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FBI: eight Clinton email chains had 'top-secret information' – politics live Hillary Clinton 'extremely careless' in use of email server, FBI says – politics live
(35 minutes later)
4.44pm BST
16:44
Sanders: FBI decision will not affect mine
A Bernie Sanders spokesperson tells ABC News that Sanders’ decision to stay in the race will not be affected by Comey’s announcement of a recommendation of no charges against Clinton.
Sanders spokesperson says FBI announcement re Clinton emails will not impact the senator's decision to stay in the race
So what was that decision again?
@jacobperry He's ready if need be pic.twitter.com/0J4JQ8UlLF
Updated
at 4.45pm BST
4.40pm BST
16:40
Trump on Comey: the system is rigged
Donald Trump has tweeted a reaction to Comey’s statement:
The system is rigged. General Petraeus got in trouble for far less. Very very unfair! As usual, bad judgment.
In April 2015, General David Petraeus was sentenced to two years’ probation and fined $100,000 for mishandling classified information.
FBI director said Crooked Hillary compromised our national security. No charges. Wow! #RiggedSystem
Updated
at 4.41pm BST
4.35pm BST
16:35
Here’s some further reaction to the Comey statement:
Imagine this announcement from the FBI landing in a race where Republicans nominated someone other than Donald Trump
Here's the key quote from Comey explaining no-charges recommendation:https://t.co/kGJGtVCzoi pic.twitter.com/lZsdZQBP5U
Based on the facts Comey lay out, any other person would be indicted in a heartbeat.Make no mistake.There are two sets of laws in America.
Two sides of Hillary reaction on here: 1. "Case closed. Let's move on." 2. "Laundry list of violations, but no charges? Fix is in."
.@FBI Director: "Our judgment is that no reasonable prosecutor would bring such a case." #ClintonEmailhttps://t.co/2vvzQJks0g
Clinton, meanwhile, has taken the stage at the national education association rally:
Updated
at 4.37pm BST
4.30pm BST
16:30
Reactions to Comey
Here’s a quick roundup of a first tranche of reactions to the Comey statement:
Well I suspect Comey's comments will put the matter entirely to rest and everyone on all sides will now be satisfied.
A news cycle in which a long and damaging investigation of a grievous Clinton mistake came to nothing. Now I’ve seen everything!
Well that's the end of the email story.
Question is: Can Trump effectively prosecute (as it were) case vs Hillary, sustain a few news cycles in which story is about her not him.
Should make for an interesting Air Force One ride between Obama and Clinton later today.
(Maybe Comey could have picked a day when Clinton and Obama weren't campaigning together for the first time?)
Who was watching this more intently, Republicans or Bernie Sanders? Close call.
If your Presidential election plan included any scenario where HRC was indicted, you weren't paying attention.
This Comey presser will be used in campaign ads against Clinton for the rest of the year.
If Trump were to run ads, that is. https://t.co/OyNUDprAdP
Clinton 2016: careless but not criminal
Once again, the Clintons play by their own rules & get away with it without consequence
Comey announces Clinton will receive a four-year sentence of house arrest, close government monitoring. pic.twitter.com/VageBgEudS
Updated
at 4.30pm BST
4.26pm BST
16:26
How damaging was that for Clinton? The FBI just made a liar of her when she said that she never handled any information on her personal email that was “classified at the time”. Comey’s characterization of Clinton as “extremely careless” in handling top-secret information raises serious questions about her judgment.
Yet it does not appear as if criminal charges are in the offing.
But how damaging was that?
4.23pm BST
16:23
Full text of Comey statement
The full text is here. It’s 2,317 words long:
Good morning. I’m here to give you an update on the FBI’s investigation of Secretary Clinton’s use of a personal e-mail system during her time as Secretary of State.
After a tremendous amount of work over the last year, the FBI is completing its investigation and referring the case to the Department of Justice for a prosecutive decision. What I would like to do today is tell you three things: what we did; what we found; and what we are recommending to the Department of Justice.
