From two weeks ago.
Judge explodes over Hillary email delays
An irritated federal judge Thursday put the Hillary Clinton email
scandal into stark terms, grilling the State Department on a pattern of
delayed document releases that has turned a possible bureaucratic logjam
into a major problem for the leading Democratic presidential contender.
U.S.
District Court Judge Richard Leon, known for his blunt manner, said he
simply did not understand why the State Department has dragged its feet
on responses for emails in requests to the Freedom of Information Act.
“Now, any person should be able to review that in one day — one day,”
the judge said, examining a request for just over 60 emails. “Even the
least ambitious bureaucrat could do this.”
Leon articulated what
has been a major concern of State Department critics who contend that
the agency is dragging out responses to FOIA requests to protect
Clinton, who served as secretary of state during President Barack
Obama’s first term. The judge’s complaints echoed those of Hill
Republicans, who have accused the agency of slow-walking document
requests in its Benghazi investigation to protect Clinton.
More Clinton emails are expected to be released Friday under a court-ordered process that has underscored Leon’s unhappiness.
And
in a twist, State also revealed holes in its own federal record as
officials said they were still awaiting some work-related emails from
Clinton’s top department brass, including Huma Abedin, Jake Sullivan and
Cheryl Mills.
One of them, Clinton’s former spokesman, Philippe
Reines, for example, on Tuesday turned over 20 boxes of work-related
emails taken in part from a personal email account, calling into
question the extent to which top aides to the former secretary of state
also engaged in controversial email practices.
“I can’t say that I
— State Department doesn’t have a master record-keeping system,”
answered State Department top document official John Hackett, who heads
FOIA requests for the agency, when asked whether he believed State’s
record-keeping procedures captured needed government documents. “I can’t
say that.”
No comments:
Post a Comment