Ricochet is the best place on the internet to discuss the issues of the day, either through commenting on posts or writing your own for our active and dynamic community in a fully moderated environment. In addition, the Ricochet Audio Network offers over 50 original podcasts with new episodes released every day.
Hillary’s Completely Inadequate Response to the FBI’s Renewed Investigation
Hillary held a Friday afternoon press conference to address the FBI Director James Comey’s blockbuster decision to review new evidence in its investigation into her email server. The event lasted a whopping four minutes; here it is in its entirety:
Yeah, that ought to fix it. To Hillary’s credit, she didn’t wear prison orange or create a new series of memes as she did at her other email press conference. But if Hillary’s goal was damage control, her statement was a bust.
After a one-minute opening statement, she took three questions from the press before rushing stage right. It’s interesting that she seemed to be reading from notes after each not-at-all-staged question.
Team Hillary apparently has no idea what emails Comey found, so she kept her answers generic and tried to put the onus on him. “We are calling on the FBI to release all the information that it has,” Hillary said, in a obvious attempt to turn the klieg lights away from her and toward the agency.
Also amusing was Hillary’s demand for the FBI to release the emails in question, something she knows they can’t do mid-investigation, by saying “let’s get it out.” For years Secretary Clinton has attempted to hide these e-mails, going so far as to destroy several devices and BleachBit her unsecured server. To now insist on transparency from the FBI is a bit rich.
When asked her advice to voters, Hillary said, “I would urge everybody to get out and vote early.” Why is she so eager to bank a bunch of early votes? As she noted a bit later, “We’ve heard these rumors, we don’t know what to believe. And I’m sure there will be even more rumors.” She must know that there is plenty of damaging info floating out there so she wants voters to cast their ballots before it does.
Her most Clintonian response was this final swipe at the FBI: “We’ve made it very clear that, if they’re going to be sending this kind of letter that is only going originally to Republican members of the House, that they need to share whatever facts they claim to have with the American people.” The Vast Right Wing Conspiracy is back in town.
Obama appointee Comey sent his letter because he was required to per rules from Obama’s Department of Justice. He had provided sworn testimony to congress about the email server scandal and was obligated to keep the relevant committees apprised. Since he said under oath that the review was complete, he needed to inform Congress that this was no longer the case. The letter was addressed to eight congressional committee chairmen, all of whom are Republicans since that party controls both chambers. And on page two of the letter, was the list of CC-ed members, all of whom are Democrats.
If she wants us to believe this is a partisan hit, she’ll have to explain why Obama is in on it.
Published in Law
I don’t know, I think there are certain times when we SHOULD be “generally upset”–and this is one of them.
Not to sound like a pessimistic nut, but 3 theories popped into my head when I heard the news last night:
Am I reading too many spy stories by not buying into the first shocker?
“Upsetting” is bad? Surely there was more to it than that. I hope.
I agree. That is the best explanation I have seen, both here and other places. Comey and Co. see Trump winning and are trying to get right with the new reality.
I was under the impression absentee ballots are kept in the sender’s envelope until election day, and opened and separated then. You are right about any early voting system that doesn’t have a paper ballot sequestered.
A yard sign and then some…
Your headline is a little wordy. If you cut it back to “Hillary’s Completely Inadequate” it would work for this story and so many others.
Looking for my absentee ballot just to make sure, but no, there is no indication on the outside of party, at least in the general.
True, you can request a new ballot if you damage the old one, but IIRC you have to return the damaged one. I need to confirm that, too, since I never really paid much attention to it.
So the question that remains is what the Registrar of Voters does if they receive two ballots from the same person. I don’t know on that one, but I go by their office regularly. I’ll check on Monday.
1) Based on what evidence do you think Clinton would keep her word in such a deal?
2) Based on what evidence to you think Tim Kaine would be a safe president?
Eric Hines
Could be (Comey sees Trump winning) but I think more likely he does not want to go down in history as the one who had seen the smoking gun that could have unmasked once and for all the woman who would be king and he sat on it until after the election. (Could I have done a worse job of mixing metaphors?) Even if Hillary wins (which I think is still likely) he can say “not my fault, I told you about what I found and you elected her anyway.” Comey probably knows Wikileaks is going to release it anyway, so why not get out in front of it. Finally, I agree that Comey is probably trying to stave off an FBI revolt.
From Clinton +12 to Clinton +2 in one week. That’s amazing!
“Changes in the poll’s latest four nights compared with the previous four are not mainly about people shifting in their candidate preference, but about changes in who’s intending to vote.”
