Judge Calls Clinton Emails One Of 'Gravest Modern Offenses To Government Transparency’
Hillary Clinton’s private email controversy just got a new jump start. A federal judge ordered additional fact-finding into whether Hillary Clinton’s use of her private email was a deliberate effort to thwart the Freedom of Information Act.
FBI has dropped new docs on Hillary Clinton email server investigation.
Includes notes discussing how ppl connected to Clinton acted in interviews w/ feds: -Acted surprised about revelations -Didn't recall anything -Used identical talking points Link:https://t.co/CKrx9lI6A9
Senior District Court Judge Royce C. Lamberth raised speculation that Clinton and her State Department “colluded” to keep her missing emails secret from the public and courts.
Judge Lamberth’s memo called the Clinton email affair “one of the gravest modern offenses to government transparency.”
Judicial Watch issued a statement highlighting the judge’s concerns with how the current administration is handling the case.
“The historic court ruling raises concerns about the Hillary Clinton email scandal and government corruption that millions of Americans share, Judicial Watch looks forward to conducting careful discovery into the Clinton email issue and we hope the Justice Department and State Department recognize Judge Lamberth’s criticism and help, rather than obstruct, this court-ordered discovery,” said Judicial Watch Tom Fitton.
Judicial Watch highlighted the following comments in Judge Lamberth’s memo:
"Lamberth ruled:
… the Court ORDERS the parties to meet and confer to plan discovery into (a) whether Hillary Clinton’s use of a private email while Secretary of State was an intentional attempt to evade FOIA; (b) whether the State Department’s attempts to settle this case in late 2014 and early 2015 amounted to bad faith; and (c) whether State has adequately searched for records responsive to Judicial Watch’s requests.
Terming Clinton’s use of her private email system, “one of the gravest modern offenses to government transparency,” Lamberth wrote in his MEMORANDUM OPINION:
… his [President Barack Obama’s] State and Justice Departments fell far short. So far short that the court questions, even now, whether they are acting in good faith. Did Hillary Clinton use her private email as Secretary of State to thwart this lofty goal [Obama announced a standard for transparency]? Was the State Department’s attempt to settle this FOIA case in 2014 an effort to avoid searching – and disclosing the existence of – Clinton’s missing emails? And has State ever adequately searched for records in this case?
***
At best, State’s attempt to pass-off its deficient search as legally adequate during settlement negotiations was negligence born out of incompetence. At worst, career employees in the State and Justice Departments colluded to scuttle public scrutiny of Clinton, skirt FOIA, and hoodwink this Court.
Turning his attention to the Department of Justice, Lamberth wrote:
The current Justice Department made things worse. When the government last appeared before the Court, counsel claimed, ‘it is not true to say we misled either Judicial Watch or the Court.’ When accused of ‘doublespeak,’ counsel denied vehemently, feigned offense, and averred complete candor. When asked why State masked the inadequacy of its initial search, counsel claimed that the officials who initially responded to Judicial Watch’s request didn’t realize Clinton’s emails were missing and that it took them two months to ‘figure [] out what was going on’… Counsel’s responses strain credulity. [citations omitted]
The Court granted discovery because the government’s response to the Judicial Watch Benghazi FOIA request for Clinton emails “smacks of outrageous conduct.”
Citing an email (uncovered as a result of Judicial Watch’s lawsuit) that Hillary Clinton acknowledged that Benghazi was a terrorist attack immediately after it happened, Judge Lamberth asked:
Did State know Clinton deemed the Benghazi attack terrorism hours after it happened, contradicting the Obama Administration’s subsequent claim of a protest-gone-awry?
Did the Department merely fear what might be found? Or was State’s bungling just the unfortunate result of bureaucratic red tape and a failure to communicate? To preserve the Department’s integrity, and to reassure the American people their government remains committed to transparency and the rule of law, this suspicion cannot be allowed to fester."
Related Sources:
https://www.politico.com/story/2018/12/06/hillary-clinton-emails-lawsuit-judicial-watch-1048196; https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/washington-secrets/judge-suggests-justice-state-colluded-to-protect-hillary-clinton-in-email-scandal
By: Lexy On Twitter? Follow me: @PoliticallyRYT Have Information? Message me!
Makes me so angry every time I read about this issue. Democrats are all about the police state for people they disagree with politically, but apply different standards to themselves! Grrr - thanks for the caffeine-free charge up this morning Lexus!
YEAH WELL I REMEMBER THE TIME HILLARY AND HER STATE DEPARTMENT COVERED FOR AN AMBASSADOR WHO WAS DIDDLING MINORS. THAT WAS RIGHT ON TV NEWS BEFORE IS BOUGHT OFF FAKE NEWS. WAIT UNTIL IT COMES OUT HOW SHE WITH MANY OTHERS WERE TRAFFICING CHILDREN, AND THAT SHE AND OTHERS ARE BLOODSUCKERS OF THE VAMPIRIC KIND. ADRENOCHROME IS REAL. SIC MF'S!!!! HANG EM ALL!!!!
Hillary placed top state secrets into emails and then allowed them to be accessed by anyone who wished to be placing them in an unsecured platform. Treason.
We the People are sick of the one sided bullshit! Her crimes are right out in the open, and serious enough to have her convicted of treason but we are still wasting our tax dollars on some witch hunt into our President. #NoDeals4HRC
Makes me so angry every time I read about this issue. Democrats are all about the police state for people they disagree with politically, but apply different standards to themselves! Grrr - thanks for the caffeine-free charge up this morning Lexus!