The
US Department Of Justice has ordered the FBI to hold off on its
investigation of the Clinton Foundation until after the election.
“FBI agents again pressed to take more overt steps in the
Clinton Foundation probe, including possibly issuing subpoenas. Justice
Department officials again opposed such moves. They cited, again, a lack
of evidence to warrant more investigative steps. And they expressed
concerns that with the election close, any overt actions shouldn't be
made until after Election Day. ‘It's just a (message of) 'hold right now
until after the elections -- no subpoenas issued, no interviews,’ one
law enforcement official familiar with the July decision said....
Officials at FBI headquarters decided the Clinton Foundation probe should be consolidated in New York. They ordered that agents in Los Angeles, Little Rock and Washington, D.C., turn over their files to the FBI New York office, which appeared to have the strongest case to make. Agents were told to continue their work. But the order to the other field offices angered agents there.”
11/2/16, "Turmoil in the FBI," CNN, Evan Perez, Pamela Brown, Shimon Prokupecz, Scott Glover
"This account is based on interviews with more than a dozen officials close to the matter who spoke anonymously because they've been ordered not to speak to the news media.
Tensions have built in particular over the handling of matters related to Hillary Clinton. Some of the sharpest divides have emerged between some agents in the FBI's New York field office, the bureau's largest and highest-profile, and officials at FBI headquarters in Washington and at the Justice Department.
Some rank-and-file agents interpreted cautious steps taken by the Justice Department and FBI headquarters as being done for political reasons or to protect a powerful political figure. At headquarters, some have viewed the actions and complaints of some agents in the field as driven by the common desire of investigators to get a big case or, perhaps worst, because of partisan views.
The tensions have multiplied since FBI Director James Comey made an unprecedented public announcement in July that there should be no charges against Clinton or her aides following a year-long probe.
That announcement -- without prior notice to his bosses at the Justice Department and, according to his critics, usurping the traditional role of prosecutors to review FBI recommendations in secret -- opened up sharp divides between Justice and FBI officials, and even within the Justice Department itself, where some officials have pushed for Attorney General Loretta Lynch to more forcefully assert her power over the FBI....
An independent agency...
Much of the turmoil centers not only on the handling of the probe into Clinton's use of a private server while secretary of state, but also another case some FBI agents wanted to pursue into the Clinton Foundation and whether there was any impropriety in dealings with donors.
In both cases, some FBI investigators felt stymied by headquarters and Justice Department officials and they interpreted roadblocks as politically partisan.
It's in that tense environment that the latest developments emerged as agents were conducting the unrelated investigation of Anthony Weiner, the disgraced former congressman and estranged husband of Clinton's close adviser Huma Abedin.
The surprise discovery of thousands of emails belonging to Abedin on a computer belonging to Weiner brought matters to a boil. The longer it took for officials at FBI headquarters and at the Justice Department to decide how to proceed with the matter, the more conspiracies spread among some agents that perhaps senior FBI officials were trying to cover up the matter.
Comey on Friday sent a letter to committee leaders in Congress with oversight of the FBI alerting them of the recently discovered documents and resulting investigation.
He acted in part, people close to him say, because he believed the news would eventually leak and the bureau would face an even bigger public backlash....
Officials at FBI headquarters decided the Clinton Foundation probe should be consolidated in New York. They ordered that agents in Los Angeles, Little Rock and Washington, D.C., turn over their files to the FBI New York office, which appeared to have the strongest case to make.
Agents were told to continue their work. But the order to the other field offices angered agents there.
In the Washington field office, a half-mile away from headquarters, agents were told they could continue to work on a probe of Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe, but would have to discontinue what they viewed as relevant connected work on the Clinton Foundation.
McAuliffe is a close ally of the Clintons and previously headed the Clinton Foundation.
In New York, some agents working the Clinton Foundation case chafed at the decision that they had to sit and wait until after the election."...
...............
Officials at FBI headquarters decided the Clinton Foundation probe should be consolidated in New York. They ordered that agents in Los Angeles, Little Rock and Washington, D.C., turn over their files to the FBI New York office, which appeared to have the strongest case to make. Agents were told to continue their work. But the order to the other field offices angered agents there.”
11/2/16, "Turmoil in the FBI," CNN, Evan Perez, Pamela Brown, Shimon Prokupecz, Scott Glover
"This account is based on interviews with more than a dozen officials close to the matter who spoke anonymously because they've been ordered not to speak to the news media.
