“I think, to some extent, we’re beating a dead horse here for political reasons”, the Democrat said.
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Republican lawmakers continued to give Lynch heat for privately meeting with former President Bill Clinton days before Comey chose not to recommend that the former Secretary be charged.
Chaffetz and Goodlatte said they were asking for an inquiry as a result of testimony by FBI Director James Comey that he had investigated the email matter but had not looked into whether Clinton had lied to Congress.
“The matter was handled like any other matter”, Lynch told the House Judiciary Committee.
Comey also accused Clinton of “extreme carelessness” in her handling of classified emails on a private server, but said there was no evidence that she or her aides meant to violate laws governing classified actions, and therefore no reasonable prosecutor could bring a case.
“Why did you not see fit to recuse yourself from the investigation?” he asked.
Lynch’s testimony Tuesday came amid a roiling national debate over police violence and as House Republicans seek further investigations of Clinton months before the November election.
Bob Goodlatte, R-Va., the House Judiciary Committee chairman, told Lynch he remained “troubled” by FBI Director James Comey’s conclusions that Clinton’s mishandling of classified information was “extremely careless” but did not violate the law.
But Republicans kept the focus on Clinton, trying to draw Lynch out on whether Clinton lied to the public or to Congress, and on a couple of occasions turning the conversation to then-president Bill Clinton’s impeachment proceedings 18 years ago.
“Today apparently Secretary Hillary Clinton’s email takes precedence over gun violence and civil rights”, said Rep. John Conyers of MI, the panel’s top Democrat. Lynch then said that she would accept whatever recommendation the Federal Bureau of Investigation and her prosecutors presented on Clinton.
“How do I reconcile the fact that they know that their friends and colleagues have been prosecuted or fired for doing less in the past”, he asked. She has said it was an unscheduled encounter and the two did not discuss the Hillary Clinton email investigation, but Lynch also previously expressed regret and acknowledged the meeting had “cast a shadow” on the public perception of the Justice Department’s independence.
The attorney general last week appealed for calm one day after a sniper who said he wanted to kill whites fatally shot five police officers in Dallas.
Despite facing persistent and sometimes impatient challenges from House Republicans, Lynch testified that she felt it wouldn’t be proper for her to discuss in detail the prosecution team’s “unanimous recommendation” not to pursue charges against Clinton for her misuse of a private email server while she was secretary of state.
But GOP lawmakers Tuesday accused Lynch of failing to live up to her constitutional duty by not personally analyzing the case.
Lynch also began her hearing highlighting the tension between African-Americans and law enforcement that shook the nation last week.
Despite repeated prodding from Republican members of the House Judiciary Committee, Lynch said that as attorney general it would be inappropriate for her to comment on specifics of the investigation.
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