2016 US Elections - Exlusive discussion thread

[BAK]

(CNN) A phishing email sent to Hillary Clinton campaign chairman John Podesta may have been so sophisticated that it fooled the campaign's own IT staffers, who at one point advised him it was a legitimate warning to change his password.
The stolen email thread, released by WikiLeaks Friday, also provides the most direct evidence yet that the Russian government was behind the damaging hack into the Clinton campaign, according to a private cybersecurity company.

The thread shows a Clinton campaign staffer writing that a phishing email sent to Podesta's Gmail account on March 19, 2016, is "legitimate," though the staffer advises him to go through Google's official procedures to update his password. It's not clear if Podesta gave hackers his password before he was advised by his staff, or if the email in question was the one that led to the hack.
The Clinton campaign has not commented directly on the hacked emails and CNN cannot independently verify their authenticity.
On its face, the source of the potentially dangerous email is Google, but a closer look at the actual mailing address shows an unfamiliar or bogus-looking account: "no-reply@accounts.googlemail.com."

The subject line warns, "Someone has your password" and the body of the message says "someone" in Ukraine tried, but was stopped, from signing into Podesta's account.
"You should change your password immediately," the email warns. The words "CHANGE PASSWORD" then appear -- inviting Podesta to click on them -- as a way to do just that. But the address did not link to a secure Google web page, instead directing the user blindly via bit.ly, a service used to shorten or conceal web addresses.
According to the cybersercurity company SecureWorks, the link used in the Podesta email was clicked two times. If his information was entered into a form on the landing site -- potentially run by a hacker -- the floodgates could have opened right there.

Podesta was not the only Clinton campaign staffer targeted, SecureWorks found.
"We saw 108 email addresses targeted and we know that 20 of the links that were sent to those individuals were clicked," Phil Burdette, a senior security researcher at the firm, told CNN on Friday. There were 213 similar bit.ly links created, he said, but because there were duplicates it is likely the same accounts received multiple phishing messages.
It is unclear if anyone else targeted entered their information.

The Russian connection
The US government has pinned other cyberattacks targeting Democratic groups -- including the summer's hack of the Democratic National Committee -- on the Russian government, though it has not yet accused Moscow of the Podesta hack. Moscow has denied involvement.

SecureWorks, however, says Friday's email thread provides proof of Russia's involvement in the Podesta hack. The group points to evidence that "Fancy Bear" -- the name of the cyberespionage group also believed to have carried out the allegedly Russia-led DNC hacks -- was involved in the Podesta thefts.

"Fancy Bear" is a nickname for one of the Russian military-intelligence hacking groups that were discovered in the DNC's servers. Other cyberfirms have corroborated these findings, as has the US government.
SecureWorks has linked the bit.ly account used in the Podesta phishing attack to "Fancy Bear."
WikiLeaks has denied working with the Russians, though the group won't reveal its sources for the material it releases.
Don Smith, the director of cyberintelligence at SecureWorks, said historically, the targeting of the bit.ly campaign appears aimed at military attaches in Western embassies, in addition to dissidents in Ukraine and Georgia and journalists outside Russia.

But the phishing operation retrained its focus in March 2016, he said, employing the same tactics in an effort to breach the DNC and Clinton campaign staff email.
"You don't have to think very hard to determine it was one of the Russian intelligence agencies," Smith said.

 

[kui]

Comey was the United States Deputy Attorney General from December 2003 to August 2005, serving in President George W. Bush's administration. ... In September 2013, Comey was appointed Director of the FBI by President Barack Obama.

Comey and his wife Patrice are the parents of five children. He is a Roman Catholic of Irish descent. Comey is a registered Republican who donated to U.S. Senator John McCain's campaign in the 2008 presidential election and to Governor Mitt Romney's campaign in 2012 presidential election.

kui I am very impressed with your condidence on the outcome of this coming election. I am worried especially by those who are still on the fence doing Hillary/Trump Hillary/Trump Hillary/Trump before making their final decision on who to vote for. Obama must be very mad to promote Comey to a higher position. Once a snake always a snake.

Huh, this could be 200% politically motivated. The Timing of the issue is self explanatory, it's all politics. Halafu, as FBI director, (personal interest aside) to come up with something like this so close to the biggest event of the country naona kama imekaa pembeni kidogo.

And then usikute he left it hanging 'purposely', for Hillary campaign to demand more explanation about it.

 

[BAK]

You're 110% right, now he is under heavy pressure to come up with more info.

Lynch objected to Comey's decision to notify Congress of email review

(CNN) Attorney General Loretta Lynch and Deputy Attorney General Sally Yates objected to FBI Director James Comey's decision to notify Congress about his bureau's review of emails related to Hillary Clinton's personal server, law enforcement officials familiar with the discussion said.
Comey decided to disregard their objections and sent the letter Friday anyway, shaking the presidential race 11 days before the election and nearly four months after the FBI chief said he wouldn't recommend criminal charges over the Democratic nominee's use of the server.

