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Hillary Clinton Does Not Have to for Deposition in Lawsuit Over Emails

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A panel of three judges from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit ruled unanimously on Friday that former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton does not have to sit for a deposition regarding her intentions with using a private email server for government business, after all. . .

In March, a district court judge ordered Clinton to appear under oath to answer questions for a lawsuit brought by conservative watchdog group Judicial Watch, saying that her previous written responses “left many more questions than answers.”

But Clinton appealed the decision, and the appeals court agreed, issuing a ruling saying that she has already explained her reasoning before Congress and to Judge Emmet Sullivan — the judge who refuses to drop charges against Gen. Michael Flynn — and therefore “the deposition of Secretary Clinton, if allowed to proceed, at best seems likely to stray into topics utterly unconnected with the instant FOIA suit, and at worst could be used as a vehicle for harassment or embarrassment.”

Judicial Watch also asked to depose Cheryl Mills, Clinton’s former chief of staff at the State Department, and that deposition will be carried out. (Read more from “Hillary Clinton Does Not Have to for Deposition in Lawsuit Over Emails” HERE)

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Hillary Clinton Loses Appeal, Must Testify on Private Server and Benghazi Emails

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Amid the chaos and anarchy across blue-city America that exclusively possessed public attention for the last couple of weeks, it was not hard to miss any other bit of news — especially if that news has not appeared or been even briefly mentioned by any major mainstream media outlet. Take for example the news of Hillary Clinton, who lost her appeal in the United States Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit on June 2, where she tried to avoid testifying under oath about her emails and the Benghazi case.

The hearing in the D.C. Circuit came in the case Judicial Watch v. Clinton, a public records case involving a request for State Department documents and communication about the 2012 terror attack at the U.S. mission in Benghazi, Libya. U.S. Ambassador J. Christopher Stevens and three other Americans were killed in the attack.

The case also involves Clinton’s use of a private email server as secretary of state. Judicial Watch, a conservative activist watchdog group that files Freedom of Information Act lawsuits to investigate claimed misconduct by government officials, uncovered another 756 pages of emails the FBI was able to retrieve that were part of Hillary Clinton’s unsecured server revealing communications between some prominent Washington figures and classified emails sent by former prime minister of the United Kingdom Tony Blair. The emails were part of the batch “Clinton tried to delete or destroy,” Judicial Watch stated in its press release. It showed that Clinton had asked Blair to continue using her private email after her confirmation and also revealed that Blair was sending classified information on her unsecured server. Clinton had been “extremely careless” in her handling of classified information, as ex–FBI director James Comey carefully and rather mildly concluded in July 2016, announcing there would be no charges against her. Judicial Watch did not drop the case. . .

Clinton had argued that she shouldn’t be required to testify because she was a former high-level government official and that the FBI already tried to retrieve her emails. Clinton’s lawyers even mentioned some “indisputable right” allowing her not to appear in court, according to Judicial Watch. Tom Fitton, Judicial Watch president, said Clinton’s lawyers’ petition practically states that “she’s too important to have to testify to us.” “She’s desperate to stop this questioning by Judicial Watch because no one has asked her questions like this before[.] … We know what the issues are, and the court wants specific questions answered, but now she’s seeking this extraordinary emergency intervention to stop us.” (Read more from “Hillary Clinton Order Stands to Testify on Private Server and Benghazi Emails” HERE)

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Hillary Clinton Asks Appeals Court to Help Her Dodge Judicial Watch Deposition on Emails and Benghazi

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A three-judge appeals court panel heard arguments this week from Hillary Clinton’s lawyer and Judicial Watch as the former secretary of state seeks to avoid a deposition about her private email server and the Benghazi attack talking points.

Judicial Watch, a conservative watchdog group, argued Tuesday that the depositions of Clinton and Clinton’s former chief of staff, Cheryl Mills, ordered by a D.C. district court judge was necessary to understand whether Clinton attempted to avoid the Freedom of Information Act when she improperly used a private server to conduct her State Department business and whether the agency adequately searched for all her emails.

“It is certainly within the authority of the district court to hear from the agency head herself about whether there was intent,” said Judicial Watch attorney Ramona Cotca.

Clinton wanted to “short-circuit this process by using the most potent weapon in the judicial arsenal to prevent the district court from ever being able to reach a determination of whether there was ever an adequate search,” Cotca said.