This will be an unusual statement in at least a couple ways. First, I am going to include more detail about our process than I ordinarily would, because I think the American people deserve those details in a case of intense public interest. Second, I have not coordinated or reviewed this statement in any way with the Department of Justice or any other part of the government. They do not know what I am about to say.
I want to start by thanking the FBI employees who did remarkable work in this case. Once you have a better sense of how much we have done, you will understand why I am so grateful and proud of their efforts.
So, first, what we have done:
The investigation began as a referral from the Intelligence Community Inspector General in connection with Secretary Clinton’s use of a personal e-mail server during her time as Secretary of State. The referral focused on whether classified information was transmitted on that personal system.
Our investigation looked at whether there is evidence classified information was improperly stored or transmitted on that personal system, in violation of a federal statute making it a felony to mishandle classified information either intentionally or in a grossly negligent way, or a second statute making it a misdemeanor to knowingly remove classified information from appropriate systems or storage facilities.
Consistent with our counterintelligence responsibilities, we have also investigated to determine whether there is evidence of computer intrusion in connection with the personal e-mail server by any foreign power, or other hostile actors.
I have so far used the singular term, “e-mail server,” in describing the referral that began our investigation. It turns out to have been more complicated than that. Secretary Clinton used several different servers and administrators of those servers during her four years at the State Department, and used numerous mobile devices to view and send e-mail on that personal domain. As new servers and equipment were employed, older servers were taken out of service, stored, and decommissioned in various ways. Piecing all of that back together—to gain as full an understanding as possible of the ways in which personal e-mail was used for government work—has been a painstaking undertaking, requiring thousands of hours of effort.
For example, when one of Secretary Clinton’s original personal servers was decommissioned in 2013, the e-mail software was removed. Doing that didn’t remove the e-mail content, but it was like removing the frame from a huge finished jigsaw puzzle and dumping the pieces on the floor. The effect was that millions of e-mail fragments end up unsorted in the server’s unused—or “slack”—space. We searched through all of it to see what was there, and what parts of the puzzle could be put back together.
FBI investigators have also read all of the approximately 30,000 e-mails provided by Secretary Clinton to the State Department in December 2014. Where an e-mail was assessed as possibly containing classified information, the FBI referred the e-mail to any U.S. government agency that was a likely “owner” of information in the e-mail, so that agency could make a determination as to whether the e-mail contained classified information at the time it was sent or received, or whether there was reason to classify the e-mail now, even if its content was not classified at the time it was sent (that is the process sometimes referred to as “up-classifying”).
From the group of 30,000 e-mails returned to the State Department, 110 e-mails in 52 e-mail chains have been determined by the owning agency to contain classified information at the time they were sent or received. Eight of those chains contained information that was Top Secret at the time they were sent; 36 chains contained Secret information at the time; and eight contained Confidential information, which is the lowest level of classification. Separate from those, about 2,000 additional e-mails were “up-classified” to make them Confidential; the information in those had not been classified at the time the e-mails were sent.
The FBI also discovered several thousand work-related e-mails that were not in the group of 30,000 that were returned by Secretary Clinton to State in 2014. We found those additional e-mails in a variety of ways. Some had been deleted over the years and we found traces of them on devices that supported or were connected to the private e-mail domain. Others we found by reviewing the archived government e-mail accounts of people who had been government employees at the same time as Secretary Clinton, including high-ranking officials at other agencies, people with whom a Secretary of State might naturally correspond.
This helped us recover work-related e-mails that were not among the 30,000 produced to State. Still others we recovered from the laborious review of the millions of e-mail fragments dumped into the slack space of the server decommissioned in 2013.
With respect to the thousands of e-mails we found that were not among those produced to State, agencies have concluded that three of those were classified at the time they were sent or received, one at the Secret level and two at the Confidential level. There were no additional Top Secret e-mails found. Finally, none of those we found have since been “up-classified.”
