Unclassified Clinton Emails May Have Consequences for a Key Deputy (New York Times)

[Babel_17]

http://www.nytimes.com/2016/02/27/us/politics/new-batch-of-hillary-clinton-emails-points-to-a-key-role-played-by-a-deputy.html

Unclassified Clinton Emails May Have Consequences for a Key Deputy

By STEVEN LEE MYERSFEB. 26, 2016

WASHINGTON — In May, 2011, John Kerry wrapped up a trip to Pakistan intended to calm tensions over the secret raid that had killed Osama bin Laden just weeks before. But as he took off to fly to Dubai, the Central Intelligence Agency carried out a pair of drone attacks in North Waziristan.

When he landed, Mr. Kerry, then chairman of the Senate’s Foreign Relations Committee, called the American ambassador to Pakistan, Cameron Munter, in a fury and tried to reach Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. Mr. Munter also called Mrs. Clinton’s senior aide, Jake Sullivan, who, in turn, jotted a brief email to his boss.

“Cameron called me, hysterical,” Mr. Sullivan’s email began under a subject line that noted Mr. Kerry’s request to speak with her.

What he wrote next is one example of what lies at the heart of a yearlong controversy over Mrs. Clinton’s use of a private email server at the State Department. The controversy has entangled some of her most trusted aides, both then and now, in a political and legal fight that could drag on throughout the election year.

[Merryland]

1. Thank you - this looks really bad.

I wonder if the Times is reconsidering its premature endorsement of the security-be-damned candidate...

[Babel_17]

2. Maybe just opening up their coverage

They have to be careful about even suggesting impropriety, when there's no rush to do so.

[tularetom]

3. Here's how this is going to play out

1. The FBI recommends that criminal charges be filed.

2. Lynch overrides the recommendation and closes the case.

3. Clinton is elected POTUS (they hope).

4. After the inauguration, Obama moves into a 7-figure job with the Clinton Foundation

[2pooped2pop]

4. I think you may have missed where she throws a couple of aids under the bus to take blame.

Probably between #1 and #2 if it hasn't already occurred.

[GreenPartyVoter]

8. Yep!

[Babel_17]

5. I don't see President Obama as ever needing anyone after he leaves office

He'll be leaving office a rock star, and will be be able to chart a unique path.

But the DOJ does probably dread having to deal with this as one of the people peripherally involved is trying to become POTUS. And they'll hate their jobs even more if things start directly impinging on Secretary Clinton and/or her top aides.

[tularetom]

6. Peripherally?

I'd have to say that the person who is trying to become POTUS is a hell of a lot more than peripherally involved. The server that contained all this questionable material was located in her garage and installed there at her request.

If she isn't a target of this investigation, the coverup has already begun.

[Babel_17]

7. In this particular instance, I meant

The DOJ is looking at a very distinct instance of possible violations. Yes, it highlights broader implications of the server setup, but the article doesn't say that this investigation is going to be widened (yet).

Everything looks to be pretty compartmentalized, the FBI is way over there, the Clinton Foundation is over there, the e-mails are down the hall, and in this case it looks to me like Secretary Clinton is only on the periphery.

Sure, there are implications of this relating to larger issues, but I'd rather not broad brush the situation. The details are what is going to matter, when all is said and done.

I think the article shows the author is making an effort to include some details. Like when people show they are aware of how the security regulations work. That could be a very important detail in regards how other people handled the material they had gotten hold of.

Edit: I think the DOJ is waiting for the FBI recommendations/report before they'll even think of considering going wider with this case from the article. It dovetails with what the FBI is looking at. A lot of people are guessing that ultimately it will be the Attorney General, after consulting with the President, who decides how to proceed. So nothing larger can come from this case, till that is settled.

My 2 cents.

[nadinbrzezinski]

9. Ah the tangled weave... when we plot to deceive

this is quite frankly starting to have a Watergate smell to it.

[antigop]

10. ok, nadin. I'm missing something about this whole thing...

It says that Sullivan was the conduit to Clinton.

Very basic question:
Why didn't people just send info to Clinton on her state.gov email address?

It looks to me like what has happened here is...

1) Classified info was sent to her aides to the aides' state.gov email addresses. This includes "born classified" info.

2) The aides either forwarded the email or cut and pasted info and sent it to Clinton's private email on her private server.

Is this what they are saying?

