Amid Email Focus, Obama Says He Has ‘Absolute Confidence’ In Clinton’s Integrity

In his strongest intervention yet in the USA presidential election, Obama also rebuked James Comey for the decision to announce just days before the election that new emails linked to Hillary Clinton were being investigated.

Mr Comey, who announced in July that the FBI’s long investigation of Mrs Clinton’s emails was ending without any charges, said in his letter the agency would review the newly surfaced emails to determine their relevance to the investigation of her handling of classified information.

“He needed to make an informed decision, knowing that once he made that decision, he was taking it to another level”, an official with knowledge of the decision-making process said.

Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton said she was “surprised” by the FBI’s decision to reopen its investigations into her alleged email scandal that has rocked her presidential campaign ahead of the general elections.

The President’s remarks came several days after FBI Director James Comey’s surprise announcement that agents would review thousands of emails potentially connected to Clinton that were discovered as part of a separate inquiry into former congressman Anthony Weiner who is married to a high-ranking Clinton aide, Huma Abedin.

At the same time he reiterated the importance of the White House staying out of the Department of Justice and FBI’s way in their prosecutorial and investigative decisions, whether there’s an election around the corner or not.

While professing that he doesn’t want to look like he’s “meddling” in the case, Mr. Obama went on to exonerate Mrs. Clinton.

After learning that FBI investigators had found a new trove of possibly related emails on a laptop belonging to former New York Democratic Rep. Anthony Weiner, husband of Clinton’s top aide Huma Abedin, what was he to do?

But Comey’s decision has been attacked by those who say the letter is vague and open to misinterpretation so close to a pivotal USA presidential election.

Trump said on Twitter: “Now that you see that Hillary was a big mistake, change your vote to MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN”.

“Obviously, it’s become a political controversy”, he said.

This atmosphere raises major questions about how Comey and the bureau he is slated to run for the next seven years can work with Clinton should she win the White House.

White House Press secretary Josh Earnest speaks to the media during the daily briefing in the Brady Press Briefing Room of the White House, Monday, Oct. 31, 2016.

However, the reports also show that the political leadership at the Department of Justice is trying to protect Clinton and are interfering in FBIs criminal investigation, he added. “That’s the first time I’ve ever noticed a tweet from the FBI Records Vault”, he said.

In this October 28, 2016, photo, President Barack Obama speaks during a campaign event for Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton in Orlando, Fla. “But he said it was important to follow a practice of not allowing intimations or suggestions to pervade the public’s view of the case”.