The officials acknowledged there was little Lynch and Yates could do given the fallout over Lynch's controversial meeting over the summer with former President Bill Clinton.
Lynch and Yates objected after Comey gave advance notice to top officials at the Justice Department before sending the letter to lawmakers, law enforcement officials briefed on the matter said. Justice officials didn't sign off on Comey's decision and he didn't seek their approval, one official said.
Instead, he made an independent decision to go against longstanding Justice Department and FBI practice to not comment publicly about politically sensitive investigations within 60 days of an election, the official said.

http://www.cnn.com/2016/10/28/polit...r-tells-senate-judiciary-committee/index.html

 

[El Jefe]

The Russian connection
The US government has pinned other cyberattacks targeting Democratic groups -- including the summer's hack of the Democratic National Committee -- on the Russian government, though it has not yet accused Moscow of the Podesta hack. Moscow has denied involvement.

SecureWorks, however, says Friday's email thread provides proof of Russia's involvement in the Podesta hack. The group points to evidence that "Fancy Bear" -- the name of the cyberespionage group also believed to have carried out the allegedly Russia-led DNC hacks -- was involved in the Podesta thefts.

"Fancy Bear" is a nickname for one of the Russian military-intelligence hacking groups that were discovered in the DNC's servers. Other cyberfirms have corroborated these findings, as has the US government.
SecureWorks has linked the bit.ly account used in the Podesta phishing attack to "Fancy Bear."
WikiLeaks has denied working with the Russians, though the group won't reveal its sources for the material it releases.
Don Smith, the director of cyberintelligence at SecureWorks, said historically, the targeting of the bit.ly campaign appears aimed at military attaches in Western embassies, in addition to dissidents in Ukraine and Georgia and journalists outside Russia.

But the phishing operation retrained its focus in March 2016, he said, employing the same tactics in an effort to breach the DNC and Clinton campaign staff email.
"You don't have to think very hard to determine it was one of the Russian intelligence agencies," Smith said.

Wow, Russia is always Hillary's scapegoat. That's not news, I actually think it is a red herring. Just imagine she is cought up with nasty stuffs and she just easily blame it on the Russians. You don't handle published nasty secret e-mails like that, you face the facts.

No wonder she was asked by a news reporter that she is planning to enforce a 'no fly' zone in Syria, what will happen if a Russian plane flew over there (Russia is an ally to Pres. Assad) , will she order an air strike and start World War 3? .She gives no straight answer.

Much Thanks to Wikileaks, the world and mostly the American people have gotten to know a lot of bad stuffs with regards to Dem. Presidential candidate. Julian Assange is doing an amazing and wonderful job and I heard Wikileaks is planning to release new damning e-mails before 11/8.

FBI's decision to re-open the investigation is really perforating Hillary's wall of lies. So bad but so good for the country.

 

[El Jefe]

(CNN) Attorney General Loretta Lynch and Deputy Attorney General Sally Yates objected to FBI Director James Comey's decision to notify Congress about his bureau's review of emails related to Hillary Clinton's personal server, law enforcement officials familiar with the discussion said.
Comey decided to disregard their objections and sent the letter Friday anyway, shaking the presidential race 11 days before the election and nearly four months after the FBI chief said he wouldn't recommend criminal charges over the Democratic nominee's use of the server.

The officials acknowledged there was little Lynch and Yates could do given the fallout over Lynch's controversial meeting over the summer with former President Bill Clinton.
Lynch and Yates objected after Comey gave advance notice to top officials at the Justice Department before sending the letter to lawmakers, law enforcement officials briefed on the matter said. Justice officials didn't sign off on Comey's decision and he didn't seek their approval, one official said.
Instead, he made an independent decision to go against longstanding Justice Department and FBI practice to not comment publicly about politically sensitive investigations within 60 days of an election, the official said.

http://www.cnn.com/2016/10/28/polit...r-tells-senate-judiciary-committee/index.html

"What difference at this point does it make"


Loretta Lynch needs to tell the American people what was the topic of discussion and what was the conversation all about, when she privately met with Bill Clinton in an airport tarmac in Phoenix for more than 38 minutes while knowing that Bill Clinton's wife was still under investigation.

Everybody knows that the topic and the conversation was not solely about golf, grandchildren and travel.

 

[El Jefe]

Huh, this could be 200% politically motivated. The Timing of the issue is self explanatory, it's all politics. Halafu, as FBI director, (personal interest aside) to come up with something like this so close to the biggest event of the country naona kama imekaa pembeni kidogo.

And then usikute he left it hanging 'purposely', for Hillary campaign to demand more explanations to it.

If FBI director had decided to keep quiet, he know he will be grilled by the Republicans after the elections if Trump lost especially because the information came to his knowledge prior to 11/8.

Comey also knows that the Democrats are going to be angry especially if the information is insignificant and Hillary has lost.

He has not kept quiet because the information he is talking about is indeed significant.

He struck a good balance though. There is no politics.

If you listened to Comey's replies to the House judiciary Commitee after the original investigation, some of the Republicans there told him it was politics 300% when he decided not to indict her.