I should add here that we found no evidence that any of the additional work-related e-mails were intentionally deleted in an effort to conceal them. Our assessment is that, like many e-mail users, Secretary Clinton periodically deleted e-mails or e-mails were purged from the system when devices were changed. Because she was not using a government account—or even a commercial account like Gmail—there was no archiving at all of her e-mails, so it is not surprising that we discovered e-mails that were not on Secretary Clinton’s system in 2014, when she produced the 30,000 e-mails to the State Department.
It could also be that some of the additional work-related e-mails we recovered were among those deleted as “personal” by Secretary Clinton’s lawyers when they reviewed and sorted her e-mails for production in 2014.
The lawyers doing the sorting for Secretary Clinton in 2014 did not individually read the content of all of her e-mails, as we did for those available to us; instead, they relied on header information and used search terms to try to find all work-related e-mails among the reportedly more than 60,000 total e-mails remaining on Secretary Clinton’s personal system in 2014. It is highly likely their search terms missed some work-related e-mails, and that we later found them, for example, in the mailboxes of other officials or in the slack space of a server.
It is also likely that there are other work-related e-mails that they did not produce to State and that we did not find elsewhere, and that are now gone because they deleted all e-mails they did not return to State, and the lawyers cleaned their devices in such a way as to preclude complete forensic recovery.
We have conducted interviews and done technical examination to attempt to understand how that sorting was done by her attorneys. Although we do not have complete visibility because we are not able to fully reconstruct the electronic record of that sorting, we believe our investigation has been sufficient to give us reasonable confidence there was no intentional misconduct in connection with that sorting effort.
And, of course, in addition to our technical work, we interviewed many people, from those involved in setting up and maintaining the various iterations of Secretary Clinton’s personal server, to staff members with whom she corresponded on e-mail, to those involved in the e-mail production to State, and finally, Secretary Clinton herself.
Last, we have done extensive work to understand what indications there might be of compromise by hostile actors in connection with the personal e-mail operation.
That’s what we have done. Now let me tell you what we found:
Although we did not find clear evidence that Secretary Clinton or her colleagues intended to violate laws governing the handling of classified information, there is evidence that they were extremely careless in their handling of very sensitive, highly classified information.
For example, seven e-mail chains concern matters that were classified at the Top Secret/Special Access Program level when they were sent and received. These chains involved Secretary Clinton both sending e-mails about those matters and receiving e-mails from others about the same matters. There is evidence to support a conclusion that any reasonable person in Secretary Clinton’s position, or in the position of those government employees with whom she was corresponding about these matters, should have known that an unclassified system was no place for that conversation. In addition to this highly sensitive information, we also found information that was properly classified as Secret by the U.S. Intelligence Community at the time it was discussed on e-mail (that is, excluding the later “up-classified” e-mails).
None of these e-mails should have been on any kind of unclassified system, but their presence is especially concerning because all of these e-mails were housed on unclassified personal servers not even supported by full-time security staff, like those found at Departments and Agencies of the U.S. Government—or even with a commercial service like Gmail.
Separately, it is important to say something about the marking of classified information. Only a very small number of the e-mails containing classified information bore markings indicating the presence of classified information. But even if information is not marked “classified” in an e-mail, participants who know or should know that the subject matter is classified are still obligated to protect it.
While not the focus of our investigation, we also developed evidence that the security culture of the State Department in general, and with respect to use of unclassified e-mail systems in particular, was generally lacking in the kind of care for classified information found elsewhere in the government.
With respect to potential computer intrusion by hostile actors, we did not find direct evidence that Secretary Clinton’s personal e-mail domain, in its various configurations since 2009, was successfully hacked. But, given the nature of the system and of the actors potentially involved, we assess that we would be unlikely to see such direct evidence. We do assess that hostile actors gained access to the private commercial e-mail accounts of people with whom Secretary Clinton was in regular contact from her personal account. We also assess that Secretary Clinton’s use of a personal e-mail domain was both known by a large number of people and readily apparent. She also used her personal e-mail extensively while outside the United States, including sending and receiving work-related e-mails in the territory of sophisticated adversaries. Given that combination of factors, we assess it is possible that hostile actors gained access to Secretary Clinton’s personal e-mail account.