The FBI investigated Clinton’s use of the server, hosted in the basement of her home in Chappaqua, New York, while she was secretary of state from 2009 to 2013. Although former FBI Director James Comey found Clinton was “extremely careless” in handling classified emails, no criminal charges were recommended against anyone following the bureau’s “Midyear Exam” investigation. Clinton deleted 33,000 supposedly non-work-related emails. (Read more from “Hillary Clinton Asks Appeals Court to Help Her Dodge Judicial Watch Deposition on Emails and Benghazi” HERE)

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Hillary Clinton Ripped State Department Watchdog Fired by Trump

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By New York Post. The same State Department watchdog fired Friday by President Trump was the target of an earlier accusation that he engaged in partisan politics — from Hillary Clinton when she was running for president in 2016.

The former secretary of state’s campaign in 2016 attacked ex-inspector general Steve Linick for criticizing her use of a private email server and allegedly leaking negative stories about her to the press.

Defenders of Trump’s firing of him have charged that Linick was biased against the Republican president and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, whom he reportedly was investigating for improper use of staff and governmental resources — the same charge Dems leveled at the IG when he criticized Clinton, then the presumptive Democratic candidate for president.

In a May 2016 report, Linick was critical of Clinton’s use of a private server to conduct State Department business and her failure to turn over missing emails after she left Foggy Bottom.

“At a minimum, Secretary Clinton should have surrendered all emails dealing with Department business before leaving government service and, because she did not do so, she did not comply with the Department’s policies that were implemented in accordance with the Federal Records Act,” the report said, Vox reported at the time. (Read more from “Hillary Clinton Ripped State Department Watchdog Fired by Trump” HERE)

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Trump Revives Clinton Playbook to Battle Biden

By AP. Accusations of a “deep state” conspiracy. Allegations of personal and family corruption. Painting an opponent as a Washington insider not to be trusted.

It’s 2016 again. Or at least that’s President Donald Trump’s hope.

Trump and his allies are dusting off the playbook that helped defeat Hillary Clinton, reviving it in recent days as they try to frame 2020 as an election between a dishonest establishment politician and a political outsider being targeted for taking on the system. This time, however, the so-called outsider is the sitting president of the United States. (Read more from “Trump Revives Clinton Playbook to Battle Biden” HERE)

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Hillary Clinton May Be at the Top of Biden’s VP List, But New Committee Seeks to Draft Michelle Obama

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By Breitbart. It is almost worthy of a dark Netflix series to watch how the sins of these people keep coming back and back and back to revisit them. Their sins are like hulking black vultures stooped on the branches of a dead tree outside the front of their bleak, haunted house.

All Democrats had to do was come up with a candidate who was, as former President Barack Obama once said of a certain fellow Democrat, “likable enough.” . . .

Now comes the biggest decision of Mr. Biden’s political career, we are told. He must pick a running mate. Desperate to find something new — anything new — to perk up his beleaguered, stale, geriatric campaign, Mr. Biden has announced he will pick a woman to be his vice president. . .

Someone young? A fresh face? Somebody with lots of fresh new ideas to balance out the old, dusty-haired Joe Biden?

No. Who else, but the Democrats’ answer to every problem? Hillary Clinton. (Read more from “Could Hillary Clinton Be at the Top of Biden’s VP List?” HERE)

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New Committee Seeks to Draft Michelle Obama as VP Nominee

By ABC News. Could we see an Obama back in the White House in 2020?

Former Vice President Joe Biden says it’s not likely to happen, but the “Committee to Draft Michelle Obama for VP” is working to build “substantial grassroots support for a potential Michelle Obama candidacy and help garner media attention for a vice-presidential nominee who has the power to beat Donald Trump,” according to the group’s press release.

“Ms. Obama, the most admired woman in America, will be a vital asset this November, when Vice President Biden will face an uphill battle to combat the lies and deceit emanating from the White House,” said the statement released Monday. “Her credibility as a trusted leader and a strong symbol of unity within the Democratic Party would certainly help Democrats defeat Republicans up and down the ballot.” . . .

The newly formed committee filed as a non-connected PAC on April 26, according to FEC documents, and is not affiliated with Obama or Biden’s campaign. The group is backed by Democratic fundraisers including Nadine Hack and Mack Wilbourn, according to Clyde Lederman, a spokesperson for the committee who previously worked for former 2020 presidential candidate Mike Gravel. (Read more from “New Committee Seeks to Draft Michelle Obama as VP Nominee” HERE)

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A Hillary Clinton-Barack Obama Ticket to Replace Joe Biden? Is It Even Possible?

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Desperate times do indeed call for desperate measures. For the Democrats, a truly desperate time could come if Joe Biden is forced to withdraw from the presidential race. While the former vice president is the presumptive Democratic nominee to face off against President Trump in November, his nomination is still far from official.

Some Democrats tell me they fear that Biden’s political survival is getting more problematic with each passing day. They cite three main issues. The first is their concern that an allegation of sexual assault leveled against Biden by former staffer Tara Reade won’t go away anytime soon. If anything, it appears to be about to gain a new life.

