The FBI Releases Files From Hillary Clinton’s Interview Over Her Private Email Server

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On the Friday afternoon before Labor Day weekend, the FBI decided to drop their report and notes from Hillary Clinton’s three-hour interview over her private email server. In the end, the bureau determined that Clinton was “extremely careless,” but they declined to charge her. The State Department has since reopened the investigation with an indeterminate end date.

Some information about these FBI files has been disclosed already, including the part where Clinton brought up Colin Powell, who she claimed advised her to use private email, but Powell has since denied talking to Clinton until a year after she became secretary of state. He also only told her that he favored a personal email account (for non-classified messages only) and not a private server. Powell also believes Clinton’s trying to throw him under the bus.

But regardless of Clinton’s intentions, the FBI files are out in their full glory, sort of. The files are partially redacted by necessity because there’s some sensitive information at hand, as the New York Times points out. Also, Clinton does make mention of her well-documented 2012 concussion (and subsequent blood clot). She claims that, as a result, she was not in the office very often and does not remember every single briefing (about email) during that period of time: “However, in December of 2012, Clinton suffered a concussion and then around the New Year had a blood clot (in her head). Based on her doctor’s advice, she could only work at State for a few hours a day and could not recall every briefing she received.”

So, what did the files — at least the redacted version of them — reveal? Mainly, it was a bunch of embarrassing stuff (like Clinton using a flip phone in addition to her Blackberry, which everyone already knew about), rather than anything that would confirm intent to risk security. And there’s a bizarre detail, which Oliver Darcy screencapped for Twitter, which reveals Clinton’s claim that she didn’t realize how a “C” marking denotes a “confidential” status.

In addition, there’s one key excerpt (from page 11) that reveals how Clinton (or someone on her team) was wary of the risks of using a private email account. Granted, this was a 2011 notice (and not a 2009 one, when she started as secretary of state), but it still raises questions:

In 2011, a notice to all State employees was sent on Clinton’s behalf, which recommended employees avoid conducting State business from personal e-mail accounts due to information security concerns. Clinton stated she did not recall this specific notice, and she did not recall receiving any guidance from State regarding e-mail policies outlined in the State FAM.

Here’s a section (also from page 11) that specifically mentions Colin Powell, who the FBI says warned Clinton against using her Blackberry device for business purposes, lest that information becomes public record:

The FBI investigation indicated Clinton was aware of her use of a personal device, e-mail account, and server did not negate her obligation to preserve federal records. On January 23, 2009, Clinton contacted former Secretary of State Colin Powell via email to inquire about his use of a BlackBerry while he was Secretary of State … In his e-mail reply, Powell warned Clinton that if it became “public” that Clinton had a BlackBerry, and she used it to “do business,” her emails could become “official record[s] and subject to the law.” Powell further advised Clinton, “Be very careful. I got around it all by not saying much and not using systems that captured the data.” Clinton indicated to the FBI that she understood Powell’s comments to mean any work-related communications would be government records, and she stated Powell’s comments did not factor into her decision to use a personal e-mail account.

There are a number of pages that are completely redacted at the end of this report and a mention (on page 31) of how Clinton “worried ‘someone [was] hacking into her email’ given that she received an email from a known [redacted] associate containing a link to a pornographic website.” As for the full report, critics may not look kindly upon the non-recollection factor, but the FBI already issued their determination on the subject.

(Via FBI.gov & New York Times)

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