Some of you have reached out to the Alligator asking our position on the recent Supreme Court ruling.
We’ve refrained from making a statement because we want to gather more information on the situation and how it affects the Student Body before taking an official stance. So, in the meantime, please keep up to date with our reporting of Senate meetings and the latest developments. Now, onto the latest fad…
Darts & Laurels
To indict or not to indict: ‘Tis the question. Well, it was before FBI Director James Comey stated Tuesday that Hillary Clinton should not face criminal charges based on her mishandling of classified documents through her use of a private email server. Though, he certainly did not shy away from characterizing Clinton’s behavior as “extremely careless” and dangerous.
So it was basically like bumping into your ex at a mutual friend’s party: “You’re a liar, and I hate you forever, but I don’t think charges are appropriate today because I can’t prove you actually intended to ruin my evening like this.” We give a laurel to Comey for not holding back his punches despite the final “no-charges” recommendation to the Department of Justice.
Intention is key here, and you can agree or disagree with the standard by which Comey and the FBI defined criminal intention during their investigation. But, regardless, the decision has been made.
As far as we know, however, Comey made one statement that doesn’t add up. In comparing Clinton’s case to previous investigations, Comey stated, “We cannot find a case that would support bringing criminal charges based on these facts” — facts that include, as he outlined, clearly intentional and willful mishandling of classified information.
So — in English — the FBI, according to Comey in this Tuesday address, has never pressed criminal charges in cases where intent was not evident or inferable.
That’s not true. According to FBI records, which journalist David Sirota resurfaced and The Young Turks discussed, in July 2015, the FBI sentenced Bryan H. Nishimura, a former Navy reservist. Nishimura had access to classified documents while stationed in Afghanistan, which he downloaded and kept on his personal devices and later, unsuccessfully, tried to destroy.
Although the subsequent FBI investigation “did not reveal evidence that Nishimura intended to distribute classified information to unauthorized personnel,” he was given a criminal sentence.
Now, again, you can dispute the Nishimura case, but the fact of the matter is, we have a clear example from less than a year ago that looks exactly like Clinton’s case but yielded an entirely different outcome. So, when Comey said, “We cannot find a case that would support bringing criminal charges based on these facts,” he was either lying to the entire country or at least being disingenuous.
Of course, it’s completely reasonable that Comey just had a memory slip. You know, like when you draw a blank during your calculus final — it happens to the best of us. Or perhaps Comey was speaking in some secret FBI code in which, “We cannot find a case” actually means, “We absolutely know of a case from less than a year ago, and we will continue to act in full transparency, as we always do with cases this serious.” The world may never know.
So, we give a dart to Comey’s memory or verbal slip-up. Maybe he’s suffering from the same condition that caused President Bill Clinton to say, “I did not have sexual relations with that woman.” Expect Comey to bring the sax solos back around town.
