In an odd turn of events, Vice President-Elect Mike Pence’s administration is going to court in an effort keeps some of his emails private. The revelation from The Indianapolis Star comes after Pence argued Hillary Clinton was unfit to be president because of her use of a private email server.
The situation seems to chiefly revolve around a mysterious “email sent to Gov. Mike Pence by a political ally.” In turn, an interested Democratic labor lawyer “wants to expose waste” that would allegedly be exposed in the message. The entire matter is convoluted and reportedly involves Pence hiring outside counsel (on the Indiana taxpayer tab) in relation to a matter involving immigration law enforcement. IndyStar discusses a lengthy ordeal by which Pence’s administration is refusing to budge.
Pence’s team argues that the email is protected by the state’s Access to Public Records Act, and a trial level court ruled that the matter was not one for a court to decide. An appeal is scheduled for later this month, and Indiana University media professor Gerry Lanosga told IndyStar how this situation sets up a dangerous precedent, should the court rule in Pence’s favor:
“It comes down to this — the court is giving up its ability to check another branch of government, and that should worry people … It shows no accountability, that an agency can say things are exempt just because and citizens have no recourse.”
The topic of email, of course, turned into a big issue during the election. Donald Trump and Pence criticized Clinton’s email practices and called for her to be jailed over her server, which became a rallying cry for Trump supporters. Mere days prior to the presidential election, FBI Director James Comey renewed the probe into Clinton-related emails, but the bureau quickly ruled that there was no evidence of criminality. The ill-timed announcements came much to the chagrin of many Democrats.
(Via The Indianapolis Star)