http://correctrecord.org/reminder-hillary-clintons-shameless-email-critics-have-massive-actual-email-scandals/
REMINDER: HILLARY CLINTON’S SHAMELESS EMAIL CRITICS HAVE MASSIVE, ACTUAL EMAIL SCANDALS
In a world where the House’s Speaker-in-Waiting openly admits that the Benghazi Committee is a political smear campaign targeting Hillary Clinton, is it really surprising that some of the biggest GOP critics of the trumped-up email “issue” have glaring, genuine email scandals?
It’s almost like there’s nothing the Republican Party won’t do—no hypocrisy they won’t embrace—to undermine Hillary Clinton’s campaign for President.
SHOT:
KARL ROVE:
karlrove_tweet
CHRIS CHRISTIE:
“The real story is this — I believe in my heart — that Hillary Clinton doesn’t want us to know what she’s doing. She believes we don’t have a right to know. When I’m president of the United States, you have a right to know what your president is doing, and we have the obligation to be held accountable for what we’re doing.” – Chris Christie [CNN, 8/30/15]
CHASER:
KARL ROVE:
Karl Rove and other White House Officials Used Private RNC Accounts for Government Business
22 White House officials “including Karl Rove, the chief political strategist” used private RNC email accounts for government business. “Political advisers to President Bush may have improperly used their Republican National Committee e-mail accounts to conduct official government business, and some communications that are required to be preserved under federal law may be lost as a result, White House officials said Wednesday. Of the 1,000 White House officials with political duties, 22 — including Karl Rove, the chief political strategist — have Republican National Committee accounts that are supposed to be used only for campaign-related work. But recent revelations that some officials have used those accounts for Bush administration business, including discussions of a plan to dismiss United States attorneys, has prompted a Congressional investigation.” [New York Times, 4/12/07]
A congressional investigation into the firing of U.S. attorneys “revealed that Rove and other political staffers at the White house conducted a good deal of business using private e-mail” and equipment provided by the RNC. “The present official is political czar Karl Rove, long regarded by friend and foe alike as some kind of cutting-edge genius, who seems to have the darnedest time figuring out this newfangled e-mail stuff. Apparently he thought he had it figured out. The congressional investigation into the firing of eight U.S. attorneys has revealed that Rove and other political staffers at the White House conducted a good deal of business using private e-mail addresses– and laptop computers — provided by the Republican National Committee. This was supposed to have been a way to avoid using government equipment to conduct partisan political business. But the White House now acknowledges that official business may have been done through this parallel system.” [Eugene Robinson opinion, Washington Post, 4/17/15]
Karl Rove’s deputy and executive assistant used georgewbush.com and rnchq.org email addresses to discuss government business with an aide to Jack Abramoff. “Barry Jackson, a deputy to Rove, in 2003 used a ‘georgewbush.com’ e-mail account to consult with Neil G. Volz, then an aide to lobbyist Jack Abramoff, about nominating one of Abramoff’s Indian tribe clients for a Medal of Freedom, according to a copy of an e-mail. Abramoff is now serving a prison sentence for bank fraud, and Volz plead guilty to conspiracy charges last year. Susan B. Ralston, while she was executive assistant to Rove, similarly used ‘georgewbush.com’ and ‘rnchq.org’ e-mail accounts to confer in 2001 and 2003 with Abramoff, her former boss, about matters of interest to Abramoff’s clients.” [Washington Post, 3/27/07]
Officials Used Multiple Non-.gov Domains
Karl Rove used an email account with the gwb43.com domain name provided by the RNC to email government officials. “Some White House officials, including Rove, use the RNC’s gwb43.com e-mail domain (an abbreviation for George W. Bush 43). Communications originating from that RNC domain written by White House political affairs aide Scott Jennings to officials in the Justice Department appeared in the first batch of e-mails given to the House and Senate Judiciary committees last week. The Jennings e-mails stamped with the RNC domain, as well as e-mails from then-White House Counsel Harriet Miers and her deputy sent through the official White House system, were captured on Justice Department servers.” [Eugene Robinson opinion, Washington Post, 4/17/15]
White House officials used national committee email accounts ending in gwb43.com to discuss the controversial firing of U.S. attorneys. “The flap grows out of the investigation into the dismissals of the prosecutors. E-mail messages provided to Congress in that inquiry showed that Scott Jennings, a deputy political director for Mr. Bush, used his national committee address, ending in gwb43.com, to discuss them with aides to Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales, including D. Kyle Sampson, who resigned amid the ensuing uproar.” [New York Times, 4/12/07]