So that’s how you manufacture inane results like this:
http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2016-10-29/abc-wapo-effectively-admit-they-tampered-their-polls-hillary-lead-shrinks-2-points
Not at all rightly so. History should never be censored.
Eric Hines
He already is, because he already has–in a press conference he held when he originally closed the investigation.
Eric Hines
For the curious, Business Insider has a link to the putative New York Post cover here. Follow the Twitter link, not the one that immediately precedes it. That one takes you to the actual NYP Web site; the Twitter image appears to be a jape, or the NYP chose not to use the cover on their Web site.
While the imaged cover is in poor taste, even compared to the NYP‘s wont, I don’t see anything that wants censorship. Perhaps the editor(s) who censored the image from this thread would care to explain their act. Hopefully with something more concrete than their usual glittering generalities and repetitions of their claims that are devoid of the logic they used to arrive at their claims.
Eric Hines
Maybe he’s experiencing betrayor’s remorse and he’s trying to make right his past wrong. This is his version of Judas trying to return the 30 pieces of silver. It was too late then, but is it too late now?
I have it on good authority that his campaign staff has tied him up, taped his mouth shut, removed all internet access and locked him in a safe room in Trump Tower. :-)
Maybe then he has a chance, or at least the Republican Senate and House do, I think Trump has probably buried himself too deep in too many swing states to really pull off a win, though he might close the popular vote gap somewhat to no worse than Romney.
Jon, I thought Hillary handled it pretty well. After all, what else do you say about an accusation if you have no idea what the accusation is, or what evidence supports it? And calling for the release of whatever materials triggered this announcement is pretty sensible for her, since she knows that it won’t happen. At least she looks like she has nothing to fear. Trump could certainly learn something from her about handling October surprises.
What I find to be amazing is that there are comments on this thread suggesting that Comey’s letter was an effort to help Hillary. Seriously? If the FBI Director had announced that he was pursuing a criminal investigation against my candidate 10 days before the election, I would be going ape[expletive] right now. Frankly, I think it was incumbent on the FBI to thoroughly investigate any possibility of criminal wrongdoing long ago, and announce the results of that investigation before any primaries took place. There is absolutely no reason why this process should have dragged on for years. And it is not the job of the FBI to influence elections by making surprise announcements right before (and even during) voting.
Oh, and by the way, every candidate encourages their supporters to vote early. Trump is doing it right now. If you want people to be sure to do something, then you want them to do it ASAP. Treating this as some kind of Democratic dirty trick is over-the-top partisanship.
Larry, I agree with your take. No way Comey did this to help her. The British press is reporting that Comey sent the letter in direct defiance of AG Loretta Lynch’s instructions. http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3884528/James-Comey-felt-obligation-inform-Congress-Clinton-email-investigation.html
Plus Hil played the right wing conspiracy card at her presser (“sent only to GOP congressmen”). She wouldn’t have done that if this was meant to help her.
– especially you dead guys.
That article is written by a left-wing American reporter (look at her Twitter page) even if it’s in a British paper. The US staff of the Daily Mail is largely “progressive”.
I’m sure all that is true, BD, but the British press is far more quick to criticize Hillary than the American press. I do not see how any of this helps Hillary.if Hillary thinks it does, I think she has miscalculated.
“Preet Bharara, the New York prosecutor known as one of the toughest in America, issued a subpoena for Mr. Weiner’s mobile phone and other electronic records after the ‘sexting’ came to light in September. It is believed this sparked the reopening of the closed investigation.”
Bharara has been in the process of indicting seemingly the entire New York political class, Democrat and Republican. Maybe he threatened to go public with this stuff.
Yea early voting needs to be abolished
Any reason she didn’t go McCarthyite this time?
Do you mean “have you no decency, sir?” That just would not have fit.
The picture of Comey on CNN right now looks like the man is carrying the weight of the world on his face – he just needs to unload his burden and put it down – stand up for it the truth and let it all come out.
Indeed!
Here’s a search for the curious. Have the smelling salts ready!
https://www.google.com/search?q=new+york+post+cover+clinton+email&num=100&safe=off&espv=2&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwj11-qw_YDQAhWJg1QKHRQgCEEQ_AUICSgC&biw=1209&bih=799
Oh, I’m not saying I think Tim Kaine is safe. Possible safER, but that’s only because Hillary is just so freakin’ corrupt. A low bar to clear, in other words, and Dems might actually prefer him, so they’d go along too.
As for whether Hillary would go along with the deal—the alternative would be impeachment and disgrace.
Not posing this as a prediction, just an interesting possibility.