 

[Richard]

Do you know for sure what information FBI does or doesn't have?

It is at this point impossible to determine with precision the motivation behind Comey’s letter and the political forces for which he is speaking.

But as the events continue to unfold they also suggests that Comey was under intense pressure from within the FBI over his previous declaration that no competent prosecutor would bring charges against Clinton over her use of the private server. If true, this means that sections of the federal police agency are in open revolt against the candidate who may shortly become their nominal “commander-in-chief.”

 

[El Jefe]

It is at this point impossible to determine with precision the motivation behind Comey’s letter and the political forces for which he is speaking.

But as the events continue to unfold they also suggests that Comey was under intense pressure from within the FBI over his previous declaration that no competent prosecutor would bring charges against Clinton over her use of the private server. If true, this means that sections of the federal police agency are in open revolt against the candidate who may shortly become their nominal “commander-in-chief.”

Sir, I can't agree with you more. I think there has been a revolt going on within the FBI. I can understand Democrats are concerned about the political ramifications of the decision.

However, does anyone think that the FBI Director would come out at this particular time with insignificant information?

I've heard some Republicans telling Hillary that she has herself to blame, not anyone but herself because she intentionally and willfully decided to run a covert private e-mail server. It seems even John Podesta and others in her team were not aware of the gravity of her private e-mail server problems.

 

[Richard]

Sir, I can't agree with you more. I think there has been a revolt going on within the FBI. I can understand Democrats are concerned about the political ramifications of the decision.

However, does anyone think that the FBI Director would come out at this particular time with insignificant information?

I've heard some Republicans telling Hillary that she has herself to blame, not anyone but herself because she intentionally and willfully decided to run a covert private e-mail server. It seems even John Podesta and others in her team were not aware of the gravity of her private e-mail server problems.

Clinton and Huma began using different domain address hrcoffice.com instead of usual one clintonemail.com

Also the original server which was in Hillary Clinton's office when broke down it was replaced with the new one but this was then looked after by the private company handling its emails, and maintenance.

It was at this point all problems started.

Lets wait and see as thing continue to unfold as you know we are all spectators.

 

[El Jefe]

Clinton and Huma began using different domain address hrcoffice.com instead of usual one clintonemail.com

Also the original server which was in Hillary Clinton's office when broke down it was replaced with the new one but this was then looked after by the private company handling its emails, and maintenance.

It was at this point all problems started.

Can you back it up?

 

[Richard]

Can you back it up?

Back it up, what do you mean?

WikiLeaks began releasing thousands of emails this week hacked from the Gmail account of John Podesta, Clinton's campaign chair.

So, it looks likely that the hackers gained access from the private server which was not secure enough.

That's what my understanding came up from what I have read various sources.

 

[BAK]

Clinton campaign wages new war against James Comey

(CNN)Hillary Clinton on Saturday questioned FBI Director James Comey's decision to write to congressional leaders about emails uncovered in the bureau's probe into Anthony Weiner, saying the timing of such a move was "unprecedented" and "deeply troubling."
"It's pretty strange to put something like that out with such little information right before an election," Clinton told supporters in Daytona Beach, Florida, where the crowd booed at the mention of Comey's letter. "In fact, it's not just strange, it's unprecedented and it's deeply troubling because voters deserve to get full and complete facts."

Clinton called on Comey to swiftly release more information, saying he must "explain everything right away, put it all right on the table."
Clinton also swiped at Republican rival Donald Trump, saying he's "doing his best to confuse, mislead and discourage the American people" over the issue.
"Of course, Donald Trump is already making up lies about this," Clinton said.


The Democratic nominee's comments here marked an escalation in the Clinton campaign's full-out war against Comey in the final 10 days of the election.
Earlier in the day, just hours after Comey made the stunning announcement on Friday that the FBI is examining newly unveiled emails that appear to be "pertinent" to the now-closed investigation into Clinton's private server, top campaign officials unleashed a blistering attack on the FBI director, accusing him of being irresponsibly "light on facts" and "heavy on innuendo."

On a conference call with reporters, Clinton campaign chairman John Podesta accused Comey of failing to be "forthcoming with the facts." Podesta blasted both the timing and contents of the letter Comey sent to congressional leaders on Friday, summing the director's actions as "providing selective information."
Campaign manager Robby Mook echoed Podesta's call for more information from Comey and suggested that the FBI has now waded into political territory.

"The Justice Department's longstanding practice is: Don't do anything seen as trying to influence an election," Mook said. "It's completely unfair to Secretary Clinton and it's really unfair to the voters."

'Hillary's not going to be distracted'
The sharp criticism marked an extraordinary rebuke of the head of an agency historically known for its political independence. And it guarantees that Comey -- already a polarizing presence for his role in probing Clinton's email use as secretary of state -- will be a central political figure in the election's final days.
As Clinton prepared to fly to Florida for a two-day swing through the battleground state, Podesta was defiant: "We're not going to be distracted and Hillary's not going to be distracted in the final days of this election over nothing."
Both Podesta and Mook emphasized the possibility that the emails that the FBI is now examining -- uncovered as part of the bureau's investigation into Clinton aide Huma Abedin's estranged husband, Anthony Weiner -- may not reveal new information.

