Comey, that model of integrity and character, has succeeded in one thing: dragging the FBI into the political campaign. The president says that’s unintentional. It’s also undeniable. There’s a lot of CYA going on here.
As Dana Milbank said in today’s Washington Post:
“The most benign, and likely, explanation is CYA: Comey wanted to inoculate himself against future allegations from Republican lawmakers that he sat on relevant information before the election. If so, self-preservation trumped his professed love of transparency.”
For background, see my post from July 9 of this year:
Bill Clinton’s airport meeting with Attorney General Lynch has been misinterpreted. They didn’t put the fix in regarding Hillary’s e-mails, or at least not the way everyone thinks. First, they knew in advance that the FBI director was not going to recommend bringing charges. That meant the investigation was essentially over – the only way it could be prolonged would be if Lynch herself made that determination. Which obviously she didn’t want to make, but might come under pressure to make. So she agreed to meet with Bill for half an hour and chat about the weather and the family. When word of the meeting leaked out, she would be forced to recuse herself. Thus rendering it impossible for her to overturn Comey, which was exactly the intended outcome.
The only fly in the ointment was the news that Hillary is considering keeping Lynch on as AG. That looks awfully like a quid pro quo.
hamiltonbeck 