So that’s what we found. Finally, with respect to our recommendation to the Department of Justice:
In our system, the prosecutors make the decisions about whether charges are appropriate based on evidence the FBI has helped collect. Although we don’t normally make public our recommendations to the prosecutors, we frequently make recommendations and engage in productive conversations with prosecutors about what resolution may be appropriate, given the evidence. In this case, given the importance of the matter, I think unusual transparency is in order.
Although there is evidence of potential violations of the statutes regarding the handling of classified information, our judgment is that no reasonable prosecutor would bring such a case. Prosecutors necessarily weigh a number of factors before bringing charges. There are obvious considerations, like the strength of the evidence, especially regarding intent. Responsible decisions also consider the context of a person’s actions, and how similar situations have been handled in the past.
In looking back at our investigations into mishandling or removal of classified information, we cannot find a case that would support bringing criminal charges on these facts. All the cases prosecuted involved some combination of: clearly intentional and willful mishandling of classified information; or vast quantities of materials exposed in such a way as to support an inference of intentional misconduct; or indications of disloyalty to the United States; or efforts to obstruct justice. We do not see those things here.
To be clear, this is not to suggest that in similar circumstances, a person who engaged in this activity would face no consequences. To the contrary, those individuals are often subject to security or administrative sanctions. But that is not what we are deciding now.
As a result, although the Department of Justice makes final decisions on matters like this, we are expressing to Justice our view that no charges are appropriate in this case.
I know there will be intense public debate in the wake of this recommendation, as there was throughout this investigation. What I can assure the American people is that this investigation was done competently, honestly, and independently. No outside influence of any kind was brought to bear.
I know there were many opinions expressed by people who were not part of the investigation—including people in government—but none of that mattered to us. Opinions are irrelevant, and they were all uninformed by insight into our investigation, because we did the investigation the right way. Only facts matter, and the FBI found them here in an entirely apolitical and professional way. I couldn’t be prouder to be part of this organization.
4.19pm BST
16:19
Comey: 'no charges appropriate'
Comey says the FBI looked at the effort by Clinton’s lawyers to sort her emails. He has “reasonable confidence there was no intentional conduct in connection with that sorting effort.”
“Although we did not find clear evidence that secretary Clinton” or her aides willfully broke a law, “there is evience that they were extremely careless in their handling of classified information”.
Seven of the eight chains that included top-secret information included emails sent by and received by secretary Clinton, he says. “Extremely careless,” he called it.
“Any reasonable person in secretary Clinton’s position” “should have known” the information was sensitive, Comey says, and should have acted differently.
“None of these emails should have been on any kind of classified system.” But the servers were “not even supported by any kind of full-time security staff,” like commercially available email would be.
Comey says the security culture at the state department was weak in general.
They did not find evidence that Clinton’s email was hacked directly, but “we do assess that hostile actors did gain access to private personal email accounts” that corresponded with Clinton’s account.
She used her personal email extensively while outside the United States, including in countries with sophisticated hacking capabilites, he said.
“It is possible that hostile actors gained access to secretary Clinton’s personal email account.”
The prosecutors make decisions about whether charges are appropriate, Comey notes.
Comey says that on the question of willful mishandling of classified information, “Our judgment is that no reasonable prosecutor would bring such a case,” Comey says.
“In looking back at our investigations...we cannot find a case that would support bringing criminal charges on these facts,” he says.
There was no evidence of “clearly intentional or willful mishandling of classified information,” he says.
“We do not see those things here.”
“We are expressing to justice our view that no charges are appropriate in this case.”
“Only fact matter, and the FBI found them here in an entirely apolitical and professional way.”
