WATCH: Lawmakers speak ahead of Bill Clinton’s testimony about Jeffrey Epstein

WASHINGTON (AP) — Former President Bill Clinton told lawmakers Friday that he “did nothing wrong” in his relationship with Jeffrey Epstein and saw no signs of sexual abuse against Epstein as he faced hours of questioning from lawmakers about his ties to the disgraced financier more than two decades ago.

House Republicans spoke about Clinton’s testimony on Friday. Watch in the video player above.

“I saw nothing, and I did nothing wrong,” the former Democratic president said in an opening statement he shared on social media. The closed session ended after more than six hours of questioning by lawmakers, who said he answered every question he was asked.

He watches: What happened during Hillary Clinton’s closed-door hearing regarding Jeffrey Epstein

This was the first time a former president was forced to testify before Congress. This came a day after Clinton’s wife, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, sat with lawmakers to testify.

Bill Clinton was also not accused of any wrongdoing, and Republican members of the House Oversight Committee did not immediately make any accusations against the Clintons as they left Chappaqua. They planned to review the depositions but said their attention mostly turned to other individuals.

Lawmakers are grappling with what accountability looks like in the United States at a time when men around the world are being ousted from high-profile positions for maintaining ties to Epstein after he pleaded guilty in 2008 in state charges in Florida to soliciting prostitution from an underage girl.

He watches: Hillary Clinton speaks to reporters after a closed House hearing on Epstein

“We have questions about anyone who spent time with Epstein after his conviction,” said Republican Rep. James Comer, chairman of the House Oversight Committee. “Once you knew Jeffrey Epstein was a sex offender, why did you continue the relationship?”

Bill Clinton, in his opening statement, said he had long since stopped associating with Epstein by the time of his guilty plea in 2008. He also said it would be difficult to recall details of events that occurred more than 20 years ago, but expressed certainty that he did not witness signs of abuse by Epstein.

Republican Representative John McGuire accused Bill Clinton of having a “selective memory” during questioning, but other GOP members recanted, acknowledging that he handled the testimony with skill and candor. Comer described Bill Clinton as “charming” during questioning.

Republican Rep. Nick Langworthy said: “Clinton was completely frank, perhaps more frank than his lawyers felt.”

Republicans finally got a chance to question Bill Clinton

Republicans have wanted to question Bill Clinton about Epstein for years, especially as conspiracy theories emerged after Epstein’s 2019 suicide in a New York jail cell while facing sex trafficking charges.

Those calls came to a head late last year when several photos of the former president appeared in the Justice Department’s first release of the case files of Epstein and Maxwell, a British socialite who was convicted of sex trafficking in December 2021 but insists she is innocent. Bill Clinton was photographed on a plane sitting next to a woman whose face was obscured with his arm around her. Another photo showed Clinton and Maxwell in a pool with another person whose face was obscured.

He watches: Coomer says Bill Clinton’s testimony about Jeffrey Epstein was “productive.”

Epstein also visited the White House several times during Clinton’s presidency, and the two later made several international trips together for their humanitarian work. Coomer claimed that the committee collected evidence that Epstein visited the White House 17 times and that Bill Clinton flew on Epstein’s plane 27 times.

Democratic lawmakers said they also asked Bill Clinton tough questions about his relationship with Epstein and Maxwell.

“We’re only here because he hid it from everyone so well for so long,” Bill Clinton said in his opening remarks. “By the time his guilty plea came to light in 2008, I had long since stopped associating with him.”

Bill Clinton also attacked Comer because he called his wife before the committee and told him that “her inclusion is not correct.”

Comer said the committee is working to quickly release a transcript and video recording of both days of depositions.

Has a precedent been set?

Democrats, who have supported efforts to get answers from Bill Clinton, argue that this sets a precedent that should also apply to President Donald Trump, a Republican who had a private relationship with Epstein.

“I think President Trump needs to stand up before this committee and answer questions and stop calling this investigation a hoax,” Rep. Robert Garcia, the committee’s top Democrat, said Friday.

Coomer pushed back on that idea, saying Trump answered the press’s questions about Epstein. Republicans also said they found no evidence that Trump did anything wrong in his relationship with Epstein.

On Friday, Trump expressed remorse for forcing Bill Clinton to testify. He told reporters as he left the White House on his way to Corpus Christi, Texas: “I like Bill Clinton, and I don’t like seeing him fired.”

He watches: Rep. Garcia says House Democrats want Trump to sit and testify about Epstein’s ties

Democrats are also demanding the resignation of Trump’s Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick. Lutnick was a longtime neighbor of Epstein’s in New York City, but said in a podcast that he severed ties with Epstein after a 2005 tour of Epstein’s home that upset Lutnick and his wife.

The public release of case files showed that Lutnick actually had two associations with Epstein years later. He attended a 2011 event at Epstein’s home, and in 2012 his family had lunch with Epstein on his private island.

He watches: Coomer says lawmakers may question Lutnick about Epstein’s ties

“He should be removed from office, and at the very least he should appear before the committee,” Garcia said of Lutnick.

Republican Rep. Nancy Mace questioned Hillary Clinton about Lutnick’s relationship with Epstein during testimony Thursday. On Friday morning, Mace joined the call for the Commerce Secretary to appear before the committee.

“I believe we will have the votes to recall him,” Democratic Rep. Ro Khanna said.