Appearing on Fox News’ Special Report, Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R-UT) and host Bret Baier had a lengthy discussion about FBI Director James Comey’s letter saying that the bureau stands by its original conclusion in the Clinton email investigation.
Throughout the segment, Chaffetz noted that just because Comey believes there wasn’t enough evidence to establish intent, criticisms of Hillary Clinton’s email practices are just as relevant as they were before.
Side note: Intent isn’t necessary under section 793(f) of the Espionage Act, under which Hillary Clinton was being scrutinized. “Gross negligence” is all that’s required according to the text of the law.
In his closing argument, Chaffetz made a salient point in order to counter Democratic claims that Clinton is “innocent,” and the FBI investigation proves such innocence:
If she thinks she’s clean, then tell everybody around her to go ahead and stop pleading the Fifth, come to Congress, and tell us the truth. The closest people to Hillary Clinton, they keep pleading the Fifth. Maybe it’s time they stop doing that and actually tell the truth to the American people. They haven’t done that yet.
.@jasoninthehouse: If Hillary is so clean then why is everyone around her pleading the 5th (via @BretBaier) pic.twitter.com/CUUTMxCxyd
— FOX & Friends (@foxandfriends) November 7, 2016
During the course of the FBI’s investigation into Hillary Clinton’s private, unsecured email server, numerous individuals close to her pleaded the Fifth, and made immunity deals in order to avoid self-incrimination.
Bryan Pagliano, one of the individuals who set up Clinton’s server, was given an immunity deal by the Department of Justice. He went on to plead the Fifth 125 times during his testimony before the House.
Paul Combetta, the Platte River Networks employee who used BleachBit to erase Clinton’s emails even after a subpoena was issued for them, was given an immunity deal as well. During his testimony before the House, he pleaded the Fifth. Bill Thornton, another Platte River Networks employee, did the same.
While Cheryl Mills, Hillary Clinton’s attorney and aide, didn’t plead the Fifth, she received an extensive immunity deal from the Department of Justice. The deal included provisions restricting the scope of the FBI’s search of her laptop, and that the device be destroyed after the search was completed.
Clinton campaign staffer, Heather Samuelson, didn’t plead the Fifth, but was granted an immunity deal similar to that of Mills’. However, according to Bret Baier, sources close to the investigation tell him the laptops haven’t been destroyed.
Many Democrats continue to repeat the claim that because the FBI recommended against indictment in July, Hillary Clinton is “innocent.” End of story. That’s an overwhelmingly naive belief. There exists a wide gap between failure to recommend indictment and innocence, and given the evidence that’s been released, as well as the continuous flow of new information from WikiLeaks and elsewhere, Hillary Clinton appears far from innocent.
“If she thinks she’s clean, then tell everybody around her to go ahead and stop pleading the Fifth, come to Congress, and tell us the truth.”
Rep. Jason Chaffetz
Moreover, as Chaffetz notes, if nothing illegal or unethical has taken place, why were immunity deals necessary for those surrounding Clinton? Why were strangely specific side-provisions necessary? Why was it necessary to plead the Fifth over and over again? If there’s nothing to hide, there’s nothing to be gained from such deals and behaviors.