Back on June 29, 2016, Obama's Attorney General, Loretta Lynch, tried to convince us that the following 'impromptu' meeting between herself and Bill Clinton at the Phoenix airport, a private meeting which lasted 30 minutes on Lynch's private plane, was mostly a "social meeting" in which Bill talked about his grandchildren and golf game. It was not, under any circumstances, related to the statement that former FBI Director James Comey made just 6 days later clearing Hillary Clinton of any alleged crimes related to his agency's investigation.
Not surprisingly, following the above media clip several concerned watchdog groups filed FOIA requests seeking any and all DOJ and/or FBI documents related to what was either (i) a really poorly timed meeting, in the best case, or (ii) a clear attempt by a former President of the United States to apply leverage over the current Attorney General to obstruct justice and get his wife elected President, in the worst case.
Now, after originally being told by the FBI there were no documents to produce in response to their July 2016 FOIA request, Judicial Watch is now reported that nearly a year and a half later they've suddenly found some documents that may be relevant. Meanwhile, as if that isn't bad enough, the FBI apparently needs 6 weeks to produce a measly 30 pages worth of records. Here's more from Judicial Watch:
Judicial Watch was informed yesterday by the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) that the FBI has located 30 pages of documents related to the June 27, 2016, tarmac meeting between former Attorney General Loretta Lynch and former President Bill Clinton, and proposes non-exempt material be produced no later than November 30, 2017 (Judicial Watch v. U.S. Department of Justice (No. 1:16-cv-02046)).
The new documents are being sent to Judicial Watch in response to a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) lawsuit filed after the Justice Department failed to comply with a July 7, 2016, FOIA request seeking the following:
- All FD-302 forms prepared pursuant to the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s investigation of former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s use of a private e-mail server during her tenure.
- All records of communications between any agent, employee, or representative of the Federal Bureau of Investigation regarding, concerning, or related to the aforementioned investigation. This request includes, but is not limited to, any related communications with any official, employee, or representative of the Department of Justice, the Executive Office of the President, the Democratic National Committee, and/or the presidential campaign of Hillary Clinton.
- All records related to the meeting between Attorney General Lynch and former President Bill Clinton on June 27, 2016.
Expressing the frustration that this revelation likely invokes for many Americans, Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton described the FBI as "out of control" and said it's "stunning that the FBI ‘found’ these Clinton-Lynch tarmac records only after we caught the agency hiding them in another lawsuit."
“The FBI is out of control. It is stunning that the FBI ‘found’ these Clinton-Lynch tarmac records only after we caught the agency hiding them in another lawsuit,” stated Judicial Watch Tom Fitton. “Judicial Watch will continue to press for answers about the FBI’s document games in court. In the meantime, the FBI should stop the stonewall and release these new records immediately.”
This case has also forced the FBI to release to the public the FBI’s Clinton investigative file, although more than half of the records remain withheld. The FBI has also told Judicial Watch that it anticipates completing the processing of these materials by July 2018.
There is significant controversy about whether the FBI and Obama Justice Department investigation gave Clinton and other witnesses and potential targets preferential treatment.
Can you imagine the outrage in Congress and at CNN if similar records were suddenly 'found' at the FBI that proved Trump colluded with Putin to throw the 2016 election?
Dear FBI, here's an alternative to waiting around 6 weeks to produce 30 pages that will undoubtedly have all relevant information redacted...why not just do us all a favor, dispel with the notion that their is any transparency in Washington D.C., fully redact all 30 pages and hand them over to Judicial Watch now so that we can all be appalled for moment and move on with our lives?