A Justice Department Watchdog Will Review James Comey’s Handling Of The Clinton Email Investigation

When FBI Director James Comey announced his decision to reopen its investigation into Hillary Clinton’s alleged misuse of a private email server mere weeks before the November election, both Clinton and her supporters were understandably shocked. Democrats were especially taken aback when Donald Trump won the electoral vote (despite losing the popular vote by almost three million), which led to plenty of blame being thrown Comey’s way. Not much has been said publicly about the matter since, as the president-elect’s revolving door of potential scandals has kept the news cycle at bay, but a new Politico report suggests this particular nasty can of worms is about to be opened yet again.

That’s because Justice Department Inspector General Michael Horowitz, who serves as the DOJ’s “internal watchdog,” announced Thursday he would be launching a review of the FBI’s alleged mishandling of the repeated Clinton emails investigations — especially with regards to how Comey chose to operate. What’s more, Horowitz’s investigation will also determine whether or not employees at the FBI and the Justice Department “improperly leaked information prior to the election” — as many Clinton allies and Democratic Party surrogates have alleged.

Per Politico’s story:

A statement from Horowitz’s office said he was initiating the inquiry “in response to requests from numerous Chairmen and Ranking Members of Congressional oversight committees, various organizations, and members of the public.”

Neither Comey himself nor the FBI responded to Politico and other news agencies’ requests for comment. Outgoing White House press secretary Josh Earnest, however, told the former “this administration has assiduously protected the independence of inspectors general, so we wouldn’t weigh in publicly or privately.”

Aside from Clinton, former campaign manager John Podesta, and members of both party and campaign, former Attorney General Eric Holder and several other ex-DOJ official publicly criticized Comey for his efforts in late October. Even President Barack Obama issued a statement against his own FBI head, saying “we don’t operate on innuendo.”

Here is a portion of the inspector general’s statement, as tweeted out by ABC News:

(Via Politico and ABC News)