Irresponsible Reporting on New E-Mail Investigation

This country would be such a different and better place if we had a responsible news media.  Yesterday, the FBI announced what appears to be a dubiously based re-opening of the Clinton e-mail investigation.  The problem is, that from what information that is available, the e-mails at the root of the "new" story are not even those of Clinton herself.  One very politically involved friend summarized the situation as follows:

So, here are a few things to keep in mind from news reports right now about FBI Director Comey and the "emails": 1) The e-mails Comey announced today were NOT originally withheld by Clinton or campaign (source: NBC) 2) Newly discovered emails related to Clinton investigation did not come from her private server (source: AP) 3) The e-mails mentioned in Comey's letter were discovered "on another device" tied to an unrelated case (source: NBC) 4) The emails were discovered during the FBI's inquiry into Anthony Weiner's sexting (source: New York Times)To me, it all seems like an overtly political move today.And none of it suggests it has anything to do with Hillary Clinton directly!!!

A piece in Salon further supports this reasoning.  Here are highlights:

The emails that the FBI are looking into did not come from Hillary Clinton’s private server.

The emails in question, according to the New York Times, came from seized electronic devices belonging to Anthony Weiner and his recently estranged wife, Huma Abedin.

NBC’s Pete Williams reported late Friday that the newly discovered emails the FBI teased in a letter came from a “device” involved in a separate investigation.

Williams appeared on MSNBC to give an update on what his sources were telling him.

“What they say is that in the course of a separate investigation, they came across a device — they won’t say whether it is a computer or cell phone, but that it’s some device — and that in looking at that, that led them to some other emails,” Williams said. “But they are not emails from Hillary Clinton.” 

“It doesn’t appear that the campaign, or the Clintons, or the State Department, had emails that they didn’t give to the FBI,” William said.

When FBI director James Comey announced the investigation in a letter, political commentators were already speculating how much damage this would cause the Clinton campaign. And because Comey’s letter was light on details, conjecture and guesswork dominated the cable news networks.

But as new details come forward, it appears this newest development is much to do about nothing. The AP recently corroborated Williams’ reporting, writing in a tweet that the emails “did not come from [Clinton’s] private server.”Clinton campaign chair John Podesta released a statement in response to the FBI letter, requesting Comey to provide any and all information he has related to the latest inquiry. “The Director owes it to the American people to immediately provide the full details of what he is now examining,” the statement read. “We are confident this will not produce any conclusions different form the once the FBI reached in July.”

Comey seems more worried about covering his ass than getting to the truth or avoiding the misleading of Americans.  Regardless of who wins on November 8, 2016, Comey needs to go.