The FBI recommended on Tuesday that no criminal charges be filed over Hillary Clinton’s use of private email servers while she was secretary of state. However, it rebuked the Democratic US presidential candidate for “extremely careless” handling of classified information.
FBI Director James Comey’s comments are likely to reinforce what polls reveal as widespread public concerns about Clinton’s honesty and trustworthiness. Republicans have pointed to the controversy as evidence that Clinton’s considers herself above the law.
Republicans Are Not Happy
House of Representatives Speaker Paul Ryan, the highest-ranking elected US Republican, said in a statement that Comey’s announcement “defies explanation.”
Irate that Hillary Clinton will not face criminal charges over her emails, House Republicans are summoning FBI Director James Comey to Capitol Hill to answer their questions.
“There are a lot of questions that have to be answered.
And so we’re going to be asking those questions,” House Speaker Paul Ryan told reporters, adding that it looked like Clinton had gotten preferential treatment.
“We have seen nothing but stonewalling and dishonesty from Secretary Clinton on this issue, and that means there are a lot more questions that need to be answered.” Ryan said Clinton should be barred from receiving classified briefings in the course of the campaign. He said he would be looking into whether Congress could take action to enact such a prohibition. And asked whether a special prosecutor should be appointed in the case, Ryan said he wouldn’t “foreclose any option.”
Ryan called on the FBI to release all of its findings in the case and said Comey would be called to testify before the House Oversight Committee.
In a lengthy statement on the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s conclusions from its yearlong investigation, Comey directly contradicted statements Clinton has made while defending her use of the private email setup.
He said, for example, that the FBI found at least 110 emails that contained classified information when they were sent, although Clinton has repeatedly maintained that she never sent or received classified information on her private servers.
Comey added that the FBI did not find that Clinton or her colleagues intended to violate the law, and that there was no “intentional misconduct” by her lawyers who sorted her emails.
He said her staff should have known Clinton’s private email was an improper place for classified information, but added there was no evidence anyone had hacked Clinton’s communications.
Clinton Anxious to Move On
Clinton’s campaign was anxious to move on after Comey’s announcement, saying in a statement it was pleased with the FBI decision. But he did not respond to questions about Comey’s rebuttal of the main arguments Clinton has offered in defence of her use of private email.
As the secretary has long said, it was a mistake to use her personal email, and she would not do it again. We are glad that this matter is now resolved.Brian Fallon, Spokesperson for Hillary Clinton
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