FBI Director James Comey announced to Congress on Friday that his department has launched another investigation into Hillary Clinton’s personal email account after it found more of her emails while looking into screen-lit pond scum Anthony Weiner for sexting a minor.
On Saturday, the New York Times reported that the Justice Department “strongly discouraged” Comey from making the announcement, claiming that in doing so he would be “breaking with longstanding policy.”
Per the Times:
“Senior Justice Department officials did not move to stop him from sending the letter, officials said, but they did everything short of it, pointing to policies against taking about current criminal investigations or being seen as meddling in elections.”
Comey technically reports to Attorney General Loretta Lynch, who, along with many other high-ranking Justice Department officials, objected to Comey’s decision to notify Congress of the investigation, CNN reports. The Times points out that Comey has a pattern of going against Lynch’s wishes, particularly, “on issues of race, encryption, policing and most notably the Clinton investigation.”
Comey has argued that the issue is too pressing to wait for more information, but many, including Republicans have noted his radical break with tradition in choosing this moment to bring the matter before Congress. George J. Terwilliger III, a deputy attorney general under President George Bush told the Times:
“There’s a longstanding policy of not doing anything hat could influence an election. Those guidelines exist for a reason. Sometimes, that makes for hard decisions. But bypassing them has consequences.”
He may be right about that. In a blood-curdling turn of events, the latest Washington Post-ABC News poll puts Clinton’s lead over necrotic jack-o’-lantern Donald Trump at a mere two points.
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