FBI reopens investigation into Clinton email use

Page 21 - Seeking answers? Join the AnandTech community: where nearly half-a-million members share solutions and discuss the latest tech.

VRAMdemon

Diamond Member
Aug 16, 2012
7,828
10,238
136
Comey's performance before Congress bolstered the respect he earned from me long ago over the Patriot Act. I also think it comes back to intent, like with the whole email controversy. What did Comey intend?

Anybody who thinks that James Comey wants Donald Trump to be President is out of their fucking mind. Once that is understood, assigning partisan intent to Comey's actions makes no sense whatsoever.

I think he's made a huge mistake in being overly concerned about his duty to Congress but that doesn't mean it wasn't an honest mistake.

The part about Lynch is mere speculation. As with his press conference, I doubt he consulted with her at all. The other side of it is that she's carefully avoided entanglement in the whole thing right from the start.

I have no doubt that Comey does not want Trump president, but to say Comey's actions had no personal or partisan overtone's is dubious at best. I think that he's basically a man of integrity, I think he's smart enough to be thoroughly covering his ass, but I also think that the wording of the statement can only be interpreted as Comey either being not too bright in that moment or being flagrantly partisan. Anyone of even moderate intelligence could have predicted the shitstorm this would cause, and far more detail could have been provided to mitigate that shitstorm. Comey himself has now become a news story, and surely not in a way he could possibly have wanted.

If Comey is of at least average intelligence, which does appear to be the case, he had to know that his vague 'don't know if this is significant' letter would be taken as "absolute proof" of criminal wrongdoing by Hillary Clinton...he had to know that Trump et al would run with the 'no smoke without fire' argument.

It's plausable that Comey released the letter out of pure careerism.

His prospects of continuing as FBI director under Clinton were not good; though he could be fired only for cause, he probably anticipated being pressured to resign. And who would hire him after leaving the FBI? The Republicans resent and distrust him because he failed to nail Clinton to the wall back in July,

He had to re-win GOP hearts. This was the way to do it. Even if Clinton does win, Democratic hopes for gains in the House and Senate will/may have suffered because of Comey's efforts, and the GOP will know and appreciate it. He's a relatively young man (55--too young to retire). He will be needing a new job. Now he's made sure that there will be some attractive offers coming his way.
 

Starbuck1975

Lifer
Jan 6, 2005
14,698
1,909
126
I mean you pretty clearly dislike Clinton, so let's not fool ourselves here. I sincerely doubt this changes the dynamic of the race in any meaningful way. If anything I expect the polls to move slightly in Trump's direction for a few days before returning to a 4-5 point lead for Clinton.

I mean do you really think that someone who has heard all the other email shit up to this point would hear 'we found some new ones we didn't check' and suddenly say 'that's it, I'm voting for the sex offending con artist'?
It doesn't change the dynamics at all, but it could be enough to maintain the Congressional status quo.

However, the one thing investigators apparently lacked in their investigation was leverage. The Weiner device introduces a wild card the Clinton machine cannot control. Weiner also has quite a bit to gain if he has relevant knowledge.

Let's say this batch of emails exposed criminal intent that leads to an indictment. Who do you blame for that outcome, however unlikely it might be?
 

fskimospy

Elite Member
Mar 10, 2006
87,953
55,332
136
It doesn't change the dynamics at all, but it could be enough to maintain the Congressional status quo.

However, the one thing investigators apparently lacked in their investigation was leverage. The Weiner device introduces a wild card the Clinton machine cannot control. Weiner also has quite a bit to gain if he has relevant knowledge.

Let's say this batch of emails exposed criminal intent that leads to an indictment. Who do you blame for that outcome, however unlikely it might be?

I find that possibility so incredibly unlikely that it's really hard to speculate.
 

Jaskalas

Lifer
Jun 23, 2004
35,746
10,051
136
Huma Swore Under Oath She Gave Up 'All Devices'...

Vowed she was not retaining copies of emails...

In February 2013, Abedin signed a routine State Department document under penalty of perjury in which she promised to "turn over all classified or administratively controlled documents and materials" before she left her government job, and promised that she was not retaining copies, "including any diaries, memorandums of conversation or other documents of a personal nature."

Huma has definitely broken her immunity with the discovery of additional crimes.
That _may_ be the full extent of this.
 

Kazukian

Platinum Member
Aug 8, 2016
2,034
650
91
If they didn't indict on what they had, unless there's videotape of Hillary and Bill hunting children in Haiti with AR-15's, there will be none.

The rumors suggest that the NYPD SVU reviewed Weiner's confiscated laptop, found that Huma had CC'd herself to her personal email with some work related material. The work related emails are already pretty much out there already.

People that were going to vote for Hillary already made up their minds, and honestly, who are the undecideds going to vote for? Trump? Doubtful.
 

runzwithsizorz

Diamond Member
Jan 24, 2002
3,497
14
76
There were reports of mutiny as well after Comey chose not to indict. Those didn't materialize as any more than wishful thinking by the GOP.