"Reports indicate that many of these emails are likely to be duplicates," Podesta said. "It's in fact entirely possible all the emails in question are just that -- duplicates."
Donald Trump continued to trumpet the news at a campaign stop in Golden, Colorado, Saturday afternoon, wondering if Clinton would keep Abedin as an adviser.
"Huma's been a problem," Trump said. "I wonder if Huma's going to stay there. I hope they haven't given Huma immunity because it seemed that everybody that walked down the sidewalk got immunity. She knows the real story. She knows what's going on."

Abedin, one of Clinton's closest confidantes, regularly travels with Clinton and was with the candidate on Friday when the FBI news broke. However, Abedin was notably absent on Saturday as Clinton traveled to Florida.
Comey was sworn in as FBI director in 2013 for a 10-year term. That means if Clinton were to win in November, Comey would serve under her administration unless she chose to remove him.
A Clinton aide later said Saturday that Clinton took the FBI news "like a champ." The aide added that Clinton and her top aides were well aware that the last two weeks of the campaign would not be entirely smooth and that Clinton's reaction reflected that.
"She is in a good state of mind," the aide added.

Sudden turn
The new attacks on Comey are a sudden turn for Clinton's campaign, which sang the FBI director's praises for his initial findings in the Clinton email case.

Clinton aides, in conversations with reporters and in statements, highlighted the fact that Comey was a Republican known for his fierce independence, touting him -- and his investigators -- as career professionals. Surrogates were told to highlight Comey's testimony to Congress and note his political affiliation and track record.
In an interview on CNN's "Situation Room" in July, Clinton press secretary Brian Fallon went after Republicans for criticizing Comey after the FBI concluded it would not press criminal charges against Clinton.

"It seems they were disappointed with the outcome of the FBI investigation so they decided to put the director in a hot seat and second-guess his decision," Fallon said at the time. "I think it is a bad look for House Republicans to be second-guessing a career prosecutor who is a registered Republican, No. 2 official at the Justice Department under George Bush and was even deputy council on the committee investigating the Clintons in the 1990s."
Ironically, the Clinton campaign now finds itself voicing similar concerns as some Republicans when it comes to the FBI's handling of emails uncovered in its Weiner investigation.

Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, an outspoken Trump supporter, wrote on Twitter Saturday: "If there are really more than 10,000 emails in the weiner-Abedin computer the FBI should release all Monday. Americans have a right to know," he wrote.
Gingrich added: "We should not be forced to vote with ten thousand or more emails still hidden by the FBI. John Podesta and Hillary Clinton are right."

CNN's Ashley Killough contributed to this report.

 

[BAK]

Matthew Miller, self described "Recovering flack from DOJ, DSCC", schooled Republican FBI Director James Comey for violating his power and lambasted him for commenting on a case within 60 days of an election.

Former DOJ spokesman for Eric Holder Matthew Miller, a self described “recovering flack from DOJ, DSCC”, schooled Republican FBI Director James Comey for violating his power and lambasted him for commenting on a case within 60 days of an election.

“The department and the FBI have very strict rules about when they can comment on ongoing cases and Director Comey has violated those rules going back to his original press conference when he closed the case,” Miller said on CNN. “But this latest example violates a long standing practice which is that the department goes out of its way not to do anything that can be seen as trying to influence an election in the closing days of an election, and usually they interpret the closing days to be seen as the last 60 days let alone the last 11 days.”

Watch here:


Miller also held school on Twitter about Comey’s abuse of power, which has led to Hillary Clinton having to defend against a negative:

Follow the link below to read Matthew Miller's Twitts.

FBI Director James Comey Schooled by Former DOJ Spokesman for Abusing His Power

It is at this point impossible to determine with precision the motivation behind Comey’s letter and the political forces for which he is speaking.

But as the events continue to unfold they also suggests that Comey was under intense pressure from within the FBI over his previous declaration that no competent prosecutor would bring charges against Clinton over her use of the private server. If true, this means that sections of the federal police agency are in open revolt against the candidate who may shortly become their nominal “commander-in-chief.”

 

[Yegomasika]

Another Republican man trying to put a strong woman in her place by any means possible. History will not be kind to him. Nor will justice!

 

[BAK]

Paul Callan is a CNN legal analyst, a former NYC homicide prosecutor and currently is "of counsel" to the New York law firm of Edelman and Edelman, PC, focusing on wrongful conviction and civil rights cases. Follow him @paulcallan

(CNN) Donald Trump's oft-repeated claim that the FBI's investigation of "Crooked Hillary" and the presidential election itself were and are "rigged," seems to have thrown FBI Director James Comey into a state of panic. In foolishly making a public announcement that the bureau is reviewing newly discovered emails related to Hillary Clinton's personal server, he has inserted himself yet again into the presidential campaign.

The FBI virtually never announces the commencement or termination of ongoing criminal investigations or the discovery of new evidence. Such inquiries are often conducted in relative secrecy, enabling a more efficient investigation.

