FBI Director Comey Who Just Exempted Hillary From Prosecution Is A ROCK-SOLID Republican

GOP Will Be Hard-Pressed To Attack FBI's Comey For Recommending No Charges Against Clinton

Charles Tiefer, Forbes Magazine

FBI Director James B. Comey announced Tuesday morning that the FBI will recommend that no charges be filed against Hillary Clinton as a result of the FBI inquiry into her handling of her email while Secretary of State. No doubt Republicans will launch nasty attacks on Comey and Hillary alike. But, for several reasons, the FBI’s decision on Clinton will prove even more powerful on close study.

First, the No. 1 attack will be that Democratic influence, not the merits of Hillary’s position, got the FBI to clear her. But before buying into the notion of Democratic influence on Comey, look at his own record, which is as solidly Republican as they come. He identifies himself as Republican. He served as counsel on the 1996 Republican Senate Whitewater Committee, run by Sen. Al D’Amato, which relentlessly and fiercely excoriated the Clintons.

President George W. Bush appointed him U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York, then Bush promoted him to Deputy Attorney General, the second post in Justice.  He ran the Department for Bush under John Ashcroft and Alberto Morales. He gave campaign contributions to McCain and Romney. Come on. Does Comey’s Republican background have to be tattooed on him to be accepted?

Second, Comey said “no reasonable prosecutor” would indict her. So, the second attack will be that, somehow, Comey’s judgment is not to be accepted. But, he has one of the finest sets of prosecutorial credentials in the country. In the NY federal prosecution office, he served for many years as a line prosecutor and then supervisor. He took on the tough and high profile cases, from the Gambino crime family to Martha Stewart. As Deputy Attorney General he supervised all — yes all — the nation’s federal prosecutions. To put it differently, his prosecutorial judgment has been refined in scores, if not hundreds, of major decisions. Let a critic with better credentials step forward.

Third, the FBI had extraordinarily complete access. A lot was made last month about the report of the State Department Inspector General. But the State IG did not question Clinton. That was reserved for the FBI in its 3-1/2 hour examination of her, in which she was subject to the potential of harsh criminal punishment for a misstatement. The FBI got to give her the third degree. Which she submitted to voluntarily. Comey surely studied that examination in reaching his judgment.

Moreover the FBI had her private server. The IG did not. So Comey had the overview of the full evidence.

There will be a public cacophony now on this subject. It will stand out that the judgment was that of Comey. Consider the source.