Summary
Some Democrats, furious with FBI Director James Comey for putting the issue of Hillary Clinton’s emails back in the public eye just before election day, are suggesting he has violated legal restrictions against federal employees trying to affect the outcome of an election.
Legal analysts said that would be a high bar to clear and that at least based on what is known about Comey’s motives, there’s no evidence he was trying to influence the Nov. 8 presidential election. But that doesn’t mean he should get too comfortable in his job, especially if Clinton wins.
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“There’s no indication that he was intending to interfere with the election,” said Stanford Law Professor Deborah Rhode, who also teaches legal ethics. Once Comey obtained new information suggesting his earlier statements to Congress may have been inaccurate or incomplete, she said, “he’s arguably got an obligation to come forward.”
“Where he failed, from an ethical standpoint, was in failing to say he had no evidence of wrongdoing … instead of leaving it open to political spin.”
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