Senator Chuck Grassley accuses former FBI Director James Comey of politically motivated failures in Clinton investigation
Newly released declassified documents suggest the FBI fell short in its investigation into former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s use of a private email server, according to Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley.
“This document shows an extreme lack of effort and due diligence in the FBI’s investigation of former Secretary Clinton’s email usage and mishandling of highly classified information,” Grassley said Monday. “Comey’s decision-making process smacks of political infection.”
Clinton served as Secretary of State under President Obama from 2009 to 2013 and was investigated in 2016 for potentially mishandling classified material. Then-FBI Director James Comey ultimately recommended against prosecution, saying no “reasonable prosecutor” would bring charges.
But Grassley argues that the newly declassified files—specifically from the “Clinton annex” of a 2018 DOJ Inspector General report—show the FBI left critical evidence unexplored. According to his office, thumb drives obtained during the investigation weren’t fully searched, even though they may have contained sensitive information, including classified State Department communications and emails involving then-President Obama.
“The Comey FBI’s negligent approach, and perhaps intentional lack of effort, stands in stark contrast to its aggressive pursuit of the Trump-Russia collusion narrative based on the discredited Steele dossier,” Grassley said.
The senator also pointed to intelligence suggesting the Obama administration may have tried to shield Clinton from scrutiny to protect her 2016 presidential bid. The FBI, according to Grassley, failed to seriously pursue these leads.
Fox News reached out to Clinton, former DNC Chair Debbie Wasserman Schultz, the Soros Open Society Foundations, and Comey—who now works at the Kettering Foundation—for comment but received no immediate response.
The documents were declassified at Grassley’s request by Attorney General Pam Bondi and FBI Director Kash Patel.
“I warned years ago that the Clinton investigation failed to hit the mark,” Grassley said. “After nearly a decade in the shadows, this information is now coming to light.”
The release comes days after Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard revealed unclassified evidence she claims shows Obama-era officials “manufactured and politicized intelligence” to justify launching the Trump-Russia investigation following Trump’s 2016 win.
Gabbard stated the goal was to “usurp President Trump and subvert the will of the American people,” adding that all documents have been turned over to the Justice Department for criminal referral.
The DOJ confirmed receiving Gabbard’s referral but has not commented further.