Updated
at 4.22pm BST
4.10pm BST
16:10
Comey describes an effort to recover work-related emails not accounted for in the 30,000 provided to the state department.
“Three of those were classified at the time they were sent or received.” One secret, two confidential.”
“We found no evidence that any of the additional work-related deleted in an effort to conceal” their presence, Comey said.
“There was no archiving at all of her emails, so it’s not surprising that we found emails that were not on her system... when she produced emails for the state department.”
Comey says that lawyers sorting out personal email from business email before the business email was turned over to the state department had a “highly likely” chance of missing emails that in fact were business email.
4.08pm BST4.08pm BST
16:0816:08
Comey: Eight Clinton email chains had 'top-secret information'Comey: Eight Clinton email chains had 'top-secret information'
Hard to imagine worse news for Clinton.Hard to imagine worse news for Clinton.
Comey says that Clinton used successive servers. He describes a “painstaking” effort of thousands of hours to go back through and linking each decommissioned email server to the next as Clinton switched servers.Comey says that Clinton used successive servers. He describes a “painstaking” effort of thousands of hours to go back through and linking each decommissioned email server to the next as Clinton switched servers.
Thousands of email fragments ended up in each server’s unused or slack space, Comey says.Thousands of email fragments ended up in each server’s unused or slack space, Comey says.
The prosecutors read all 30,000 emails provided by Clinton, he says. He says that each email was referred to the appropriate agency for a determination about whether the email contained classified information.The prosecutors read all 30,000 emails provided by Clinton, he says. He says that each email was referred to the appropriate agency for a determination about whether the email contained classified information.
110 emails in 52 email chains were determined to contain classified information at the time they were sent or received, Comey says.110 emails in 52 email chains were determined to contain classified information at the time they were sent or received, Comey says.
Eight of those chains had top-secret information. 36 had secret information, and eight contained sensitive information. Eight of those chains had top-secret information. 36 had secret information, and eight contained confidential information.
Updated
at 4.10pm BST
4.05pm BST4.05pm BST
16:0516:05
Comey: Clinton used multiple serversComey: Clinton used multiple servers
Comey says the justice department does not know what he’s about to say.Comey says the justice department does not know what he’s about to say.
He says he’ll describe what was done.He says he’ll describe what was done.
The investigation began as a referral from the inspector general. Was classified information transmitted on Clinton’s personal email system? Was the focus of the probe.The investigation began as a referral from the inspector general. Was classified information transmitted on Clinton’s personal email system? Was the focus of the probe.
It’s a federal felony to mishandle classified information intentionally. It’s a misdemeanor to knowingly remove classified information.It’s a federal felony to mishandle classified information intentionally. It’s a misdemeanor to knowingly remove classified information.
The FBI also investigated whether there was a hack.The FBI also investigated whether there was a hack.
But there was more than one server involved. She “used several different servers and administrators of those servers.”But there was more than one server involved. She “used several different servers and administrators of those servers.”
4.03pm BST4.03pm BST
16:0316:03
FBI refers Clinton inquiry for prosecutive decisionFBI refers Clinton inquiry for prosecutive decision
Comey says the FBI has completed its investigation of Clinton’s use of a personal email system and is “referring the matter to the department of justice for a prosecutive decision.”Comey says the FBI has completed its investigation of Clinton’s use of a personal email system and is “referring the matter to the department of justice for a prosecutive decision.”
He says he wants to describe what was done, found and recommended.He says he wants to describe what was done, found and recommended.
3.56pm BST3.56pm BST
15:5615:56
FBI director Comey addresses mediaFBI director Comey addresses media
The video feed is now live:The video feed is now live:
T minus five minutes until the Comey presser scheduled start and nary a leak. A really rare Washington phenomenon.T minus five minutes until the Comey presser scheduled start and nary a leak. A really rare Washington phenomenon.
