Karen Finney, Senior Spokeswoman for Hillary for America stated that Clinton saying “We went through a thorough process to identify all of my work-related emails” and stating that she “did not participate” in the process of reviewing her emails is “consistent” because “she said ‘we'” on Monday’s broadcast of CNN’s “The Lead with Jake Tapper.”
Host Jake Tapper played clips of Clinton saying, with regards to reviewing her emails and deleting personal ones, “all I can tell you is that when my attorneys conducted this exhaustive process, I did not participate. I didn’t look at them.” On Sunday’s “Meet the Press.”
He then played Clinton’s remarks on March 10 at the UN, where she stated, “We went through a thorough process to identify all of my work-related emails, and deliver them to the State Department. At the end, I chose not to keep my private, personal emails.” Tapper then played Clinton stating, “So we went through a painstaking process, and turned over 55,000 pages of anything we thought could be work-related. Under the law, that decision is made by the official. I was the official. I made those decisions.”
Tapper then asked, “was she involved, or not? And can you understand how these mixed messages might be feeding into these trustworthiness issues that she has with voters?”
Finney answered, “I actually think it’s consistent, because, you know, she said ‘we.’ I mean, as she has explained, two of her lawyers were involved in that process. And she sort of told them, …I’m sure they were clear about what they were looking for, but I think as she said to Chuck, yesterday she did not want them to feel like she was looking over her shoulder. So, in terms of the process, again, I think they were clear about what they were looking for, so much so, quite frankly, as she also has pointed out, the State Department is returning some like 1,200 emails that apparently were — that we — that were turned over, thinking they might in some way be related to be business-related, and yet the State Department found, you know what, no, those are personal. We’re going to send those back to you. So, I think with regard to the process. I mean, here’s something, though, to this process, Jake. I mean, we know that they’re — we’re going to see more releases of emails from the State Department. We know that there may be other questions raised. we know that other Republicans may choose to, you know, do something with some of this. But here’s the bottom line, Hillary Clinton has taken responsibility for this. She has apologized. She has turned over her server, and finally after months of asking for the opportunity to come and speak to Congress –.”
Tapper then cut in, “She turned over the server because she was essentially forced to, right? I mean, it wasn’t willingly.”
Finney disagreed, saying, “She turned it over and has been cooperating with all of their requests, and with their investigation.”
Tapper then jumped in to ask about Clinton saying she set up the server to avoid carrying multiple devices, and Clinton also stating she has multiple devices.
Finney explained, “she didn’t have the iPad — she got the iPad, I think as a Christmas gift some time later. And as I understand it, uses that predominantly, to read articles and what have you, not for email. And with regard to the Blackberry, I don’t even think she had the iPhone at the time that she had the Blackberry. And remember, the issue with the Blackberry — because remember at the State Department there are two very separate systems. There is a classified system, and there is the unclassified system, which would be a .gov email address, and so, what she’s talking about is she used her personal email for the Blackberry. But that is not the whole of all of her communications, because so much of her communications were done in the classified system.”
Tapper continued to press the issue, saying, “it’s just a contradiction. She said she thought it’d be easier to carry one device and here she is talking about carrying four devices.”
Finney responded, “but somebody gives you an iPad so she’s saying, well, i have an iPad…it was all later. And the point being, at the time, she decided that having one device where she could — because she was going to be traveling. And like she said, Jake, I mean, come on, when she went into the State Department, as you will recall, we were facing some pretty big challenges, and I don’t think she was as focused on what technology she would have. She — like she said, can I just have one device? That would make it easier. I think having an iPad to read articles that somebody gives you as a Christmas present…doesn’t create some sort of mishap.”
Follow Ian Hanchett on Twitter @IanHanchett
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