The big news of on the Hillary front since our last update is that FBI Director James Comey "voluntarily" came to Congress to answer questions about his failure to recommend prosecution of Hillary Clinton, or anyone else in her circle on charges of mishandling classified data. One interesting exchange occurred when Trey Gowdy tried to make Comey come out and call Hillary Clinton a liar:
When one Democrat on the committee accused him of being a Republican, Comey said he is no longer registered.
“Although our politics are different — I gather you’re a Republican — that correct?” Rep. Gerry Connolly (D-Va.) asked Comey in prefacing his remarks. Comey responded, “I have been a registered Republican for most of my adult life, not registered any longer.”Ace notes how Gowdy went after Comey on the question of malicious intent starting around 4:00 in the video above and Chaffetz later brought it around again:
Near the end of the hearing, Jason Chaffetz took another run at this intent issue -- he asked, "How can you say Hillary had no intent when she obviously intended to deliver classified information into the hands of between two and ten persons not cleared to see it?" -- namely, her lawyers and the various IT people with access to these classified documents (via her unsecured, unauthorized email system).
That is plainly intent to share classified information with uncleared persons. Satisfying the "intent" standard.
Comey's response was to once again babble like a fool, and claim he could not find any "evil intent."
See that? The statute doesn't require intent, but Comey says he reads it to require intent anyway. Then Gowdy and Chaffetz prove that even by this misreading, Hillary still has intent.
Then Comey says: "Yes, but no evil intent, like to obstruct justice or deliver the information into enemy hands."
PJ MEDIA has a copy of Speaker Ryan’s letter. Ed has already linked to Andrew McCarthy’s essay analyzing Hillary’s damage to US national security. Here’s a key quote:NOW THERE’S A HEADLINE THAT INSPIRES CONFIDENCE IN A PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE. FBI Director: Clinton Not ‘Particularly Sophisticated’ About Classified Levels.Comey: Clinton gave non-cleared people access to classified information
Unlike most criminal statutes, the felony of grossly negligent mishandling of classified information does not call for prosecutors to prove that a defendant intended the harm done. It merely requires proof of gross negligence – which is no different from what Comey compellingly demonstrated was Clinton’s “extreme carelessness” in mishandling national defense secrets.
Comey also refused to answer questions about any ongoing investigation of the Clinton Foundation and revealed that the FBI interview with Hillary was not recorded. so we'll just have to take his word for it that she did not lie to the FBI:
Shot: FBI and other federal agents must now tape interviews with suspects. Atty. Gen. Eric H. Holder Jr. said: “Creating an electronic record will ensure that we have an objective account of key investigations and interactions with people who are held in federal custody.”FBI Source: Clinton Foundation Can Bring Down Entire Government. But would that necessarily be a bad thing?
—The L.A. Times, May 22, 2014.
Chaser: Comey: Hillary’s FBI Testimony Wasn’t Under Oath Or Recorded, But It Would Still Be a Crime To Lie.
—Breitbart.com, today.
Hangover: “Congress To Ask FBI To Investigate Hillary For Lying Under Oath.”
“The problem is with the Clinton Foundation as I mentioned, which you should just imagine as a massive spider web of connections and money laundering implicating hundreds of high-level people,” the source said. “Though I do not have a high opinion of Hillary, she is just a piece – albeit a big piece – of this massive sh*tstorm.”And she's the nice one: Dana Perino DESTROYS Hillary and FBI in massive Twitter rant
When I was privileged to be granted SCI/top secret security clearance, I took it seriously. What an honor to be trusted with such info— Dana Perino (@DanaPerino) July 6, 2016
see the rest.
Allen West on Here’s why I’m DELIGHTED about the FBI’s verdict on Hillary… Because it shows her for what she was, even in not indicted. The problem is her voters don't care about national security or the rule of law.
JUST NBC THE INEVITABLE CONCERN TROLLING REPUBLICAN OVERREACH HEADLINE!
Analysis: Republicans Risk Playing into Clinton’s Hands With Comey Hearing.Others have other reasons to delight in her scofflawdom: Clinton email decision seen as lifeline for those facing similar charges and Man James Comey indicted for 23-word email has PERFECT response to Hillary verdict
As Allahpundit noted in 2013, in a post titled “Actual NYT headline: ‘IRS Focus on Conservatives Gives GOP an Issue to Seize On,’ You know this routine by now: If it’s a scandal involving Republicans, the story is the scandal. If it’s a scandal involving Democrats, the story — or at least a significant part of it — is whether and how Republicans will ‘politicize’ the scandal for their advantage…That LA Times headline that I screencapped last week is a textbook example of the genre: ‘Partisan politics dominates House Benghazi hearing,’ as if the big takeaway from Greg Hicks’s testimony was nothing-to-see-here politics-as-usual squabbling between Republicans and Democrats.”