This is feeling more like an epic mic drop. The Obama administration dumped the entire political weight of the indictment on the FBI courtesy of Bill Clinton's little tarmac maneuver and the Republicans have been assaulting his integrity even since the decision not to indict. The FBI got it from both ends.

We will soon discover how the Weiner device came into play. He literally threw raw meat back into the cage. I suspect going public was due to either the active or assumed political maneuvering that would surround getting a warrant. I suspect that is what this is about.
I think you have a point! If Comey needs the DOJ for a warrant, then the ball is now in their court.
 

Thump553

Lifer
Jun 2, 2000
12,839
2,625
136
He didn't release it to the public though Thump553, congress did.

Comey's an experienced political animal. He knew full well what releasing that letter to nine GOP politicians, when nothing in the letter indicates that it is secret or confidential, was the best way to put the letter in thepublic domain with the fastest widespread public dissemination. It's beyond parsing to claim he didn't release the letter to the public and I doubt Comey will even attempt to claim that.
 

fskimospy

Elite Member
Mar 10, 2006
87,953
55,332
136

Lol @ Drudge. Remember how they were hyping the IBD poll as the 'most accurate' poll last week and how it had good news for Trump?

I'll give you zero guesses why they stopped hyping it this week. :) As always, people with an agenda cherry picking polls.

Why waste your time with Drudge? It's simply not an honest outlet.
 

Jhhnn

IN MEMORIAM
Nov 11, 1999
62,365
14,685
136
I have no doubt that Comey does not want Trump president, but to say Comey's actions had no personal or partisan overtone's is dubious at best. I think that he's basically a man of integrity, I think he's smart enough to be thoroughly covering his ass, but I also think that the wording of the statement can only be interpreted as Comey either being not too bright in that moment or being flagrantly partisan. Anyone of even moderate intelligence could have predicted the shitstorm this would cause, and far more detail could have been provided to mitigate that shitstorm. Comey himself has now become a news story, and surely not in a way he could possibly have wanted.

If Comey is of at least average intelligence, which does appear to be the case, he had to know that his vague 'don't know if this is significant' letter would be taken as "absolute proof" of criminal wrongdoing by Hillary Clinton...he had to know that Trump et al would run with the 'no smoke without fire' argument.

It's plausable that Comey released the letter out of pure careerism.

His prospects of continuing as FBI director under Clinton were not good; though he could be fired only for cause, he probably anticipated being pressured to resign. And who would hire him after leaving the FBI? The Republicans resent and distrust him because he failed to nail Clinton to the wall back in July,

He had to re-win GOP hearts. This was the way to do it. Even if Clinton does win, Democratic hopes for gains in the House and Senate will/may have suffered because of Comey's efforts, and the GOP will know and appreciate it. He's a relatively young man (55--too young to retire). He will be needing a new job. Now he's made sure that there will be some attractive offers coming his way.

Nice conspiracy theory, rife with innuendo & speculation. Congratulations- you may be thinking like a Rightwinger. Question Comey's judgement if you want but questioning his integrity is uncalled for.
 

emperus

Diamond Member
Apr 6, 2012
7,824
1,583
136
Another good article. The fact that Comey shouldn't have released that letter doesn't even seem to be a close call.

Decades ago, the department decided that in the 60-day period before an election, the balance should be struck against even returning indictments involving individuals running for office, as well as against the disclosure of any investigative steps. The reasoning was that, however important it might be for Justice to do its job, and however important it might be for the public to know what Justice knows, because such allegations could not be adjudicated, such actions or disclosures risked undermining the political process. A memorandum reflecting this choice has been issued every four years by multiple attorneys general for a very long time, including in 2016.
...
As former deputy attorneys general in the Bill Clinton and George W. Bush administrations, we are troubled by the apparent departure from these standards in the investigation of Hillary Clinton’s email server. First, the FBI director, James B. Comey, put himself enthusiastically forward as the arbiter of not only whether to prosecute a criminal case — which is not the job of the FBI — but also best practices in the handling of email and other matters. Now, he has chosen personally to restrike the balance between transparency and fairness, departing from the department’s traditions. As former deputy attorney general George Terwilliger aptly put it, “There’s a difference between being independent and flying solo.”
...
As it stands, we now have real-time, raw-take transparency taken to its illogical limit, a kind of reality TV of federal criminal investigation. Perhaps worst of all, it is happening on the eve of a presidential election. It is antithetical to the interests of justice, putting a thumb on the scale of this election and damaging our democracy.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/opin...rce=huffingtonpost.com&utm_term=.9707f6c5194f
 

Jaskalas

Lifer
Jun 23, 2004
35,746
10,051
136
Another good article. The fact that Comey shouldn't have released that letter doesn't even seem to be a close call.

The "We do not comment on ongoing investigations" seems to be a solid line.
Breaking from it does raise suspicions.
 

