Jamie Gorelick, who served as Deputy Attorney General in the Clinton administration, and Larry Thompson, who served as Deputy Attorney General in the George W. Bush administration, strongly criticized FBI Director James Comey for his recent actions.
They write:
The Justice Department has a proud history of enforcing the federal criminal law without fear or favor, and especially without regard to politics. It operates under long-standing and well-established traditions limiting disclosure of ongoing investigations to the public and even to Congress, especially in a way that might be seen as influencing an election. These traditions protect the integrity of the department and the public’s confidence in its mission to take care that the laws are faithfully and impartially executed. They reflect an institutional balancing of interests, delaying disclosure and public knowledge to avoid misuse of prosecutorial power by creating unfair innuendo to which an accused party cannot properly respond.
Decades ago, the department decided that in the 60-day period before an election, the balance should be struck against even returning indictments involving individuals running for office, as well as against the disclosure of any investigative steps. The reasoning was that, however important it might be for Justice to do its job, and however important it might be for the public to know what Justice knows, because such allegations could not be adjudicated, such actions or disclosures risked undermining the political process. A memorandum reflecting this choice has been issued every four years by multiple attorneys general for a very long time, including in 2016.
When they take their vows and assume office, senior officials in the Justice Department and the FBI become part of these traditions, with an obligation to preserve, protect and defend them. They enjoy a credibility established by generations of honorable public servants, and they owe a solemn obligation to maintain that credibility. They are not to arrogate to themselves the choices made by the Justice Department and honored over the years.
As part of that obligation, they must recognize that the department is an institution, not a person. As its temporary custodians, they must neither seek the spotlight for their own advancement nor avoid accountability for the hard decisions they inevitably face. Justice allows neither for self-aggrandizing crusaders on high horses nor for passive bureaucrats wielding rubber stamps from the shadows. It demands both humility and responsibility.
As former deputy attorneys general in the Bill Clinton and George W. Bush administrations, we are troubled by the apparent departure from these standards in the investigation of Hillary Clinton’s email server. First, the FBI director, James B. Comey, put himself enthusiastically forward as the arbiter of not only whether to prosecute a criminal case — which is not the job of the FBI — but also best practices in the handling of email and other matters. Now, he has chosen personally to restrike the balance between transparency and fairness, departing from the department’s traditions. As former deputy attorney general George Terwilliger aptly put it, “There’s a difference between being independent and flying solo.”
At the same time, Attorney General Loretta E. Lynch — nominally Comey’s boss — has apparently been satisfied with advising Comey but not ordering him to abide by the rules. She, no doubt, did not want to override the FBI director in such a highly political matter, but she should not have needed to. He should have abided by the policy on his own.
Events as they have played out point to the value of the department’s traditions. Having taken the extraordinary steps of briefing the public, testifying before Congress about a decision not to prosecute and sharing investigative material, Comey now finds himself wanting to update the public and Congress on each new development in the investigation, even before he and others have had a chance to assess its significance. He may well have been criticized after the fact had he not advised Congress of the investigative steps that he was taking. But it was his job — consistent with the best traditions of the Department of Justice — to make the right decision and take that criticism if it came. Department officials owe the public an explanation of how events have unfolded the way they have. There must be some recognition that it is important not to allow an investigation to become hijacked by the red-hot passions of a political contest.
As it stands, we now have real-time, raw-take transparency taken to its illogical limit, a kind of reality TV of federal criminal investigation. Perhaps worst of all, it is happening on the eve of a presidential election. It is antithetical to the interests of justice, putting a thumb on the scale of this election and damaging our democracy.
We Shall Over Comey …
Not rules, or standards, but guidelines according to Judicial Watch.
Judicial Watch is an ultra-conservative website that has been suing Hillary for about 20 years or more. Not a reliable source. Not akin to two deputy attorney generals from different parties.
They have not even read the emails, they don’t know what’s in them. Unreal.
I am more concerned over this man’s abusive use of power and poor judgment than Hillary’s horrible management of e-mail accounts. Comey has made himself one of the most notorious abusers in legal authority since he went after Apple earlier this year. He made legal extortion on Apple for refusing to unlock encryption for the iPhone that belonged to one of the killer suspects responsible for San Bernardino shooting. This man is famous for demanding phone manufacturers “back poor”– a key code for the authority to access data (which compromises the overall security by making it vulnerable to hackers), and using intimidation tactics to penalize for providing security. He should resign immediately.
“Department officials owe the public an explanation of how events have unfolded the way they have.”
“First, the FBI director, James B. Comey, put himself enthusiastically forward as the arbiter of not only whether to prosecute a criminal case — which is not the job of the FBI — ”
“At the same time, Attorney General Loretta E. Lynch — nominally Comey’s boss — has apparently been satisfied with advising Comey but not ordering him to abide by the rules.”
“Events as they have played out point to the value of the department’s traditions.”
Comey was a registered Republican all of his life until recently when he became an independent. This is just more evidence that the Republic is in peril from the manipulation of the freaky, far-right that’s intertwined with the GOP like a spreading terminal cancer, an extremest political element that gave us Donald Trump, an element willing to trample the U.S. Constitution and subvert the Republic to get what they want, total control of our every thought and act.
Absolutely
Seems to me like a power play on behalf of Comey to control the next president with a sword over her head.
The only constraints on Comey’s conduct seem to be that he is expected (a) to take seriously the weight of a tradition, renewed every four years, on public reporting that might become politicized and influence elections and (b) to preserve the reputation of the FBI for fairness. Neither is happening and the Bill Clinton private visit with Loretta Lynch damaged her credibility as a person who might intervene. The upshot is that Trump will amplify on these matters for the duration of the campaign season,,, and long afterward, aided by his talented team of demonizers.
Conspiracy theory- the worried school privatizers want Trump/Pence to win and they’ve promised Comey a lucrative job after his FBI gig.
Did he play politics by not referring her case for prosecution or reopening the investigation?
Another false equivalency. Do they teach the technique in GOP school?