The attorney general could have ordered FBI Director James Comey not to send his letter

[still_one]

"Twelve days before the presidential election, FBI Director James B. Comey dispatched a senior aide to deliver a startling mes"sage to the Justice Department. Comey wanted to send a letter to Congress alerting them that his agents had discovered more emails potentially relevant to the investigation into Hillary Clinton’s private email server.

......

Justice officials laid out a number of arguments against releasing the letter. It violated two long-standing policies. Never publicly discuss an ongoing investigation. And never take an action affecting a candidate for office close to Election Day. Besides, they said, the FBI did not know yet what was in the emails or if they had anything to do with the Clinton case.

Remarkably, the country’s two top law enforcement officials never spoke. As Comey’s boss, Attorney General Loretta E. Lynch could have given the FBI director an order to not send the letter. But Lynch and her advisers feared that Comey would not listen. He seemed to feel strongly about updating Congress on his sworn testimony about the Clinton investigation. Instead, they tried to relay their concerns through the Justice official whom the FBI had called.

......

"Weeks before the letter, Comey had advised against the Obama administration public statement admonishing Russia for the Democratic Party hacks, arguing it would make the administration appear partisan too close to the election. But to him, the Clinton email investigation was different."

.......

“If she thought violated department policy or was otherwise a bad idea, she could have ordered him not to send the letter,” said Goldsmith, who noted that soon after the letter was released, Justice officials proceeded to criticize Comey when Lynch had the power all along to stop him. “It was an astonishing failure of leadership and eschewal of responsibility, especially if Lynch really thought what Comey did was wrong.”

https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/the-attorney-general-could-have-ordered-fbi-director-james-comey-not-to-send-his-bombshell-letter-on-clinton-emails-heres-why-she-didnt/2016/12/21/7824d00a-c5fd-11e6-85b5-76616a33048d_story.html?hpid=hp_hp-top-table-main_comeylynch-715am%3Ahomepage%2Fstory

[JustAnotherGen]

1. They are blaming it on Loretta Lynch?

What the fuck? He did it. Him. It's on him. He did this.

[still_one]

6. No doubt he was ultimately the responsible party. However, why doesn't the administration fire him

now? The FBI director interferred with the U.S. election.

While it can be argued that he will just be reappointed or rewarded by the incoming administration, the act of dismissing him would make it clear that he violated his responsibilities

[Hugin]

2. I think the Attorney General via the DOJ did tell him not to send the letter.

And, Comey DID send it anyway.

This article reeks of CYA on Comey's part.

[LaydeeBug]

3. This. I lived it. This is what happened. He was *concerned*. nt

[Hugin]

8. Wow... For the sake of your sanity, I strongly suggest not reading this article.

Here's the dingle-berry on top of the :poop: pie.

"Lynch’s meeting in June with Bill Clinton on a tarmac in Phoenix led to a crisis in leadership at the department over how to handle the Clinton email investigation. Rather than formally recuse herself, Lynch left ambiguous who would be making final decisions on issues regarding Hillary Clinton.

Into that vacuum stepped Comey, an FBI director who prides himself on having a finely tuned moral compass that allows him to rise above politics. Weeks before the letter, Comey had advised against the Obama administration public statement admonishing Russia for the Democratic Party hacks, arguing it would make the administration appear partisan too close to the election. But to him, the Clinton email investigation was different."

[LaydeeBug]

10. exactly. He violated the Hatch Act, and Obama did NOTHING about it. nt

[Vinca]

4. I think he would have released it anyway. The man is a grade A dick and that's all there is to it.

[BeyondGeography]

5. Just maybe she felt compromised after getting torched for hanging out with Bill in Phoenix

http://www.cnn.com/2016/12/18/politics/loretta-lynch-james-comey-bill-clinton/

Her recent comments certainly suggest it.

[still_one]

7. no doubt, which is why the article indicates she could have recussed herslef, and let someone else

make that decision

[Hugin]

9. Comey could have recused himself from the Clinton "Investigation", too.

As, it was CLOSED! OVER! FINITO! DONE! But, he didn't.

Instead, he made a blatantly unfounded insupportable decision to release a letter on something he had no first hand knowledge of... To an obviously partisan Jason Chappedlipz (R-Smearville) AND, OBTW, obviously blabbed to Ghouliani and others in the Trump camp.

Circular argument.

[still_one]

11. Not entirely. Assuming the validity of the Washington Post story, if the AG was concerned about the

appearance of bias, she could have easily recused herself, and had someone else make the decision.

In all likely hood the FBI director would have released the letter anyway, but wouldn't that then be grounds for dismissal?

One thing I noticed ever since Bernard Goldberg wrote his book "Bias", accusing the media of having a liberal bias, the television media seems to go out of their way to over compensate toward the right wing point of view, out of concern that they will be labelled "libural" if they don't.

Again, assuming the stories validity, it could have been a similar mindset going through the AG mind, so she would not have been viewed as being bias.