part of the committee’s probe into the convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

In her opening statement Thursday before the pause, Hillary Clinton said that she had no involvement with Epstein or convicted associate Ghislaine Maxwell.

“The Committee justified its subpoena to me based on its assumption that I have information regarding the investigations into the criminal activities of Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell. Let me be as clear as I can. I do not,” Clinton said, according to a release of her opening statement.

Hillary Clinton said Thursday that she had no idea about Epstein and Maxwell’s criminal activity, saying she doesn’t “recall ever encountering Mr. Epstein.”

“I never flew on his plane or visited his island, homes or offices. I have nothing to add to that. Like every decent person, I have been horrified by what we have learned about their crimes,” she said.

Hillary Clinton went after the Republican-led committee in her opening statement, saying “you have made little effort to call the people who show up most prominently in the Epstein files. And when you did, not a single Republican Member showed up for Les Wexner’s deposition,” she states, referencing the closer-door deposition of retail billionaire Leslie Wexner earlier this month, during which the Republican members were no-shows. During his deposition, Wexner claimed he never witnessed nor had any knowledge of Epstein’s criminal activity.

Digging in even more, the former first lady attacked the probe.

“This institutional failure is designed to protect one political party and one public official, rather than to seek truth and justice for the victims and survivors, as well as the public who also want to get to the bottom of this matter,” she said, not mentioning any particular public official by name.

Republican House Oversight Chairman James Comer said the deposition with the Clintons is an opportunity to ask them questions.

“No one is accusing, at this moment, the Clintons of any wrongdoing,” Comer said Thursday morning ahead of Hillary Clinton’s testimony. “They’re going to have due process, but we have a lot of questions, and the purpose of the whole investigation is to try to understand many things about Epstein.”

Pressed on why the committee was adamant on subpoenaing Hillary Clinton, who has denied ever having any relationship with Epstein, Comer highlighted how there was a bipartisan effort to speak with the Clintons after Democrats also voted to subpoena the Clintons.

The committee first attempted to subpoena the Clintons in July of last year as Republicans demanded more information on the former president’s travels on Epstein’s private aircraft and what the committee called the “family’s past relationship” with Epstein and his convicted associate Ghislaine Maxwell, as part of their probe into Epstein.

The Clintons were subpoenaed to appear under oath in front of the committee for a deposition in January, but failed to comply, arguing the subpoenas were without legal merit. Rather, they proposed a four-hour transcribed interview instead.

David Kendall, the Clintons’ lawyer, argued that the couple has no information relevant to the committee’s investigation of the federal government’s handling of investigations into Epstein and Maxwell, and should not be required to appear for in-person testimony. Kendall contended the Clintons should be permitted to provide the limited information they have to the committee in writing.

Comer had long threatened to hold the Clintons in contempt if they failed to appear before the committee, so when they didn’t, a contempt resolution was drafted and put to a vote. The Oversight Committee passed the contempt resolution, with nine Democrats voting in favor of it, teeing it up for a full House vote.

At the last minute, before the resolution was brought for a full House vote, the Clintons agreed to sit for a deposition, postponing further consideration of a contempt vote.

Democrats on the committee said they hope this week’s testimonies from the Clintons spark Republican committee members to investigate more of Epstein’s ties to President Donald Trump and his Cabinet officials.

President Trump has repeatedly denied any knowledge of Epstein’s crimes and has said that he cut off contact with his former friend more than 20 years ago.

“We will talk to any single person, whether that is a Democrat, a Republican, how much wealth they have, how powerful the position is, we want to talk to anyone. So we’re happy to be here, and we’re glad that both Secretary Clinton and former President Clinton are willing to talk to this committee,” Rep. Robert Garcia, the committee’s top Democrat, said Thursday.

This week’s interviews with committee investigators will be video recorded and transcribed in accordance with the House’s deposition rules.

Comer said the committee is “going to release the video as soon as everyone has approved it.”

While the Clintons have agreed to speak with the committee behind closed doors, they have still pushed for public hearings as part of the committee’s probe into Epstein.

“I will not sit idly as they use me as a prop in a closed-door kangaroo court by a Republican Party running scared,” Bill Clinton wrote in a lengthy post on X. “If they want answers, let’s stop the games & do this the right way: in a public hearing, where the American people can see for themselves what this is really about.”

Hillary Clinton has echoed her husband’s sentiments while also continuing to call for the full release of the Epstein files, which they have accused the Department of Justice of selectively releasing.

“It is something that needs to be totally transparent,” Hillary Clinton said during a panel appearance at the Munich Security Conference earlier this month. “I’ve called for, many, many years, for everything to be put out there so people can not only see what is in them, but also — if appropriate — hold people accountable. We’ll see what happens.”

Neither Bill Clinton nor Hillary Clinton has been accused of wrongdoing and both deny having any knowledge of Epstein’s crimes. No Epstein survivor or associate has ever made a public allegation of wrongdoing or inappropriate behavior by the former president or his wife in connection with his prior relationship with Epstein. 

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(NEW YORK) — A New York City college professor has been placed on leave amid backlash over what the school called her “abhorrent remarks” during a public school district meeting.

