On this weekend’s broadcast of “Fox News Sunday,” on the topic of the State Department inspector general’s report that found Hillary Clinton violated the agency rules by using a private email server during her tenure as secretary of state, USA Today Washington bureau chief Susan Page said Clinton’s “honest and trustworthy issue” was her “Achilles’ heel when it comes to her election.”
Partial transcript as follows:
PAGE: Well, I don’t think we know what the results of the FBI investigation are going to be. Legal analysts have looked at this, and I think have been skeptical, that she’s going to be indicted. But you never know where investigations go.
And while the inspector general’s report is — is very critical, I don’t think it does new damage to Hillary Clinton. An FBI conclusion that was more serious, I think, could do some real damage to her.
You know, it’s interesting, she’s going to be the first woman nominated by a major party to be president. Women candidates usually have to deal with whether they’re strong enough. She’s fine on that. Competent, people think she’s competent. This honest and trustworthy issue, this is her Achilles heel when it comes to her election. It’s an issue she really needs to figure out a way to — to address, to at least improve those numbers to some degree.
WALLACE: Susan, do you think the — the Colin Powell defense gets her off the hook?
PAGE: No, because, number one, Colin Powell is not running for president. She is. And, number two, I think all of us, of a certain age, understand that use of e-mail has changed — changed even in the period from when Colin Powell left the State Department.
Follow Pam Key on Twitter @pamkeyNEN
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