Why did Clinton use her own email
account?
When Clinton got to the Department, she opted to use her
personal email account as a matter of convenience. It enabled her to reach
people quickly and keep in regular touch with her family and friends more
easily given her travel schedule.
That is the only reason she used her own account.
Her usage was widely known to the over 100 State Department
and U.S. government colleagues she emailed, consistent with the practice of prior
Secretaries of State and permitted at the time.
As Clinton has said, in hindsight, it would have been better
to just have two accounts. While she thought using one account would be easier,
obviously, that has not been the case.
Was it allowed?
Yes. The laws, regulations, and State Department policy in
place during her tenure permitted her to use a non-government email for work.
Is Department of Justice conducting a
criminal inquiry into Clinton’s email use?
No. As the Department of Justice and Inspectors General made
clear, the IGs made a security referral. This was not criminal in nature as
misreported by some in the press. The Department of Justice is now seeking
assurances about the storage of materials related to Clinton’s email account.
Is it true that her email server and
a thumb drive were recently turned over to the government? Why?
Again, when information is reviewed for public release, it
is common for information previously unclassified to be upgraded to classified
if the State Department or another agency believes its public release could
cause potential harm to national security, law enforcement or diplomatic
relations.
Would this issue not have arisen if
she used a state.gov email address?
Even if Clinton's emails had been on a government email
address and government device, these questions would be raised prior to public
release.
Press reports say she used multiple
devices – a Blackberry and an iPad – is that true?
Clinton relied on her Blackberry for emailing. This was
easiest for her. When the iPad came out in 2010, she was as curious as others
and found it great for shopping, browsing, and reading articles when she
traveled. She also had access to her email account on her iPad and sometimes
used it for that too.
Why did the Select Committee announce
that she used multiple email addresses during her tenure?
In fairness to the Committee, this was an honest
misunderstanding. Clinton used one email account during her tenure at State
(with the exception of her initial weeks in office while transitioning from an
email account she had previously used).
Did Clinton delete any emails while
facing a subpoena?
No. As noted, the emails that Clinton chose not to keep were
personal emails—they were not federal records or even work-related—and therefore
were not subject to any preservation obligation under the Federal Records Act
or any request. Nor would they have been subject to the subpoena—which did not
exist at the time—that was issued by the Benghazi Select Committee some three
months later.
Rep. Gowdy's subpoena issued in March 2015 did not seek, and
had nothing to do with, her personal, non-work emails nor her server nor the
request by State Department last year for her help in their own record-keeping.
Indeed in his March 19th letter, Rep. Gowdy expressly stated he was not seeking
any emails that were "purely personal in nature."
Did Clinton use this account to
communicate with foreign officials?
During her time at State, she communicated with foreign
officials in person, through correspondence, and by telephone. The review of
all of her emails revealed only one email with a foreign (UK) official.
Did she withhold any work emails?
What about the 15 emails that Sid Blumenthal provided to the Select Committee
that she did not provide to the State Department?
She provided the State Department with all work and
potentially work-related emails that she had, including all of her
correspondence with Sid Blumenthal. We understand that Mr. Blumenthal had some
emails that Clinton did not have, and Clinton had some emails that Mr.
Blumenthal did not have, but it is important to note that none of those emails
provide any new insights on the attack on our facilities in Benghazi.
Where was the server for her email
located?
The server for her email was physically located on her
property, which is protected by U.S. Secret Service.
What level of encryption was
employed? Who was the service provider?
The security and integrity of her family's electronic
communications was taken seriously from the onset when it was first set up for
President Clinton's team. While the curiosity about the specifics of this set
up is understandable, given what people with ill intentions can do with such
information in this day and age, there are concerns about broadcasting specific
technical details about past and current practices. Suffice it to say, robust
protections were put in place and additional upgrades and techniques employed
over time as they became available, including consulting and employing third
party experts.
Was the server ever hacked?
No, there is no evidence there was ever a breach.
Was there ever an unauthorized
intrusion into her email or did anyone else have access to it?
No.
What was done after her email was
exposed in February 2013 after the hacker known as "Guccifer" hacked
Sid Blumenthal’s account?
While this was not a breach of Clinton's account, because
her email address was exposed, steps were taken at that time to ensure the
security and integrity of her electronic communications, including changing her
email address.
Was the State Department able to
respond to requests related to FOIA or Congressional requests before they
received printed copies of her work-related emails?
Yes. As the Select Committee has said, the State Department
provided the Committee with relevant emails it already had on the state.gov
system before the State Department requested any printed copies from former
Secretaries, and four months before the State Department received the printed
copies.
For example, in the well-publicized hack of Sid Blumenthal's
email account, a note he sent Clinton on September 12, 2012, was posted online.
At first blush, one might not think this exchange would be captured on the
state.gov system. But in fact, Clinton forwarded the email, that very same day,
onto the state.gov system. And the email was produced by the State Department
to the Select Committee, and acknowledged by the Select Committee, in August
2014.
This example illustrates: 1) when an email from a
non-".gov" sender had some connection to work or might add to the
understanding of State Department officials, it was Clinton’s practice to
forward it to officials at their "state.gov" address; and 2) the
State Department was able to search and produce Clinton’s emails when needed
long before, and unrelated to, receiving the printed copies as they were
already captured on state.gov accounts.
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