Government business was discussed on georgewbush.com email addresses. “The use of non-government e-mails first became an issue about four weeks ago, when some of the e-mails turned over in a congressional investigation of the firing of eight U.S. attorneys showed that Rove deputy Scott Jennings repeatedly used an RNC e-mail address (sjennings@gwb43.com) in his official communications. One e-mail to Rove was sent to a kr@georgewbush.com address. Since then, it’s been pointed out that some of the e-mails released in the congressional investigation of now-convicted lobbyist Jack Abramoff indicated that former Rove aide Susan Ralston made a point of keeping her communication with Abramoff off the White House e-mail servers, and on either her RNC or AOL e-mail accounts.” [Washington Post, 4/12/07]
Karl Rove Relied on His Private Account for Most Work
Karl Rove used his private RNC account for “about 95 percent” of his work. “Alexis Simendinger writes in a National Journal story (subscription required): ‘White House Deputy Chief of Staff Karl Rove may have forfeited potential claims of executive privilege over the dismissals of eight U.S. attorneys– if he communicated about the latter outside the White House e-mail system, using his Republican National Committee e-mail account or RNC equipment. Or at least that’s a legal possibility posed by rapidly advancing electronic technology and the evolving work habits of busy White House officials. . . . According to one former White House official familiar with Rove’s work habits, the president’s top political adviser does ‘about 95 percent’ of his e-mailing using his RNC-based account. Many White House officials, including aides in the Political Affairs Office, use the RNC account as an alternative to their official government e-mail addresses to help keep their official and political duties separate.” [Washington Post, 3/23/07]
Emails on RNC-Controlled Accounts Were Deleted
The RNC’s policy was to erase all emails after 30 days and White House staffers were able to delete emails on their own. “Because the RNC had a policy until 2004 of erasing all e-mails on its servers after 30 days, including those by White House staffers, and because some of those staffers may have deleted e-mails on their own, the White House said it could not assure Congress that they have not violated the PRA, which requires the retention of official White House documents. The White House officials who may have broken the law include senior adviser Karl Rove, his deputies and much of their staffs.” [Time, 4/13/07]
Washington Post: “Countless e-mails to and from many key White House staffers have been deleted” in a “brazen violation of internal White House policy.” “Countless e-mails to and from many key White House staffers have been deleted — lost to history and placed out of reach of congressional subpoenas — due to a brazen violation of internal White House policy that was allowed to continue for more than six years, the White House acknowledged yesterday. The leading culprit appears to be President Bush’s enormously influential political adviser Karl Rove, who reportedly used his Republican National Committee-provided Blackberry and e-mail accounts for most of his electronic communication.” [Washington Post, 4/12/15]
The White House acknowledged that “e-mails dealing with official government business may have been lost because they were improperly sent through private accounts.” “The White House acknowledged yesterday that e-mails dealing with official government business may have been lost because they were improperly sent through private accounts intended to be used for political activities. Democrats have been seeking such missives as part of an investigation into the firing of eight U.S. attorneys.” [Washington Post, 4/12/07]
White House spokesman: “We may not have preserved all e-mails that deal with White House business.” “‘The White House has not done a good enough job overseeing staff using political e-mail accounts to assure compliance with the Presidential Records Act,’ White House spokesman Scott Stanzel said in an unusual late-afternoon teleconference with reporters. As a result, Stanzel said, ‘we may not have preserved all e-mails that deal with White House business.’ He refused to estimate how many e-mails may have been lost, but the system was used by dozens of officials for more than six years.” [Los Angeles Times, 4/12/07]
Separate Record-Keeping Failure Lead to 22 Million Missing Emails
The Bush Administration knew as early as 2002 that millions of official emails were at risk of being lost. “Top aides to President George W. Bush seemed unconcerned despite multiple warnings as early as 2002 that the White House risked losing millions of e-mails that federal law required them to preserve, according to an extensive review of records set for release Monday.” [Washington Post, 8/30/10]