[nadinbrzezinski]

11. Yes, I have a problem writing a nuts and bolts article

since my source would be a a first hand source. Then pesky rules... But yes, in generalities that is exactly what is going on.

If you know anybody who has served, and not as infantry, but somebody with a clearance, ask them to explain to you how all this works in general terms. There are plenty of folks with clearances. If this was sergeant Clinton... she would be facing more than just a few years in the pokey just for losing control of this information.

I know a few people with clearances, They are frustrated to no end that people are not getting it... to me this is a highly technical story... but at least the NYT, (they have lawyers on retainer might come useful) is starting to explain this.

[antigop]

12. so that begs the questions...

Why didn't people just email Clinton directly to her state.gov email address?

Why did everything have to go through conduits?

Did they not have her state.gov email address? Why not? Why would they have the aides' state.gov email addresses, but not Clinton's?

Sorry...this whole thing has not been clear to me.

[nadinbrzezinski]

14. Because she set that server to facilitate things

one thing she has said that is correct is that the IT at state is ahem deficient. And we all should blame the Congress for not authorizing the funds to update the systems, on a regular basis. Some government agencies were still using Windows 98 when the rest of us were moving to Windows 2005. Why any version of word people got for home use had to be able to produce files compatible with systems a decade and a half ago. And some folks do write very unclassified material at home computers regularly.

The problem is that by doing that, and having a server that was not even secured, as in encrypted. there is a story out there about that aspect. she opened that server to hacking, which it was. That is just the surface level of this.

There is more, Yes Powell did use a private GMAIL account. He explained how one day and I went, ok. He had on his desk an unsecured system that did not go though the State systems. That he used for fully unclassed stuff. such as dinner arrangements (The emails contain a lot of them, I feel sorry for the graduate student that decides to do a thesis on this)... that is kosher. Powell came from the DoD where they had same issues with IT. So he was used to having a personal computer for shit like, theater tickets, but not using that for classified material, as annoying slow as it is.

[NWCorona]

18. One thing to take into account

Is the fact that Powell started major upgrades to the state departments email and IT systems. If you look at the IG audit reports from Hillary's time at State. The ball was dropped on IT and other security measures. The audits are pretty scathing.

[nadinbrzezinski]

20. Correct

[NWCorona]

15. Hillary never had log in credentials issued to her

For any of the government systems.

[nadinbrzezinski]

16. Now that is astounding

To edit, do you have a link? I know some of this was her not knowing the first thing on how to use email... which is not that unusual by the way for her age cohort

[antigop]

19. so...why not? She was SOS -- how could she do her job if she didn't send/receive classified info?

Sorry...this makes no sense.

eta: Am I to believe that as SOS she never sent or received classified info?

Then...how did she do her frikkin' job?

[NWCorona]

22. The State Dept asked multiple times for Hillary

to set up the appropriate accounts. I would amend one thing. Hillary did have credentials to log on to a skiff but that's all that I could find.

I can understand why you are confused as it blows me away too.

That is the question being asked. There are other ways to receive info but not fast or electronically.

[NWCorona]

13. I've held 5 security clearances in my life

2 in the military and 3 in the private sector. While I'll admit I'm biased against Clinton I can safely say I'd be in Leavenworth if I did anything close to whats being reported.

[nadinbrzezinski]

17. The people who I talk to say the same exact thing

[Babel_17]

21. Huh, Democratic congressperson Al Green seems to be following this

http://www.algreen.org/latest-hillary-clinton-emails-drop-mills-and-abedin-nomination-sign-offs-and-a-very-british-soiree/#

The State Department in early January told a federal court in a FOIA lawsuit that it recently discovered a new batch of documents from the Office of the Secretary, which could have included materials from Clinton’s chief of staff Cheryl Mills, and deputy chiefs of staff like Jake Sullivan and Huma Abedin, among others schedulers. A State official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, confirmed that the records sent to the Hill Friday are from this trove.

"The State recently located documents from electronic sources not previously searched," said the official, who noted that more than 93,000 pages were previously turned over to the committee.

In a court filing earlier this month, State said officials originally overlooked the records because they didn’t realize some of the documents had been “retired” to State archives, but Benghazi Committee Republicans took it as what they’ve called ongoing stonewalling from the administration. “The administration still has not turned over records this committee requested nearly a year ago,” the GOP-controlled panel tweeted.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Al_Green_%28politician%29