Two House Republican committee chairmen formally requested that the Justice Department investigate whether Hillary Clinton lied to Congress.
House Oversight Committee Chairman Jason Chaffetz and House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte, sent a letter to Channing Phillips, the U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia, on Monday, asking for a new probe to determine with Clinton “committed perjury and made false statements during her testimony under oath before congressional committees.”
FBI Director James Comey told Chaffetz’s panel during his appearance last week that his agency’s review of Clinton’s handling of classified materials and use of a private email server did not cover her congressional testimony. The letter serves as an official criminal referral from Congress so that the Justice Department can open a separate investigation.
“The evidence collected by the FBI during its investigation of Secretary Clinton’s use of a personal email system appears to directly contradict several aspects of her sworn testimony,” said Chaffetz and Goodlatte in their letter.
Specifically, Republican lawmakers are pointing Clinton’s testimony before House Select Committee on Benghazi in October 2015 when the former secretary of state stated she did not sent any classified materials over a private email server.
“This is another futile, partisan attempt to keep this issue alive now that the Justice Dept has declared it resolved,” said Brian Fallon, Clinton’s campaign spokesman tweeted in response.
Rep. Elijah Cummings, the top-ranking Democrat on the House Oversight Committee, accused Republicans of trying to pile on Clinton ahead of their party’s convention.
“There is absolutely no credible evidence that anyone at the FBI did anything wrong in this investigation, that they pulled any punches, or that they were improperly influenced by anyone outside the agency,” he said in a statement. “Republicans are now squandering even more taxpayer dollars in a desperate attempt to keep this issue alive and bring down Secretary Clinton’s poll numbers ahead of the election.”
Chaffetz also sent a separate letter to Comey formally requesting the FBI hand over its investigative file that includes details of its review of Clinton’s use of a private email account.
Attorney General Loretta Lynch is slated to appear before Goodlatte’s panel on Tuesday.
