The FBI and the Metastasizing Virus of Deception

It is regrettable, bewildering, and shameful. Once again the American people have been treated to the manifestation of willful deception by an Administration that has promised citizens transparency. Last week, the virus of deception invaded in the form of the Department of Justice’s willingness to redact terrorist phone calls to censor the jihadist intent. This week, this virus spread to the FBI.

The ACLJ is fighting back in order to halt the unprecedented and unconscionable behavior by government officials in the FBI, the State Department, and the Justice Department.

Just as the Obama Administration has engaged in an intentional and coordinated campaign to stonewall Congress’s Benghazi investigation, and just as the government has been occupied by an attempt to mislead citizens by first hiding and then deleting evidence of its deceptive claim that no secret bilateral negotiations were ongoing between the U.S. and Iran, it now appears that FBI Director Comey has rewritten the felony statute that requires U.S. officials to safeguard classified communications in order to absolve the former Secretary of State of culpability.

Consider the following facts, which emerged from Director Comey’s July 5, 2016 news conference as he systematically dismantled Secretary Clinton’s email defense:

• First, Director Comey stated that it was clear that former Secretary of State Clinton violated Federal Government rules in using a personal private server to transmit classified material. In fact, Secretary Clinton used 3 different servers, without permission, in order to transmit and possess classified material.
• Second, FBI Director Comey provided evidence that former Secretary of State Clinton intended to use and did use her own personal and private server to send and receive emails that were classified. In other words, he directly and unmistakably contradicted the former Secretary of State’s claims that she did not have any classified emails on her server as well as her contention that there were no security breaches.
• Third, while using her own personal email system, the Secretary of States did in fact transmit 110 classified emails in 52 email chains and the emails were classified at the time they were sent or received – some even marked classified. Actually, according to Director Comey, 8 of those email chains were Top Secret at the time they were transmitted. Hence, it is manifest that the Secretary of State knew or should have known that she was in violation of her obligation to safeguard confidential communication at the time the messages were transmitted. No reasonable person, would understand otherwise. And Director Comey said as much.
• Fourth, in order for a U.S. government official to be indicted for mishandling classified documents, it is sufficient that the official’s conduct can be seen as grossly negligent under the circumstances. Director Comey has proven that the former Secretary of State’s conduct was “extremely careless.” Legally and factually this statement satisfies the standard of “gross negligence” which is what the relevant statute requires. This means that sufficient evidence was adduced to state that there is reasonable cause to believe that a crime was committed. Nevertheless, the Director insists that “no reasonable prosecutor” would bring a charge against the perpetrator because there was no “intent” despite the fact that others have been prosecuted for far less. In other words, FBI Director Comey rewrote the elements of the statute to satisfy his legal conclusion. He added an intent requirement where Congress did not. It criminalized “gross negligence.” This indicates that the fix was already baked into the FBI’s investigation no matter how much the Director lauds the thoroughness of the department’s investigation.

Just as the Administration blamed the attack on the Benghazi compound on an obscure internet video, and just as the Administration continues to deflect attention from its failure to send troops to save the lives of Americans in Libya, it is now clear that the contagion of deception has spread to the FBI in the form of department’s deceptive decision to rewrite the felony statute without authority to do so. Now Attorney General Lynch has officially closed the case, hiding behind the FBI's rewrite of the statute.

This pattern of deception indicates two things. First the rules do not apply to the rich and powerful. Second, it signifies that the rules matter little to this Administration, and its pursuit of power, no matter how often officials invoke their devotion to transparency and openness.

Responding to the growing threat to our liberty posed by the Obama Administration’s pattern of deception in Benghazi, at the State Department, at the Justice Department, and now at the FBI, the ACLJ will redouble its efforts to engage this Administration at every turn. Last week, the ACLJ filed an important freedom of information lawsuit against the State Department. Simultaneously the ACLJ filed a FOIA request with the Department of Justice and the FBI regarding the 911 transcript of the phone call made by Omar Mateen during his jihadist attack in Orlando. In addition, the ACLJ is preparing to file a timely FOIA request in order lay bare the facts behind the FBI’s decision to rewrite the statute in order to block the prosecution of the former Secretary of State.

These filings and proposed filings are part of the ACLJ’s sustained effort to unmask the Administration’s stubborn devotion to false narratives and faux investigations. In explaining why he stubbornly refuses to follow the text of the felony statute and apply it to the mishandling of classified information by former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Director Comey said the following: “Although there is evidence of potential violations of the statutes regarding the handling of classified information our judgment is that no reasonable prosecutor would bring such a case.”

Whether Director Comey was responding to Administration pressure or not, this claim is untrue and indefensible. Join with the ACLJ in draining the swamp of corruption.