Why Comey stood alone: Inside the FBI's announcement. Because Loretta Lynch and Bill Clinton set it up so it was his job alone to take the heat.
ANDREW McCARTHY: For Any ‘Reasonable’ Prosecutor, Damage to National Security Would Outweigh ‘Extremely Careless’ Hillary’s (Largely Irrelevant) Intent.Comey has long history of cases ending favorable to Clintons To be fair, they have a long history of skirting around the spirit of the law, while obscuring their violations of the letter.
As Ace of Spades writes, “No matter what you probe Hillary did, Comey ups the ante for what he claims must be proven, then says it’s not proven…Almost like he was employing motivated reasoning to get to the conclusion he favored from the start. He has simply rewritten the statute, completely, to give Hillary another Clinton Gets Out of Jail card.”
UPDATE: No malice aforethought here: “Dear God, Comey admits under oath her attorneys scrubbed devices in a way to prevent forensic recovery…Astounding.”
Via Wombat-socho's "In the Mailbox: 07.06.16" Ted Cruz Has The Only Reasonable Response to the FBI’s Disgusting Miscarriage of Justice
While I have tremendous respect for the dedicated men and women of the FBI, I have serious concerns about the integrity of Director Comey’s decision, and how it threatens the rule of law.also, the usually sensible Megan McArdle: Sorry, Republicans. Clinton’s E-Mails Won’t Take Her Down.
Director Comey has rewritten a clearly worded federal criminal statute. In so doing, he has come dangerously close to saying that grossly negligent handling of classified information should not result in serious consequences for high-level officials. In a nation where the rule of law is supposed to matter, this is troubling.
. . . If we are to remain a beacon of hope and freedom for the rest of the world, it is incumbent upon us to ensure that we remain a nation of laws, and that our laws apply equally and fairly to us all. Under President Obama, we have seen the most politicized Department of Justice in history; I very much hope that politicization has not similarly corrupted the Federal Bureau of Investigation. I join my Senate Judiciary colleagues, including Chairman Grassley, in calling for public transparency of, and full access to, all the information that the FBI used to come to today’s dubious decision.
The AP reports that the State Dept. is reopening it's investigation of Hillary's email:
“Even the Democrats know that somebody is going to need to get blamed for this mess eventually. The FBI and DOJ have now punted back to State in order for a Hillary surrogate or two to fall on their swords.”But the State Dept has invented a new excuse for Hillary: State Department: Classification markings were ‘human error’ See, she just ignored the markings that were there because she knew they shouldn't have been.
Take heart whoever you are, soon-to-be fall guy who will bring new meaning to the phrase, “Ready for Hillary.”. . .
It’s Our Duty as Women to Celebrate That Hillary Won’t Be Charged
After all, Mr. Comey didn’t simply explain the findings of the investigation in that speech — he mansplained them. As is always the case, all of the criticism of Hillary yesterday can be chalked up to sexism. Comey is a man; she is a woman, and he just had to find fault with the way she handled her e-mails as Secretary of State because he assumes that as a man, he somehow would have known better.And Mrs. Insty: Did Hillary Get a "Pussy Pass"?
The urban dictionary defines pussy pass as: "the phenomenon that female criminals get off with a lighter sentence than males" and describes it with an example: "That woman who killed her babies used her pussy pass to get off on probation."Why Your Facebook Friends Are Clueless About the Clinton Email Scandal Because they get their news from the Daily Show? Shocking News: Media Outlets Had Hillary is Cleared by FBI Stories Ready To Go. Related: Lefty PolitiFact re-visits Hillary’s classified email lies in post-Comey report New York Times: Come on — you know Hillary’s server was hacked, right?
So women who do unspeakable things get off often because people perceive women to have a more pure intent then men. Sure, she killed the babies but there was a good reason.
In Hillary Clinton's case, the good reason was no malicious intent. She should get a gentle scolding and the American people should understand how she just made a little careless mistake that could have cost them their lives. But no worries. It's just a special pass for the anointed ones.
“Reading between the lines and following Comey’s logic, it does sound as if the F.B.I. believes a compromise of Clinton’s email is more likely than not,” said Adam Segal, the author of “Hacked World Order,” who studies cyberissues at the Council on Foreign Relations. “Sophisticated attackers would have known of the existence of the account, would have targeted it and would not have been seen.”"Jack Dunphy" illustrates how Hillary Clinton is Too Connected to Jail. Sadly, this is true: 2016’s lesson: We get the leaders we deserve. Pat Buchanan asks: Will Americans elect a 'congenital liar' president? If history is any guide, they will; they elected Bill didn't they?
Do Americans really an incompetent idiot for President? Randy Quaid doesn't think so:
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