GOP Judiciary chair calls foul on Comey, FBI

The FBI’s disclosure of the discovery of additional potential evidence in the case of Hillary Clinton’s use of a private email server was unfair to the Democratic presidential nominee, the Republican head of the Senate Judiciary Committee said Monday. 

{mosads}Sen. Chuck Grassley (Iowa) wrote in a letter to FBI Director James Comey that his announcement less than two weeks before Election Day “did not go far enough” in providing details about the emails, which were discovered by agents investigating an unrelated case. 

“Unfortunately, your letter failed to give Congress and the American people enough context to evaluate the significance or full meaning of this development,” Grassley wrote. 

“Without additional context, your disclosure is not fair to Congress, the American people, or Secretary Clinton.”

Both Democrats and Republicans have called Comey’s Friday letter to lawmakers disturbing and curiously timed. The Clinton campaign has pressed the FBI director to release more information. 

“In the absence of additional, authoritative information from the FBI in the wake of your vague disclosure, Congress and the American people are left to sift through anonymous leaks from Justice Department officials to the press of varying levels of detail, reliability, and consistency. The American people deserve better than that,” Grassley wrote. 

The emails in question reportedly belong to Huma Abedin, a longtime Clinton aide, and were found during an investigation into allegations that her estranged husband, former Rep. Anthony Weiner (D-N.Y.), had sent sexual messages to an underage girl. 

The reaction among Republicans to Comey’s letter has mostly been negative, despite praise for the move from their presidential nominee, Donald Trump.

Many have questioned the timing of the letter, which was sent just over a week ahead of the election and disclosed the existence of emails that the FBI said may be significant to the Clinton case.

Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio.), a staunch conservative, on Monday said the FBI letter “was probably not the right thing for [FBI Director James] Comey to do.”

“But this whole case has been mishandled, and now it is what it is,” Jordan said. 

Former Rep. Joe Walsh (R-Ill.), a vocal supporter of Trump, said the timing of the letter was “unfair” to Clinton.

Hillary is corrupt as hell, but the FBI Dir has no right to mess with an election.

He goes public cuz of emails no one has seen? Just wrong

— Joe Walsh (@WalshFreedom) October 31, 2016