The George W. Bush administration admitted it potentially lost an estimated 5 million emails. “Millions of White House e-mails may be missing, White House spokeswoman Dana Perino acknowledged Friday. ‘I wouldn’t rule out that there were a potential 5 million e-mails lost,’ Perino told reporters. The administration was already facing sharp questions about whether top presidential advisers including Karl Rove improperly used Republican National Committee e-mail that the White House said later disappeared.” [CNN, 4/13/07]
22 million missing e-mails from the George W. Bush administration were recovered as a result of lawsuits filed by watchdog groups. “Computer technicians have found 22 million missing White House e-mails from the administration of President George W. Bush and the Obama administration is searching for dozens more days’ worth of potentially lost e-mail from the Bush years, according to two groups that filed suit over the failure by the Bush White House to install an electronic record keeping system. The two private groups – Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington and the National Security Archive – said Monday they were settling the lawsuits they filed against the Executive Office of the President in 2007. It will be years before the public sees any of the recovered e-mails because they will now go through the National Archives’ process for releasing presidential and agency records. Presidential records of the Bush administration won’t be available until 2014 at the earliest.” [Associated Press, 3/18/10]
94 days of e-mail traffic was recovered by technicians. “Monday’s settlement allows for 94 days of e-mail traffic, scattered between January 2003 to April 2005, to be restored from backup tapes. Of those 94 days, 40 were picked by statistical sample; another 21 days were suggested by the White House; and the groups that filed suit picked 33 that seemed ‘historically significant,’ from the months before the invasion of Iraq to the period when the firings of U.S. attorneys were being planned.” [CNN, 12/14/09]
Email Practices May Have Violated Federal Law
Time: The Bush Administration admitted “that as many as 50 of its staffers may have violated the Presidential Records Act.” “Late Tuesday, the Bush Administration admitted that in reviewing documents requested by Democrats for their investigations, it discovered that as many as 50 of its staffers may have violated the Presidential Records Act. The staffers, the White House said, were using e-mail accounts, laptops and BlackBerries provided by the Republican National Committee for official executive branch communications rather than the exclusively political work for which they were intended.” [Time, 4/13/07]
Time: “The White House officials who may have broken the law include senior adviser Karl Rove, his deputies and much of their staffs.” “Because the RNC had a policy until 2004 of erasing all e-mails on its servers after 30 days, including those by White House staffers, and because some of those staffers may have deleted e-mails on their own, the White House said it could not assure Congress that they have not violated the PRA, which requires the retention of official White House documents. The White House officials who may have broken the law include senior adviser Karl Rove, his deputies and much of their staffs.” [Time, 4/13/07]
Washington Post: The White House email policy was clear that “Federal law requires the preservation of electronic communications sent or received by White House staff.” “When I asked Stanzel to read out loud the White House e-mail policy, it seemed clear enough to me: ‘Federal law requires the preservation of electronic communications sent or received by White House staff,’ says the handbook that all staffers are given and expected to read and comply with.” [Washington Post, 4/12/15]
Washington Post: Personnel were “expected to only use government-provided e-mail services for all official communication.” “‘As a result, personnel working on behalf of the EOP [Executive Office of the President] are expected to only use government-provided e-mail services for all official communication.’ The handbook further explains: ‘The official EOP e-mail system is designed to automatically comply with records management requirements.’” [Washington Post, 4/12/15]
Rep. Henry Waxman: Email “exchanges ‘indicated that in some instances White House officials were using nongovernment accounts specifically to avoid creating a record of communications.” “Waxman told RNC Chairman Mike Duncan in a letter that such exchanges ‘indicated that in some instances White House officials were using nongovernment accounts specifically to avoid creating a record of communications’ that could be reviewed by congressional committees or released under the Presidential Records Act.” [LA Times, 4/9/07]