Tensions have built in particular over the handling of matters related to Hillary Clinton. Some of the sharpest divides have emerged between some agents in the FBI's New York field office, the bureau's largest and highest-profile, and officials at FBI headquarters in Washington and at the Justice Department.
Some rank-and-file agents interpreted cautious steps taken by the Justice Department and FBI headquarters as being done for political reasons or to protect a powerful political figure. At headquarters, some have viewed the actions and complaints of some agents in the field as driven by the common desire of investigators to get a big case or, perhaps worst, because of partisan views.
The tensions have multiplied since FBI Director James Comey made an unprecedented public announcement in July that there should be no charges against Clinton or her aides following a year-long probe.
That announcement -- without prior notice to his bosses at the Justice Department and, according to his critics, usurping the traditional role of prosecutors to review FBI recommendations in secret -- opened up sharp divides between Justice and FBI officials, and even within the Justice Department itself, where some officials have pushed for Attorney General Loretta Lynch to more forcefully assert her power over the FBI....
An independent agency...
Much of the turmoil centers not only on the handling of the probe into Clinton's use of a private server while secretary of state, but also another case some FBI agents wanted to pursue into the Clinton Foundation and whether there was any impropriety in dealings with donors.
In both cases, some FBI investigators felt stymied by headquarters and Justice Department officials and they interpreted roadblocks as politically partisan.
It's in that tense environment that the latest developments emerged as agents were conducting the unrelated investigation of Anthony Weiner, the disgraced former congressman and estranged husband of Clinton's close adviser Huma Abedin.
The surprise discovery of thousands of emails belonging to Abedin on a computer belonging to Weiner brought matters to a boil. The longer it took for officials at FBI headquarters and at the Justice Department to decide how to proceed with the matter, the more conspiracies spread among some agents that perhaps senior FBI officials were trying to cover up the matter.
Comey on Friday sent a letter to committee leaders in Congress with oversight of the FBI alerting them of the recently discovered documents and resulting investigation.
He acted in part, people close to him say, because he believed the news would eventually leak and the bureau would face an even bigger public backlash....
Politics is running rampant...
During the Clinton email server investigation, investigators and prosecutors debated whether to issue subpoenas to Clinton's aides, officials say. Leaders at the FBI and at the Justice Department thought it would be faster to come to voluntary agreements with aides. Subpoenas could cause delays, particularly if litigation is necessary, officials said. And the FBI and Justice Department wanted to try to complete the probe
During the Clinton email server investigation, investigators and prosecutors debated whether to issue subpoenas to Clinton's aides, officials say. Leaders at the FBI and at the Justice Department thought it would be faster to come to voluntary agreements with aides. Subpoenas could cause delays, particularly if litigation is necessary, officials said. And the FBI and Justice Department wanted to try to complete the probe
and get out of the way of the 2016 election....
Clinton Foundation in focus...
"FBI agents again pressed to take more overt steps in the Clinton Foundation probe, including possibly issuing subpoenas
.Clinton Foundation in focus...
"FBI agents again pressed to take more overt steps in the Clinton Foundation probe, including possibly issuing subpoenas
Justice
Department officials again opposed such moves. They cited, again, a
lack of evidence to warrant more investigative steps. And they expressed
concerns that with the election close, any overt actions shouldn't be
made until after Election Day.
"It's just a (message of) 'hold right now until after the elections -- no subpoenas issued, no interviews," one law enforcement official familiar with the July decision said....
"It's just a (message of) 'hold right now until after the elections -- no subpoenas issued, no interviews," one law enforcement official familiar with the July decision said....
Officials at FBI headquarters decided the Clinton Foundation probe should be consolidated in New York. They ordered that agents in Los Angeles, Little Rock and Washington, D.C., turn over their files to the FBI New York office, which appeared to have the strongest case to make.
Agents were told to continue their work. But the order to the other field offices angered agents there.
In the Washington field office, a half-mile away from headquarters, agents were told they could continue to work on a probe of Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe, but would have to discontinue what they viewed as relevant connected work on the Clinton Foundation.
McAuliffe is a close ally of the Clintons and previously headed the Clinton Foundation.
In New York, some agents working the Clinton Foundation case chafed at the decision that they had to sit and wait until after the election."...
...............
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