Is This Why Hillary Clinton Said She Never Sent Classified Emails?
A new report is possibly shedding light on one of the most publicized statements coming out of FBI Director James Comey’s testimony last week before the House Oversight Committee.
During the appearance, Comey said Clinton was perhaps “not sophisticated enough” to understand the classified markings on emails she had received on her private server. Comey was asked to further clarify those remarks, given that prior to being secretary of state, Clinton was a U.S. senator and was given a security clearance for that purpose, as well.
“It’s an interesting question whether she was sophisticated enough to understand what a C in parens means,” he testified. “It’s possible—possible—she didn’t understand [what a (C) meant] when she saw it in the body of the email.”
Comey went on to explain the marking was used to indicate the content of the following paragraph was considered “confidential,” the lowest security classification, but was being presented to her to aid her in preparation of an upcoming meeting of phone conversation. Several of the committee members indicated they often saw the markings themselves and understood their meaning.
However, The Daily Caller has now reported that in response to its Freedom of Information Act lawsuit against the State Department, no evidence has been presented to indicate whether or not Clinton ever took part in mandatory training that would have addressed the proper handling of classified material:
Similarly, there was no evidence Huma Abedin, her deputy chief of staff, had taken and passed any security training during her four years at the Department of State.
All State Department officials normally receive annual reviews and certification as part of their training for the proper handling of all levels of classified materials, including top secret information.
It’s unclear if Clinton refused security training outright during her four years as secretary of state.
In its report, The Daily Callers states Eric Stein, the State Department’s Co-director of Office Information Programs, presented a declaration to the court that his office could only identify 11 documents pertaining to security training, none of which also pertained to Clinton or Abedin. The news outlet sued the State Department earlier this year and received seven of the 11 documents Stein identified.