Next, they worry that another shoe could drop regarding questions related to Biden’s son Hunter and his business dealings. Lastly, some Democrats are concerned about Biden’s age and possible cognitive issues — a concern that some also have expressed about Trump.

For those reasons, and a few more, might we envision Biden being privately talked into retiring from the race or voluntarily doing so himself? Let’s assume that happens just before or just after the party’s convention, in whatever form it is held. What would happen then?

The process is actually fairly straightforward. If Biden quits the race right before the convention, delegates would select a new nominee. If he drops out right after the convention, members of the Democratic National Committee would pick their replacement candidate. (Read more from “A Hillary Clinton-Barack Obama Ticket to Replace Joe Biden? Is It Even Possible?” HERE)

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WATCH: Joe Biden Falls Asleep During Town Hall With Hillary Clinton

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Conservative Twitter feeds and websites exploded with mirth Tuesday when Joe Biden appeared to fall asleep during a virtual town hall meeting with Hillary Clinton.

The livestreamed event was designed to highlight Mrs. Clinton’s endorsement of Mr. Biden, the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee.

During the event, Mr. Biden frequently cast his gaze down as if consulting notes.

But at one point, Mr. Biden closed his eyes, put his head down, and remained motionless for some 15 seconds or more, video of the event shows.

Eventually, the 77-year-old candidate appeared to be startled awake, and he jerked his head up, eyes blinking.

(Read more from “WATCH: Joe Biden Falls Asleep During Town Hall With Hillary Clinton” HERE)

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It Appears John Brennan Pulled a Deep State Move to Benefit Hillary Clinton

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By Townhall. . . So, what’s new with this latest document? Well, for starters, Fred Fleitz, the former Chief of Staff to the National Security Council and ex-CIA analyst, wrote an op-ed citing the many alarming tidbits, namely that a lot of the report is blacked out. Also, yes, the Senate Committee is bipartisan, but with Rep. Adam Schiff (D-CA), an alleged leaker and liar, muddying the waters on the other end of the pond—there’s no way to accept any assessment on this and the bias doesn’t stop with Schiff. Yes, Schiff who met with the so-called Ukraine whistleblower prior to him filing his complaint against the president which got the impeachment Hail Mary effort going. Schiff knew the whistleblower, met with him and weaponized his complaint to be used in a pathetic impeachment push that distracted the nation from preparing for the Wuhan coronavirus outbreak. Schiff said he didn’t have contact. Even The Washington Post had to call him out for that, but sorry, let’s return to this Russia nonsense. It would seem that former CIA Director John Brennan allegedly suppressed information collected that pointed another conclusion: the Russians would benefit more from a Hillary win in the 2016 election. Also, like Schiff, his review was biased. Fleitz has more:

…although the protocols require intelligence community assessments to be “community products” and vetted with all intelligence agencies and analysts with equities in a given subject, only three intelligence agencies were asked to draft this assessment: the CIA, National Security Agency and FBI.

With the 14 other intelligence agencies left out, the three participating agencies included only two dozen “handpicked” analysts. Other intelligence agencies working on this issue, such as the Defense Intelligence Agency and the Department of Homeland Security, were excluded.

In addition, House Intelligence Committee staff revealed the actual drafting of the intelligence community assessment was done by three close associates of former CIA Director Brennan, who has proven to be the most politicized intelligence chief in American history.

Contrary to common practice for controversial intelligence community assessments, Brennan’s team allowed no dissenting views or even an annex with reviews by outside experts.

(Read more from “It Appears John Brennan Pulled a Deep State Move to Benefit Hillary Clinton” HERE)

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Ex-NSC Chief: House Intelligence Committee Staff Found John Brennan ‘Suppressed’ Russia Evidence

By Washington Examiner. House Intelligence Committee staff said former CIA Director John Brennan “suppressed” intelligence indicating that Russia wanted Hillary Clinton to win the 2016 election, according to John Bolton’s former chief of staff.

The Senate Intelligence Committee released a report on Tuesday that defended the 2017 intelligence community assessment on Russian election interference and determined with “moderate” to “high” confidence that Russian President Vladimir Putin and the Kremlin sought to boost President Trump’s 2016 election chances.

One day later, Fred Fleitz, a former CIA officer and National Security Council chief of staff, wrote in a Fox News opinion piece that House Intelligence Committee members “found the opposite” motivations for Russia to interfere in the presidential contest. . .

The Senate intelligence panel’s 158-page bipartisan report, which was heavily redacted, said investigators found no evidence of political pressure to reach a specific conclusion and determined that the assessment by the CIA, FBI, and National Security Agency “presents a coherent and well-constructed intelligence basis for the case of unprecedented Russian interference in the 2016 U.S. presidential election.”

