Addressing the House Judiciary Committee, Lynch said she had “no reason not to accept” recommendations by FBI Director James Comey that no charges were needed against the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee for her use of a private email server while she was Secretary of State.
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Lynch wanted to talk about anything else.
Republicans, though, ramped up their criticism not only of Clinton but of the Justice Department’s handling of the case. Bob Goodlatte of Virginia, strenuously criticized Lynch over the investigation’s outcome, charging that it “does not seem to be a responsible way to uphold your constitutionally sworn oath”.
She also defended her decision not to recuse herself from the case – even after her 30-minute meeting June 27 with former President Bill Clinton, which occurred at his request on her government plane when the two crossed paths in Phoenix.
For their part, Democrats bemoaned that the conversation was focused on the former secretary of state’s email practices, rather than issues such as gun control and policing practices. This takes care of any action from the U.S. Attorney General’s Office for the next four to eight years coming if Hillary is elected to office.
“As I’ve indicated, I received the recommendation of the team, and that team was composed of prosecutors and agents”.
Lynch is making her first appearance before Congress since the Justice Department closed its investigation without bringing criminal charges. When asked to walk the committee through her reasoning in accepting their judgment, however, she declined.
Sensenbrenner said he was concerned that Clinton was being held to a different standard than others entrusted with classified information, especially members of the military who have been disciplined for lesser offenses. And he tried to draw her out on whether Clinton lied about her handling of classified email.
Clinton also testified publicly before Congress in October.
With stunning hubris, Lynch announced in her opening statement that she simply would not be answering questions from the very lawmakers charged with oversight of the executive branch.
“The issue, as usual, doesn’t really lend itself well to aphorisms and short statements”, Lynch replied.
The American people will write it. Lynch has acknowledged, though, that questions about the encounter are “reasonable”, and given a second chance, she would not do it again.
The GOP was furious that the Federal Bureau of Investigation decided against pressing charges against Clinton over her handling of classified information when she relied on a private email server for government business during her tenure as secretary of state.
“The timing of and circumstances surrounding this announcement are particularly troubling”, he said.
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Attorney General Loretta Lynch says building trust between law enforcement and the communities they serve has never been more hard or important.