Democrats claimed White House officials “used the private accounts, set up through the Republican National Committee, in an effort to avoid normal review.” “Democrats have charged that Rove and other officials may have used the private accounts, set up through the Republican National Committee, in an effort to avoid normal review. Under federal law, the White House is required to maintain records, including e-mails, involving presidential decision-making and deliberations. White House aides’ use of their political e-mail accounts to discuss the prosecutor firings has also fanned Democratic accusations that the actions were politically motivated.” [Washington Post, 4/12/07]
CHRIS CHRISTIE:
Chris Christie Used Private E-Mail Accounts
Chris Christie used two private e-mail accounts as governor and asserted executive privilege to block the release of any messages from either account. “‘When I’m president of the United States, you’ll have a right to know what your president is doing, and we have the obligation to be held accountable for what we’re doing,’ [Chris Christie] declared. Yet, back in New Jersey, the Republican governor’s administration is asserting executive privilege to block the release of any emails he may have sent to state officials from two private email accounts.” [International Business Times, 10/4/15]
The existence of both of Chris Christie’s private email accounts was confirmed by New Jersey state agencies. “In August and September, International Business Times filed open records requests for emails between state agencies and both a Yahoo address (christopherchristie1@yahoo.com) and an AOL account (hen84@aol.com) — the latter of which was listed as Christie’s address on a website for alumni of the New Jersey U.S. Attorney’s office. The agencies indicated they knew both email addresses belonged to the governor, and blocked the release of any emails from the addresses by citing executive privilege.” [International Business Times, 10/4/15]
Chris Christie used his private Yahoo e-mail account to conduct government business related to the Bridgegate scandal. “Gov. Chris Christie has criticized Hillary Clinton in recent days over her use of private email to do State Department business. But the only email he provided to the Legislature last year came from his private Yahoo account. Christie turned over just one set of emails to the New Jersey Legislature in response to its subpoenas about Bridgegate. That email conversation contained edits that Christie made to a statement announcing the resignation of Port Authority official David Wildstein, who has since pleaded guilty for his role in the lane closures.” [WNYC, 8/27/15]
An e-mail sent to Chris Christie’s AOL address produced a read receipt, suggesting the account was still active. “An email sent by IBT to the Yahoo address requesting comment from Gov. Christie returned an error message. A similar email sent to the AOL address appeared to go through and produced receipts showing it had been read. No response was received. A spokesperson for Christie’s office did not respond to questions from IBT.” [International Business Times, 10/4/15]
Chris Christie admitted that he maintained a private email account and said that no law required state business be conducted on government email. “Christie has said he maintains a private email account and that no law requires state business be conducted on government email, emphasizing that Clinton handled sensitive information and deleted some of hers. A spokesman for Christie’s office, Kevin Roberts, acknowledged there is no published policy requiring employees exchange official email on state accounts. He noted that confidential guidance to employees on email use is clear and thorough relating to generally using state-issued email accounts.” [The Hill, 8/28/15]
Christie Staff Used Personal Email and Cell Phones to Communicate About State Business
Chris Christie administration emails and texts released during Bridgegate investigation “revealed…that state officials use personal e-mail accounts and cell phones to communicate.” “The thousands of e-mails and texts released as part of the investigation into the September lane closures on the bridge revealed what many open public records advocates have long suspected: that state officials use personal e-mail accounts and cell phones to communicate.” [Star-Ledger, 1/13/14]
The ACLU called on Chris Christie to require all state employees to use state email for business. “The American Civil Liberties Union of New Jersey today called on Gov. Chris Christie and the state attorney general to require all public employees to use government e-mail accounts and cell phones to conduct official business, in response to the unfolding George Washington Bridge lane-closure scandal. The group said in a letter that the release of thousands of pages of e-mails and text message Friday related to the scandal showed government employees are attempting to circumvent the state Open Public Records Act by using personal accounts to discuss official matters.” [Star-Ledger, 1/13/14]