Brennan, a vocal Trump critic, said that the Senate Intelligence Committee report “totally validated” the 2017 intelligence community assessment. (Read more from “Ex-NSC Chief: House Intelligence Committee Staff Found John Brennan ‘Suppressed’ Russia Evidence” HERE)

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Leaked Emails Show Fauci Was Called Hillary’s ‘Doctor Admirer,’ Wanted Hillary to Know ‘We All Love Her’; Speculation Grows About Fauci’s Future

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By The Western Journal. . .Emails obtained by hackers and released by Wikileaks years ago are still guiding part of the national conversation in 2020, and they demonstrate Fauci had a great admiration for former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.

In an email sent to Clinton aide Cheryl Mills on Jan. 23, 2013 — the date Clinton testified before Congress about her knowledge of the 2012 Benghazi consulate attack — Fauci showed his support for the embattled Democrat, who was also facing questions about her health at the time.

“Anyone who had any doubts about the Secretary’s stamina and capability following her illness had those doubts washed away by today’s performance before the Senate and the House,” Fauci wrote to Mills. . .

In forwarding the email to Clinton, Mills wrote that the message was “From your doctor admirer.” (Read more from “Leaked Emails Show Fauci Was Called Hillary’s ‘Doctor Admirer,’ Wanted Hillary to Know ‘We All Love Her'” HERE)

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The Memo: Speculation Grows About Fauci’s Future

By The Hill. Anthony Fauci looks to be skating on thin ice with President Trump, despite — or perhaps because of — a growing sense that he is the most trusted expert on the coronavirus crisis.

The White House moved on Monday to squash suggestions that Fauci could be ousted from the president’s task force on the crisis.

And Fauci himself sought to shore up his position during the White House press briefing, when he walked back remarks he had made at the weekend.

During a CNN interview on Sunday, Fauci had suggested that mitigation measures would have been more effective had they been put in place earlier but that there had been “pushback” against them.

After Trump invited Fauci to the lectern within minutes of beginning Monday’s press briefing, the doctor said that his reference to “pushback” was “the wrong choice of words.” (Read more from “The Memo: Speculation Grows About Fauci’s Future” HERE)

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Justice Department Declines to Support Blocking Hillary Clinton Deposition

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By National Review. The Justice Department has declined to join former secretary of state Hillary Clinton’s effort to block depositions of both herself and a key aide in a case concerning her use of a private email-server system to conduct Obama administration business.

Though the DOJ’s decision will inevitably be reported as political retribution against President Trump’s 2016 election rival, there is actually nothing much here. The Trump State and Justice Departments have defended the former secretary throughout the suit in question. The government’s refusal to support Clinton’s latest gambit to avoid answering questions under oath is consistent with Justice Department policy and will have no bearing on the outcome of the case.

The depositions of Clinton and Cheryl Mills, Clinton’s State Department chief-of-staff and longtime confidant, were ordered by federal judge Royce Lamberth of the District of Columbia. The case is a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) suit brought by Judicial Watch, the private-watchdog group. It focuses on talking points the Obama administration generated to guide official public statements following the 2012 jihadist attack in Benghazi, Libya, in which U.S. ambassador J. Christopher Stevens and three other Americans were killed. (Read more from “Justice Department Declines to Support Blocking Hillary Clinton Deposition” HERE)

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U.S. Justice Dept. Opposes Hillary Clinton’s Challenge to Rare Deposition Order

By The National Law Journal. . .Clinton, represented by a team from Williams & Connolly, and former aide Cheryl Mills last month appealed a Washington trial judge’s order to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit. Their case tests the high bar that plaintiffs must hurdle to secure a deposition involving a current or former cabinet secretary. Mills is represented by lawyers from the litigation boutique Wilkinson Walsh.

The U.S. State Department, represented by the Justice Department, said in a recent filing at the D.C. Circuit that the government “does not support the extraordinary relief of mandamus due to the unique circumstances of this case.” The Justice Department historically has resisted efforts by plaintiffs to depose high-ranking officials; the government’s legal team in the Clinton case argued that the dispute over Clinton’s email practices falls outside the realm in which the United States might otherwise have fought efforts to depose her.

“This is the rare situation in which discovery of a former cabinet secretary was not authorized for the impermissible purpose of probing internal government decisionmaking regarding official policy, but rather to focus on the impact on FOIA compliance of a former official’s unusual decision to use a private email server to systematically conduct large volumes of official business,” Mark Freeman, a Justice Department appellate lawyer, wrote in the April 3 filing. (Read more from “U.S. Justice Dept. Opposes Hillary Clinton’s Challenge to Rare Deposition Order” HERE)

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