It is not unusual for investigations in so-called "white collar" cases to go on for years, luring the target into an unfounded belief that he or she is in the clear. Then the hammer falls. A grand jury indictment is announced by the Department of Justice and the handcuffs are swiftly employed.
The old, sensible FBI rule book apparently has been thrown on the trash heap this year. While undoubtedly attempting to be open and "transparent," to protect the reputation of the FBI, the FBI director has tossed a Molotov cocktail into the presidential race.



The FBI was now taking "appropriate investigative steps. ... to assess their importance to our investigation." What in the world does this mean? One thing it means is that this issue will move to front and center during the final days of the presidential campaign.

Voters must now be subjected to endless speculation in the press and explicit accusations from the Trump campaign and other Republican candidates that Hillary Clinton is a "criminal" aided and abetted by a rigged FBI and Justice Department. Comey's "openness and transparency" will blow up in his face and further tarnish the FBI's reputation. He has reinserted the Bureau into the political process.
The director probably feared that leaks would lead to speculation that a renewed Hillary investigation was underway. In trying to get ahead of criticism of the FBI for jumping to a conclusion too quickly and closing the original Hillary Clinton email investigation, he has only made matters worse and dropped a huge new issue into the presidential campaign, 11 days before the election.




In truth, investigations open and close routinely and secretly when new evidence comes to light. Each new scrap in a pile of useful or useless evidence is not announced in real time, like a scandal in a scripted reality TV Show. Perhaps it's time for the embattled FBI director who seems to have forgotten how to conduct a proper investigation to resign.
Comey's public announcement in July that the FBI had concluded its investigation regarding Hillary Clinton's use of a private email server in the conduct of official State Department business and would not recommend the lodging of criminal charges was historically unprecedented in a high-profile political case.

The decision to commence or terminate a criminal investigation by the FBI is rarely disclosed. In the case of high-profile political figures such as presidential candidates, the process normally requires that an FBI "recommendation" based on the evidence it has gathered must be forwarded to the Justice Department, where a career, nonpolitical unit reviews the matter, making a recommendation to the attorney general, who makes the final decision.

This sensible process was thrown into disarray when former President Bill Clinton made a surprise airport tarmac visit to none other than the sitting attorney general, Loretta Lynch. Both parties claimed that they engaged in harmless small talk involving their families and, of course, nothing about the FBI's investigation of Hillary's classified document and email server practices.

The meeting was utterly improper and the attorney general recognized this, promptly asserting that she would not personally make the decision about the Hillary Clinton email investigation, though strangely she would review the work of her subordinates before any public announcement of prosecution or non-prosecution was made.
This was then followed by the highly unusual announcement of "no criminal charges" and the end of the investigation by the FBI director. In the very rare case where an announcement of "no criminal charges" occurs, the prosecutors in the Justice Department would make such an announcement because Justice, not the FBI, makes prosecutorial decisions. The FBI makes a recommendation; Justice makes the decision.

Comey, while presumably attempting to insulate the Justice Department and the attorney general from claims that the Bill Clinton tarmac meeting had corrupted the investigative process, took the Justice Department and Loretta Lynch off the hook and made the announcement himself.

In defending the statement he made today, Comey might assert that he was attempting to clarify his prior Congressional testimony. But that elaboration on his testimony could legitimately have waited until the FBI completed its analysis of the new emails. He has been around long enough to understand that any new FBI statements regarding the email scandal during the final 11 days of the campaign had a high probability of improperly placing the Bureau into the political process.
Trashing the Justice and FBI rule books in the interest of "openness" is likely to put the FBI front and center in one of the most contentious presidential races in recent US history. J. Edgar Hoover loved to influence elections, but he had the good sense to keep quiet about it.

Another Republican man trying to put a strong woman in her place by any means possible. History will not be kind to him. Nor will justice!

 

[El Jefe]

Clinton campaign wages new war against James Comey

(CNN)Hillary Clinton on Saturday questioned FBI Director James Comey's decision to write to congressional leaders about emails uncovered in the bureau's probe into Anthony Weiner, saying the timing of such a move was "unprecedented" and "deeply troubling."
"It's pretty strange to put something like that out with such little information right before an election," Clinton told supporters in Daytona Beach, Florida, where the crowd booed at the mention of Comey's letter. "In fact, it's not just strange, it's unprecedented and it's deeply troubling because voters deserve to get full and complete facts."

Clinton called on Comey to swiftly release more information, saying he must "explain everything right away, put it all right on the table."
Clinton also swiped at Republican rival Donald Trump, saying he's "doing his best to confuse, mislead and discourage the American people" over the issue.
"Of course, Donald Trump is already making up lies about this," Clinton said.


The Democratic nominee's comments here marked an escalation in the Clinton campaign's full-out war against Comey in the final 10 days of the election.
Earlier in the day, just hours after Comey made the stunning announcement on Friday that the FBI is examining newly unveiled emails that appear to be "pertinent" to the now-closed investigation into Clinton's private server, top campaign officials unleashed a blistering attack on the FBI director, accusing him of being irresponsibly "light on facts" and "heavy on innuendo."