UglyCasanova

Lifer
Mar 25, 2001
19,275
1,361
126
The absurd thing is that this is a hole Hillary dug herself. She and the campaign demanding they be released so we can all see what's in them? Had they been forthcoming in the first place, not self selected what emails to turn over, not destroyed the devices via hammers etc themselves, not used BleachBit to erase them, and not had a private server in the first damned place we wouldn't be having this conversation. Her own hubris and propensity to lie caught up with her.
 

IGBT

Lifer
Jul 16, 2001
17,974
140
106
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/...clinton-emails-kass-1030-20161028-column.html

Democrats ask Clinton to step aside...

What if she is elected? Think of a nation suffering a bad economy and continuing chaos in the Middle East, and now also facing a criminal investigation of a president. Add to that congressional investigations and a public vision of Clinton as a Nixonian figure wandering the halls, wringing her hands.

The best thing would be for Democrats to ask her to step down now. It would be the most responsible thing to do, if the nation were more important to them than power. And the American news media — fairly or not firmly identified in the public mind as Mrs. Clinton's political action committee — should begin demanding it.
 

LegendKiller

Lifer
Mar 5, 2001
18,256
68
86
The absurd thing is that this is a hole Hillary dug herself. She and the campaign demanding they be released so we can all see what's in them? Had they been forthcoming in the first place, not self selected what emails to turn over, not destroyed the devices via hammers etc themselves, not used BleachBit to erase them, and not had a private server in the first damned place we wouldn't be having this conversation. Her own hubris and propensity to lie caught up with her.

She couldn't turn them all over, there's far too much pay to play. FBI people are now saying the Clinton Foundation is also under FBI investigation. The Doug Band memo lays it all out. Wiener has flipped and now we know that the DoJ was trying to block the FBI from investigating, that's gone now that he has flipped. Saw that people were saying the emails were in a folder called "Life Insurance". This is only starting. Comey had no choice, sounds like the NYPD checkmated him, DoJ wouldn't let him do his job, so he went to Congress.

What caught up to her is simple criminality. She tried to cover that up and the coverup fell apart.

It is glorious
 

fskimospy

Elite Member
Mar 10, 2006
87,953
55,332
136
She couldn't turn them all over, there's far too much pay to play. FBI people are now saying the Clinton Foundation is also under FBI investigation. The Doug Band memo lays it all out. Wiener has flipped and now we know that the DoJ was trying to block the FBI from investigating, that's gone now that he has flipped. Saw that people were saying the emails were in a folder called "Life Insurance". This is only starting. Comey had no choice, sounds like the NYPD checkmated him, DoJ wouldn't let him do his job, so he went to Congress.

What caught up to her is simple criminality. She tried to cover that up and the coverup fell apart.

It is glorious

You can just feel the desperation and wishful thinking oozing out of this post. You want Trump to win so badly it's painful because you're so emotionally invested. It was probably really depressing you that he is getting his ass handed to him and now you're clinging to this story like a life preserver.

I imagine you've been breathlessly scouring ultra right wing news to find more stories that tell you what you want to hear and I'll be interested to see how large a conspiracy you've convinced yourself exists by the time the electoral hammer drops on you.
 

LegendKiller

Lifer
Mar 5, 2001
18,256
68
86
You can just feel the desperation and wishful thinking oozing out of this post. You want Trump to win so badly it's painful because you're so emotionally invested. It was probably really depressing you that he is getting his ass handed to him and now you're clinging to this story like a life preserver.

I imagine you've been breathlessly scouring ultra right wing news to find more stories that tell you what you want to hear and I'll be interested to see how large a conspiracy you've convinced yourself exists by the time the electoral hammer drops on you.

Talk about desperation. You know this is over. You know that she's more likely than not to end up behind bars, or at least many of her minions gets taken down. You know that among Is she is going to lose more. You just can't admit it yet. Talk about being emotionally invested, your desperation takes the form of projection.
 

fskimospy

Elite Member
Mar 10, 2006
87,953
55,332
136
Talk about desperation. You know this is over. You know that she's more likely than not to end up behind bars, or at least many of her minions gets taken down. You know that among Is she is going to lose more. You just can't admit it yet. Talk about being emotionally invested, your desperation takes the form of projection.

Lol. How many times have you confidently declared the same thing? Remember you right before the debates where you were declaring her done right before she beat Trump like a rented mule and then he tanked? Funny how you disappeared after that. ;)

Like I said the other day, my opinion is based in evidence, unlike yours. She is overwhelmingly likely to win, but if it makes you feel better keep telling yourself whatever you need to hear.

For all your peacocking and chest thumping the insecurity just oozes from you. You've known Trump was doomed for a long time now, you're just to proud to admit you got it wrong yet again.
 

fskimospy

Elite Member
Mar 10, 2006
87,953
55,332
136
Better yet tell us more about how the only people who care about Trump's sexual assaults are beta males or whatever. That was amazing and I know a lot of people here got a kick out of seeing what a piece of shit you are. You should try saying things like that to the women in your life and see what they say.