The ACLU believed that Christie administration officials “could be attempting to circumvent the state open public records act by using personal accounts to discuss business.” “In a letter to Gov. Chris Christie, the state attorney general and several state lawmakers, the ACLU said the communications showed employees could be attempting to circumvent the state Open Public Records Act by using personal accounts to discuss business.” [Star-Ledger, 1/13/14]
Chris Christie’s administration spent $441,000 in legal fees fighting open records requests, including requests related to withheld Bridgegate e-mails. “When a judge determines that the state withheld records illegally—which happens frequently—her group wins legal fees. As of September 2014, Christie’s administration had paid $441,000 to North Jersey Media Group and other media outlets for records. […] In January 2014, a judge ordered the release of top Christie staffers’ communications about the George Washington Bridge lane closures. Reporters for the Record had previously requested some of those same communications in 2013, and the state released some records in response. But reading the new documents, they realized that Christie’s office had failed to turn over critical documents that were covered by their request. The outlet sued and won access to a limited number of additional emails, says Borg, the North Jersey Media Group lawyer. ‘It’s still the most egregious of these cases,’ she says.” [Mother Jones, 2/4/15]
Regina Egea Deleted Bridgegate Text Messages Between Her and Christie
A legislative report showed that there were 12 text messages exchanged between Chris Christie and Regina Egea on day the Port Authority started to question the Christie administration’s explanation for lane closures. “Contradicting sworn testimony and New Jersey Governor Chris Christie’s repeated accounts that he barely paid attention last fall to the burgeoning scandal surrounding politically-motivated lane closures on the George Washington Bridge, a new report shows there were 12 text messages exchanged between the Governor and a top aide during an explosive day of testimony a year ago. That was the day that top officials of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey began to dismantle key elements of the Christie administration’s official explanation of events — that the lane closures were a traffic study gone awry. AT&T did not release the content of the texts, and it’s not unusual that the Governor and the aide would have been exchanging messages that day with the aide, Regina Egea, his incoming chief of staff and head of his authorities unit, who was monitoring the testimony. But their previous denials raises the question of what other communications were deleted as the scandal unfolded.” [WNYC, 12/5/14]
Egea said the texts were not substantive and that she did not know when she deleted the texts. “In Egea’s own testimony last summer, the new report notes, she referred to a single text she sent that day as ‘not at all substantive.’ She said she ‘couldn’t recall’ a response from the governor. Egea acknowledged deleting the text, though she couldn’t say when.” [WNYC, 12/5/14]
Christie told friends that he texts instead of emails because text messages are harder to trace. “The governor has told allies that he had learned when he was the United States attorney for New Jersey to communicate by text rather than email, because text messages are harder to trace. (Email can remain on servers even after being deleted; cellphone carriers vary in how long they preserve deleted texts.)” [New York Times, 8/27/14]
Regina Egea testified that she deleted text messages between her and Christie about the lane closings. “Gov. Chris Christie’s designated future chief of staff, Regina Egea, testified that she texted the governor about the lane closings in December, after testimony in a hearing that day disputed his administration’s assertion that the closings were part of a traffic study. But she said she deleted the texts.” [New York Times, 7/17/14]
Star-Ledger editorial board: Chris Christie “knowingly deleted 12 text messages he exchanged with a senior aide who was monitoring the Bridgegate hearings.” “For Christie to lead the charge on this takes remarkable chutzpah. He knowingly deleted 12 text messages he exchanged with a senior aide who was monitoring the Bridgegate hearings in December 2013, as Port Authority witnesses demolished the phony claim that the infamous lane closures were part of a traffic study. What was in those texts, governor? And why did you erase them?” [Star-Ledger editorial, 9/2/15]
Star-Ledger editorial board: Chris Christie “never answered the question” when asked about his deleted Bridgegate text messages. “What was in those texts, governor? And why did you erase them? Wallace, to his credit, asked Christie about that on Sunday. The governor pivoted back to Hillary, and never answered the question.” [Star-Ledger editorial, 9/2/15]
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I have written to CREW asking what happened to the Bush era emails, which I understand were archived but should have been available in 2014.
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