Clinton’s email scrutinized
A congressional panel begins investigating after learning that she used a private server linked to her home.
WASHINGTON — Lawmakers began investigating Hillary Rodham Clinton’s use of personal email while she was secretary of State after the disclosure Wednesday that she had exclusive control over her email account through a private server linked to her New York home.
The House Select Committee on Benghazi said it had issued subpoenas for Clinton’s personal emails related to the 2012 attack on a U.S. diplomatic compound in Libya and for emails of others who might have information. The panel, which has been investigating the attack that left four Americans dead, including the ambassador, sent letters to Internet firms telling them to preserve the emails.
Meanwhile, Internet records confirmed that Clinton had her own server installed to use the clinton email.com account, which was set up in January 2009, when she began serving as top U.S. diplomat. Use of the server was first reported by the Associated Press.
Although her private email use appeared to break no law, it violated administration policy calling for officials to use government email accounts. Legal experts and public-disclosure advocates contend that her use of the account could limit public access to her records.
The Benghazi panel has been pressing Clinton for more details of how she and other State Department officials responded to the attack. The new revelations could extend the panel’s investigation and escalate its conflict with Clinton.
Rep. Trey Gowdy (RS.C.), chairman of the committee, told reporters the panel would “use whatever legal recourse we have to get the documents.”
Rep. Elijah E. Cummings of Maryland, the top Democrat on the panel, said recent disclosures had confirmed Democrats’ suspicions that the special committee was formed to be a launching ground for attacks on the party’s potential 2016 presidential nominee.
“I did not want to believe it,” he told reporters. “But everything I’ve seen so far has led me to believe that this is an effort to go after Hillary Clinton, period.”
Internet records show that the digital address for Clinton’s server was registered at her home address under someone else’s name. It’s not clear whether the server was physically located at her home.
Clinton’s staff hasn’t explained why she used personal email. Often, those who use servers for such a purpose are concerned about privacy and security and don’t want to rely on an Internet company. Servers, which can be located just about anywhere, typically store a copy of messages before sending them to a user’s email application on smartphones or computers.