On a conference call with reporters, Clinton campaign chairman John Podesta accused Comey of failing to be "forthcoming with the facts." Podesta blasted both the timing and contents of the letter Comey sent to congressional leaders on Friday, summing the director's actions as "providing selective information."
Campaign manager Robby Mook echoed Podesta's call for more information from Comey and suggested that the FBI has now waded into political territory.

"The Justice Department's longstanding practice is: Don't do anything seen as trying to influence an election," Mook said. "It's completely unfair to Secretary Clinton and it's really unfair to the voters."

'Hillary's not going to be distracted'
The sharp criticism marked an extraordinary rebuke of the head of an agency historically known for its political independence. And it guarantees that Comey -- already a polarizing presence for his role in probing Clinton's email use as secretary of state -- will be a central political figure in the election's final days.
As Clinton prepared to fly to Florida for a two-day swing through the battleground state, Podesta was defiant: "We're not going to be distracted and Hillary's not going to be distracted in the final days of this election over nothing."
Both Podesta and Mook emphasized the possibility that the emails that the FBI is now examining -- uncovered as part of the bureau's investigation into Clinton aide Huma Abedin's estranged husband, Anthony Weiner -- may not reveal new information.

"Reports indicate that many of these emails are likely to be duplicates," Podesta said. "It's in fact entirely possible all the emails in question are just that -- duplicates."
Donald Trump continued to trumpet the news at a campaign stop in Golden, Colorado, Saturday afternoon, wondering if Clinton would keep Abedin as an adviser.
"Huma's been a problem," Trump said. "I wonder if Huma's going to stay there. I hope they haven't given Huma immunity because it seemed that everybody that walked down the sidewalk got immunity. She knows the real story. She knows what's going on."

Abedin, one of Clinton's closest confidantes, regularly travels with Clinton and was with the candidate on Friday when the FBI news broke. However, Abedin was notably absent on Saturday as Clinton traveled to Florida.
Comey was sworn in as FBI director in 2013 for a 10-year term. That means if Clinton were to win in November, Comey would serve under her administration unless she chose to remove him.
A Clinton aide later said Saturday that Clinton took the FBI news "like a champ." The aide added that Clinton and her top aides were well aware that the last two weeks of the campaign would not be entirely smooth and that Clinton's reaction reflected that.
"She is in a good state of mind," the aide added.

Sudden turn
The new attacks on Comey are a sudden turn for Clinton's campaign, which sang the FBI director's praises for his initial findings in the Clinton email case.

Clinton aides, in conversations with reporters and in statements, highlighted the fact that Comey was a Republican known for his fierce independence, touting him -- and his investigators -- as career professionals. Surrogates were told to highlight Comey's testimony to Congress and note his political affiliation and track record.
In an interview on CNN's "Situation Room" in July, Clinton press secretary Brian Fallon went after Republicans for criticizing Comey after the FBI concluded it would not press criminal charges against Clinton.

"It seems they were disappointed with the outcome of the FBI investigation so they decided to put the director in a hot seat and second-guess his decision," Fallon said at the time. "I think it is a bad look for House Republicans to be second-guessing a career prosecutor who is a registered Republican, No. 2 official at the Justice Department under George Bush and was even deputy council on the committee investigating the Clintons in the 1990s."
Ironically, the Clinton campaign now finds itself voicing similar concerns as some Republicans when it comes to the FBI's handling of emails uncovered in its Weiner investigation.

Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, an outspoken Trump supporter, wrote on Twitter Saturday: "If there are really more than 10,000 emails in the weiner-Abedin computer the FBI should release all Monday. Americans have a right to know," he wrote.
Gingrich added: "We should not be forced to vote with ten thousand or more emails still hidden by the FBI. John Podesta and Hillary Clinton are right."

CNN's Ashley Killough contributed to this report.

Why don't you give us your opinion sir instead copying and pasting stories run by Clinton's News Network.

Where is your input? Or you can't make anything out of those reports?

Intelligent people will write what they think and know and support with credible references.

 

[El Jefe]

Paul Callan is a CNN legal analyst, a former NYC homicide prosecutor and currently is "of counsel" to the New York law firm of Edelman and Edelman, PC, focusing on wrongful conviction and civil rights cases. Follow him @paulcallan

(CNN) Donald Trump's oft-repeated claim that the FBI's investigation of "Crooked Hillary" and the presidential election itself were and are "rigged," seems to have thrown FBI Director James Comey into a state of panic. In foolishly making a public announcement that the bureau is reviewing newly discovered emails related to Hillary Clinton's personal server, he has inserted himself yet again into the presidential campaign.

The FBI virtually never announces the commencement or termination of ongoing criminal investigations or the discovery of new evidence. Such inquiries are often conducted in relative secrecy, enabling a more efficient investigation.

