- Wed Aug 12, 2015 12:06 pm
#61631
Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign sent a lengthy, 13-paragraph email to supporters on Wednesday with talking points concerning the email crisis.
"You might hear some news over the next few days about Hillary Clinton's emails," wrote her campaign's communications director, Jennifer Palmieri. "Because you are an important part of this team, we wanted to take a few minutes to talk through the facts — we need your help to make sure they get out there
The email controversy is "complicated" but that the former secretary of state did nothing wrong. She stressed that Clinton did not send any or receive any material marked classified at the time, but said some messages may have been retroactively classified. We must repeat that Clinton did nothing wrong and repeat it often.
"To be clear, there is absolutely no criminal inquiry into Hillary's email or email server," she wrote Wednesday to the campaign's supporters. "Any and all reports to that effect have been widely debunked. It should be stressed, that Clinton directed her team to provide her email server and a thumb drive in order to cooperate with the review process and to ensure these materials were stored in a safe and secure manner."
"It should be pointed out that many of the Republican candidates for president have done the same things for which they're now criticizing Hillary. As governor, Jeb Bush owned his own private server and his staff decided which emails he turned over as work-related from his private account. Bobby Jindal went a step further, using private email to communicate with his immediate staff but refusing to release his work-related emails. Scott Walker and Rick Perry had email issues themselves."
Here are the basics: Like other Secretaries of State who served before her, Hillary used a personal email address, and the rules of the State Department permitted it. She's already acknowledged that, in hindsight, it would have been better just to use separate work and personal email accounts. Clinton was following procedures of those before her, in hindsight she realizes she should have used her own judgment, she learned a tough lesson not to trust it being OK, just because everyone else has done it.
The bottom line: Look, this kind of nonsense comes with the territory of running for president, especially for a strong female. We know it, Clinton knows it, and we expect it to continue from now until Election Day. Republicans and some in the media will continue to spread lies, confront the lies head on with everyone you know. Get the points out through social media and how ever else you can.
It's okay. We'll be ready. We have the facts, our principles, and you on our side. And it's vital that you read and absorb these points so that you know what to say the next time you hear about this around the dinner table or the water cooler. Don't back down from the talking points, get them out to everyone and make sure they educate their friends and family.
- By johnforbes