Hunter College associate professor Allyson Friedman made the remarks during a NYC District 3 Community Education Council (CEC3) meeting earlier this month that she was virtually attending as a parent in the Manhattan district, the university confirmed.

While an unidentified eighth grade student spoke against the potential closing of her school, Friedman can be heard saying in a video of the meeting, “They’re just too dumb to know they’re in a bad school. … Apparently Martin Luther King said it. Like if you train a Black person well enough, they’ll know to use the back, you don’t have to tell them anymore.”

Friedman appeared to be referencing remarks made earlier in the meeting by District 3 interim acting superintendent Reginald Higgins, who had quoted the Black scholar Carter G. Woodson: “When you can control a man’s thinking, you do not have to send him to the back door, he will go without being told.”

During Friedman’s remarks, other attendees could be seen reacting in shock and someone interrupts her to say, “What you’re saying is absolutely hearable here, you’ve got to stop.”

riedman has apologized for her remarks, which she said were taken out of context during an accidental unmute and did not truly reflect her own views.

“During a recent online CEC3 meeting, I was trying to explain the concept of systemic racism to my child by referencing an example of an obviously racist trope,” Friedman said in a statement to ABC News. “Due to an inadvertent unmute, only part of that conversation was captured. My complete comments make clear these abhorrent views are not my own, nor were they directed at any student or group. I fully support these courageous students in their efforts to stop school closures. However, I recognize these comments caused harm and pain, while that was not my intent I do truly apologize.”

Hunter College said earlier this week that it is “reviewing the situation under the university’s applicable conduct and nondiscrimination policies.” On Wednesday, Hunter College President Nancy Cantor updated that Friedman, associate professor in the Department of Biological Sciences, has been placed on leave while the school investigates the incident.

“This painful incident unfolded at a meeting where Black History Month was being celebrated and the pernicious and enduring effects of anti-Black systemic racism were being discussed, especially with regard to the role of educational institutions in addressing them,” Cantor said in a statement. “Hunter has long embraced such a role, which requires constant vigilance to remain attentive and responsive to the ways in which we continually draw and redraw discriminatory social lines.”

ABC News has reached out to Friedman for comment on Thursday, following the update from Hunter.

CEC3 has condemned Friedman’s remarks as “racially offensive.”

“Regardless of intent, these comments were deeply harmful and wholly unacceptable,” CEC3 said in a draft statement. “That such remarks were made while a student was courageously offering public comment makes this incident even more troubling.”

New York City Public Schools Chancellor Kamar Samuels has also condemned her remarks, saying at an unrelated press briefing on Tuesday, “It was abhorrent to listen to. And our students deserve so much better.”

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(NEW YORK) — Stargazers will soon have an opportunity to view six planets in alignment in the night sky, according to NASA.

Mercury, Venus, Neptune, Saturn, Uranus and Jupiter will take part in a rare planetary parade on Saturday, the space agency said.

Planets are always on the move, so the viewing window will be brief. The best time to see the planets align will be just after sunset.

For the best view, astronomy guides recommend looking toward the western horizon about 30 minutes after sunset. This will give viewers the highest probability of spotting at least three planets at the same time, since Saturn, Mercury and Venus set in the west right after the sun.

The six planets will appear low in the western sky, with Mercury and Venus appearing the lowest and sinking below the horizon shortly after sunset, according to astronomers. Mercury and Venus are usually tricky to spot but will be visible on Saturday.

Saturn and Neptune will appear just above Mercury and Venus, while Jupiter and Uranus will appear a bit higher in the western sky, to the left of the others.

Viewers will need optical assistance via telescope or binoculars to see Uranus and Neptune, but the remaining four planets will be visible to the naked eye, NASA said.

Planets can sometimes appear “bunched together in the sky” because they orbit the sun in the same plane, known as the ecliptic, according to NASA. The planets will form a clear line along the ecliptic plane.

On the same day last year — Feb. 28, 2025 — seven planets were in alignment: Mars, Jupiter, Uranus, Neptune, Mercury, Saturn and Venus.

NASA says these planetary alignments happen every few years. The last one was visible from Earth in August 2025.

This year’s parade of planets is one of the first notable astronomical events taking place in 2026, according to NASA.

A total lunar blood moon eclipse will be visible from North America on March 3, especially for viewers on the West Coast. This will be the first lunar eclipse visible in the Americas since 2025.

A rare blue moon — which signifies the rare occasion of having a second full moon in the same month — will take place on May 31.

From June 8 to 9, the two brightest planets in the sky, Venus and Jupiter, will be in conjunction, appearing “only a pinky finger apart,” according to NASA.

The Perseids meteor shower, considered the best meteor shower of the year due to its swift and bright meteors, will be best seen from Aug. 12 to 13, during a darker sky courtesy of the new moon.

And the Geminids, the most reliable meteor shower of the year, will take place from Dec. 13 to 14.

A Christmas Eve supermoon — when a full moon is closest to the Earth — rounds out the most spectacular astronomical events in 2026, according to NASA.

ABC News’ Briana Alvarado contributed to this report.

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