FBI director James Comey is at the center of a storm surrounding the Hillary Clinton email scandal, with the bureau now tasked with investigating whether the former secretary of state broke the law by passing classified material over a private email address.
Comey, who was nominated to his position by President Barack Obama in 2013 and was confirmed by a 93-1 vote in the Senate, has mostly stayed in the middle on political issues during his career in public service that includes stints as a U.S. attorney and the acting attorney general. That track record,
reports The Hill, will be tested as the FBI investigates Clinton's use of a private email address and server.
The FBI recently took possession of a thumb drive containing copies of 30,000 emails Clinton deemed work-related during her time at the State Department, along with the email server itself — which
had reportedly been erased of all data – when the FBI got ahold of it.
Comey's agents and technicians are now
sorting through the emails and trying to piece together what may have been on the email server, and whether or not it had been backed up somewhere.
To his credit, Comey has not been shy about prosecuting high-profile figures. The bureau took the lead on investigating former CIA director Gen. David Petraeus for passing classified information to his mistress, along with the federal corruption case of Sen. Robert Menendez (D-N.J.).
Larry Klayman, founder of the government watchdog Freedom Watch,
told Newsmax TV last week that he believes Comey will be impartial in the Clinton email investigation, but the Obama administration could stall any case made against her.
"The FBI right now … is run by James Comey, who is actually Republican and has a very good reputation for honesty. I have faith in [him]," Klayman said.
"But the Obama Justice Department, at least in terms of main justice, I do not. What could happen if we don't keep the pressure on is that the server and the thumb drive get buried, we'll never see it again and we'll never know what's on it."
According to The Hill, Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) said the FBI director 'has a reputation for applying the law fairly and equally regardless of politics."
"It is critical that he upholds that standard in this matter and that he keeps Congress informed so that the public can have confidence in the integrity of the FBI's inquiry," Grassley said. "[The] director should ensure that the FBI finds out who is responsible for any mishandling of classified information, wherever the facts lead."
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