It is not unusual for investigations in so-called "white collar" cases to go on for years, luring the target into an unfounded belief that he or she is in the clear. Then the hammer falls. A grand jury indictment is announced by the Department of Justice and the handcuffs are swiftly employed.
The old, sensible FBI rule book apparently has been thrown on the trash heap this year. While undoubtedly attempting to be open and "transparent," to protect the reputation of the FBI, the FBI director has tossed a Molotov cocktail into the presidential race.



The FBI was now taking "appropriate investigative steps. ... to assess their importance to our investigation." What in the world does this mean? One thing it means is that this issue will move to front and center during the final days of the presidential campaign.

Voters must now be subjected to endless speculation in the press and explicit accusations from the Trump campaign and other Republican candidates that Hillary Clinton is a "criminal" aided and abetted by a rigged FBI and Justice Department. Comey's "openness and transparency" will blow up in his face and further tarnish the FBI's reputation. He has reinserted the Bureau into the political process.
The director probably feared that leaks would lead to speculation that a renewed Hillary investigation was underway. In trying to get ahead of criticism of the FBI for jumping to a conclusion too quickly and closing the original Hillary Clinton email investigation, he has only made matters worse and dropped a huge new issue into the presidential campaign, 11 days before the election.




In truth, investigations open and close routinely and secretly when new evidence comes to light. Each new scrap in a pile of useful or useless evidence is not announced in real time, like a scandal in a scripted reality TV Show. Perhaps it's time for the embattled FBI director who seems to have forgotten how to conduct a proper investigation to resign.
Comey's public announcement in July that the FBI had concluded its investigation regarding Hillary Clinton's use of a private email server in the conduct of official State Department business and would not recommend the lodging of criminal charges was historically unprecedented in a high-profile political case.

The decision to commence or terminate a criminal investigation by the FBI is rarely disclosed. In the case of high-profile political figures such as presidential candidates, the process normally requires that an FBI "recommendation" based on the evidence it has gathered must be forwarded to the Justice Department, where a career, nonpolitical unit reviews the matter, making a recommendation to the attorney general, who makes the final decision.

This sensible process was thrown into disarray when former President Bill Clinton made a surprise airport tarmac visit to none other than the sitting attorney general, Loretta Lynch. Both parties claimed that they engaged in harmless small talk involving their families and, of course, nothing about the FBI's investigation of Hillary's classified document and email server practices.

The meeting was utterly improper and the attorney general recognized this, promptly asserting that she would not personally make the decision about the Hillary Clinton email investigation, though strangely she would review the work of her subordinates before any public announcement of prosecution or non-prosecution was made.
This was then followed by the highly unusual announcement of "no criminal charges" and the end of the investigation by the FBI director. In the very rare case where an announcement of "no criminal charges" occurs, the prosecutors in the Justice Department would make such an announcement because Justice, not the FBI, makes prosecutorial decisions. The FBI makes a recommendation; Justice makes the decision.

Comey, while presumably attempting to insulate the Justice Department and the attorney general from claims that the Bill Clinton tarmac meeting had corrupted the investigative process, took the Justice Department and Loretta Lynch off the hook and made the announcement himself.

In defending the statement he made today, Comey might assert that he was attempting to clarify his prior Congressional testimony. But that elaboration on his testimony could legitimately have waited until the FBI completed its analysis of the new emails. He has been around long enough to understand that any new FBI statements regarding the email scandal during the final 11 days of the campaign had a high probability of improperly placing the Bureau into the political process.
Trashing the Justice and FBI rule books in the interest of "openness" is likely to put the FBI front and center in one of the most contentious presidential races in recent US history. J. Edgar Hoover loved to influence elections, but he had the good sense to keep quiet about it.

Where is your input?

 

[El Jefe]

Matthew Miller, self described "Recovering flack from DOJ, DSCC", schooled Republican FBI Director James Comey for violating his power and lambasted him for commenting on a case within 60 days of an election.

Former DOJ spokesman for Eric Holder Matthew Miller, a self described “recovering flack from DOJ, DSCC”, schooled Republican FBI Director James Comey for violating his power and lambasted him for commenting on a case within 60 days of an election.

“The department and the FBI have very strict rules about when they can comment on ongoing cases and Director Comey has violated those rules going back to his original press conference when he closed the case,” Miller said on CNN. “But this latest example violates a long standing practice which is that the department goes out of its way not to do anything that can be seen as trying to influence an election in the closing days of an election, and usually they interpret the closing days to be seen as the last 60 days let alone the last 11 days.”

Watch here:


Miller also held school on Twitter about Comey’s abuse of power, which has led to Hillary Clinton having to defend against a negative:

Follow the link below to read Matthew Miller's Twitts.

FBI Director James Comey Schooled by Former DOJ Spokesman for Abusing His Power

Copy and paste at work. Can't you argue?

 

[kui]

Paul Callan is a CNN legal analyst, a former NYC homicide prosecutor and currently is "of counsel" to the New York law firm of Edelman and Edelman, PC, focusing on wrongful conviction and civil rights cases. Follow him @paulcallan

(CNN) Donald Trump's oft-repeated claim that the FBI's investigation of "Crooked Hillary" and the presidential election itself were and are "rigged," seems to have thrown FBI Director James Comey into a state of panic. In foolishly making a public announcement that the bureau is reviewing newly discovered emails related to Hillary Clinton's personal server, he has inserted himself yet again into the presidential campaign.

