Hawkeye Reporter

Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) has highlighted findings from a newly declassified appendix to the Department of Justice Office of Inspector General’s (OIG) June 2018 report, which reviewed the FBI’s handling of the investigation into Hillary Clinton’s use of a private email server and her management of classified information during her tenure as Secretary of State. The document, referred to as the “Clinton annex,” was declassified by the DOJ under Attorney General Pam Bondi and provided to Grassley following his repeated requests dating back to 2018.

“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. “Under Comey’s leadership, the FBI failed to perform fundamental investigative work and left key pieces of evidence on the cutting room floor. The Comey FBI’s negligent approach and perhaps intentional lack of effort in the Clinton investigation is a stark contrast to its full-throated investigation of the Trump-Russia collusion hoax, which was based on the uncorroborated and now discredited Steele dossier. Comey’s decision-making process smacks of political infection.”

“I warned years ago that the Clinton investigation failed to hit the mark, and I’m grateful the American people can finally see the facts for themselves,” Grassley continued. “After nearly a decade in the shadows, this information is now coming to light thanks to Attorney General Pam Bondi and FBI Director Kash Patel’s dedicated efforts to fulfill my congressional request. I appreciate their ongoing commitment to transparency and strongly urge them to continue to fully review this matter, including its national security impact.”

The annex details that during its inquiry into Clinton's emails, the FBI obtained thumb drives containing sensitive data exfiltrated from U.S. government agencies such as the Department of State. The drives also reportedly included emails involving then-President Barack Obama and potentially information related to Congress. Despite these contents, then-FBI Director James Comey, Deputy Director Andrew McCabe, Special Agent Peter Strzok, and others did not conduct additional searches or reviews recommended by internal memoranda or vet potential national security risks associated with these materials.

Additionally, intelligence reports cited in the annex reference alleged communications between Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-Fla.), chairwoman of the Democratic National Convention at that time, and two individuals connected with Soros Open Society Foundations. These reports claimed that efforts were made within President Obama's administration to hinder investigations into Clinton.

On July 5, 2016, Comey publicly announced that no legal action would be recommended against Clinton after concluding his investigation—an outcome Grassley's oversight suggests was predetermined before interviewing Clinton herself. Later that month, on July 31, 2016, Comey's FBI initiated an inquiry into alleged ties between President Trump’s campaign and Russia—a probe known as Crossfire Hurricane—despite those claims being disproven over time.

Grassley argued that Comey's management during these events demonstrated an inability to uphold public trust in federal law enforcement leadership.