The House Republican hearing with FBI Director James Comey was an epic political mistake that may have gifted the White House to Hillary Clinton.
There was one moment towards the end of the hearing that gravely wounded the Republican efforts to stop Clinton.
While being questioned by Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-MD) over the potentially chilling effects of the hearing, Director Comey said, “My honest answer is, I don’t think so. When I talked to the Chairman, I agreed to come because I think the American people care deeply about this. There’s all kinds of folks watching at home being told well lots of other cases are being prosecuted and she wasn’t. I want them to know that’s not true. So I want to have this conversation, and I actually welcome the opportunity.”
Republicans and conservative media have been running around screaming at the top of their lungs that other people were prosecuted in similar cases, but Clinton wasn’t. However, as the FBI Director testified that isn’t true. The Petraeus case was nothing like the Clinton case. David Petraeus was caught on tape admitting to his mistress that he knew he was leaking classified information. There is not evidence or precedent for a person in Hillary Clinton’s situation facing criminal charges.
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Director Comey went on to say that he thought that the hearing was good for transparency and democracy, but throughout his testimony, Comey has largely backed up what Hillary Clinton has been saying about her use of private email.
The hearing exposed the desperately partisan nature of the Republican attacks on Clinton. The hearing was good for our country because the American people got to see what the Republican Party is about. The motive behind this hearing was to bring down Clinton, but nothing that was discussed by Director Comey suggested that there was anything criminal behind her use of a private email server.
The day couldn’t have gone much worse for Republicans.
Instead of damaging the presumptive Democratic nominee, House Republicans may have just gotten her elected president.
Jason is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.
Awards and Professional Memberships
Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association