The FBI virtually never announces the commencement or termination of ongoing criminal investigations or the discovery of new evidence. Such inquiries are often conducted in relative secrecy, enabling a more efficient investigation.

It is not unusual for investigations in so-called "white collar" cases to go on for years, luring the target into an unfounded belief that he or she is in the clear. Then the hammer falls. A grand jury indictment is announced by the Department of Justice and the handcuffs are swiftly employed.
The old, sensible FBI rule book apparently has been thrown on the trash heap this year. While undoubtedly attempting to be open and "transparent," to protect the reputation of the FBI, the FBI director has tossed a Molotov cocktail into the presidential race.



The FBI was now taking "appropriate investigative steps. ... to assess their importance to our investigation." What in the world does this mean? One thing it means is that this issue will move to front and center during the final days of the presidential campaign.

Voters must now be subjected to endless speculation in the press and explicit accusations from the Trump campaign and other Republican candidates that Hillary Clinton is a "criminal" aided and abetted by a rigged FBI and Justice Department. Comey's "openness and transparency" will blow up in his face and further tarnish the FBI's reputation. He has reinserted the Bureau into the political process.
The director probably feared that leaks would lead to speculation that a renewed Hillary investigation was underway. In trying to get ahead of criticism of the FBI for jumping to a conclusion too quickly and closing the original Hillary Clinton email investigation, he has only made matters worse and dropped a huge new issue into the presidential campaign, 11 days before the election.




In truth, investigations open and close routinely and secretly when new evidence comes to light. Each new scrap in a pile of useful or useless evidence is not announced in real time, like a scandal in a scripted reality TV Show. Perhaps it's time for the embattled FBI director who seems to have forgotten how to conduct a proper investigation to resign.
Comey's public announcement in July that the FBI had concluded its investigation regarding Hillary Clinton's use of a private email server in the conduct of official State Department business and would not recommend the lodging of criminal charges was historically unprecedented in a high-profile political case.

The decision to commence or terminate a criminal investigation by the FBI is rarely disclosed. In the case of high-profile political figures such as presidential candidates, the process normally requires that an FBI "recommendation" based on the evidence it has gathered must be forwarded to the Justice Department, where a career, nonpolitical unit reviews the matter, making a recommendation to the attorney general, who makes the final decision.

This sensible process was thrown into disarray when former President Bill Clinton made a surprise airport tarmac visit to none other than the sitting attorney general, Loretta Lynch. Both parties claimed that they engaged in harmless small talk involving their families and, of course, nothing about the FBI's investigation of Hillary's classified document and email server practices.

The meeting was utterly improper and the attorney general recognized this, promptly asserting that she would not personally make the decision about the Hillary Clinton email investigation, though strangely she would review the work of her subordinates before any public announcement of prosecution or non-prosecution was made.
This was then followed by the highly unusual announcement of "no criminal charges" and the end of the investigation by the FBI director. In the very rare case where an announcement of "no criminal charges" occurs, the prosecutors in the Justice Department would make such an announcement because Justice, not the FBI, makes prosecutorial decisions. The FBI makes a recommendation; Justice makes the decision.

Comey, while presumably attempting to insulate the Justice Department and the attorney general from claims that the Bill Clinton tarmac meeting had corrupted the investigative process, took the Justice Department and Loretta Lynch off the hook and made the announcement himself.

In defending the statement he made today, Comey might assert that he was attempting to clarify his prior Congressional testimony. But that elaboration on his testimony could legitimately have waited until the FBI completed its analysis of the new emails. He has been around long enough to understand

• An ABC News poll shows Clinton leading Trump, 50% to 38%
• CNN's Poll of Polls average has Clinton ahead 48% to 39%

any new FBI statements regarding the email scandal during the final 11 days of the campaign had a high probability of improperly placing the Bureau into the political process.
Trashing the Justice and FBI rule books in the interest of "openness" is likely to put the FBI front and center in one of the most contentious presidential races in recent US history. J. Edgar Hoover loved to influence elections, but he had the good sense to keep quiet about it.

..."Trashing the Justice and FBI rule books in the interest of "openness" is likely to put the FBI front and center in one of the most contentious presidential races in recent US history. J. Edgar Hoover loved to influence elections, but he had the good sense to keep quiet about it."


Look who's in a hot seat now, he has politicized the bureau big time.

 

[BAK]

Yes and few minutes ago I heard from NBC's Meet the Press that he was given 10 years term i.e. from 2009 to 2019. If HRC wins she should force him to resign immediately.

..."Trashing the Justice and FBI rule books in the interest of "openness" is likely to put the FBI front and center in one of the most contentious presidential races in recent US history. J. Edgar Hoover loved to influence elections, but he had the good sense to keep quiet about it."


Look who's in a hot seat now, he has politicized the bureau big time.