UpdatedUpdated
at 3.58pm BSTat 3.58pm BST
3.49pm BST3.49pm BST
15:4915:49
Clinton’s appearance at the national education association gathering appears to have been delayed.Clinton’s appearance at the national education association gathering appears to have been delayed.
FBI director Comey, meanwhile, is scheduled to appear before cameras in just 10 minutes.FBI director Comey, meanwhile, is scheduled to appear before cameras in just 10 minutes.
To discuss what?To discuss what?
What if James Comey just wanted to tell everyone that he had a great Fourth of July weekend y'allWhat if James Comey just wanted to tell everyone that he had a great Fourth of July weekend y'all
FBI may clear Clinton of crimes. Can't forgive subversion of FOIA, legislative oversight & historical record -- nor deceptive explanationsFBI may clear Clinton of crimes. Can't forgive subversion of FOIA, legislative oversight & historical record -- nor deceptive explanations
3.32pm BST3.32pm BST
15:3215:32
Hillary Clinton is due soon to address a gathering of the national education association in Washington, DC. Here’s a live video stream:Hillary Clinton is due soon to address a gathering of the national education association in Washington, DC. Here’s a live video stream:
3.25pm BST3.25pm BST
15:2515:25
Tom Brady to sit out conventionTom Brady to sit out convention
Mike Ditka, Mike Tyson – now Tom Brady – are any of the boldface names floated by the Trump campaign as potential razzle-dazzle speakers at the national convention actually going to attend? Bobby Knight, the former Indiana basketball coach, appears still to be on board.Mike Ditka, Mike Tyson – now Tom Brady – are any of the boldface names floated by the Trump campaign as potential razzle-dazzle speakers at the national convention actually going to attend? Bobby Knight, the former Indiana basketball coach, appears still to be on board.
But the Patriots quarterback can’t make it after all, ESPN reports:But the Patriots quarterback can’t make it after all, ESPN reports:
Despite speculation to contrary, Pats QB Tom Brady will not be attending Republican National Convention in Cleveland this month, per source.Despite speculation to contrary, Pats QB Tom Brady will not be attending Republican National Convention in Cleveland this month, per source.
Presumably Trump and Brady remain friends.Presumably Trump and Brady remain friends.
Congratulations to Tom Brady on yet another great victory- Tom is my friend and a total winner!Congratulations to Tom Brady on yet another great victory- Tom is my friend and a total winner!
3.10pm BST3.10pm BST
15:1015:10
FBI director to address mediaFBI director to address media
FBI director James Comey will make a statement at 11am ET, the justice department has announced.FBI director James Comey will make a statement at 11am ET, the justice department has announced.
The FBI interviewed Hillary Clinton Saturday as part of its investigation into her email practices while secretary of state.The FBI interviewed Hillary Clinton Saturday as part of its investigation into her email practices while secretary of state.
Of Clinton’s many potential vulnerabilities as a presidential candidate, none seems more threatening than a prospective criminal indictment, conceivably over the mishandling of classified information, which she has always denied.Of Clinton’s many potential vulnerabilities as a presidential candidate, none seems more threatening than a prospective criminal indictment, conceivably over the mishandling of classified information, which she has always denied.
It’s possible that Comey’s statement will not pertain to Clinton at all.It’s possible that Comey’s statement will not pertain to Clinton at all.
Could this be it? FBI director Comey to make statement at 11 am today...Could this be it? FBI director Comey to make statement at 11 am today...
2.02pm BST2.02pm BST
14:0214:02
Hello and welcome to our live-wire coverage of the 2016 race for the White House. After a (nearly) four-year hiatus, Barack Obama returns to the presidential campaign trail on Tuesday, for a rally in Charlotte, North Carolina, on behalf of and alongside Hillary Clinton. The pair is scheduled to fly together aboard Air Force One from Washington this afternoon.Hello and welcome to our live-wire coverage of the 2016 race for the White House. After a (nearly) four-year hiatus, Barack Obama returns to the presidential campaign trail on Tuesday, for a rally in Charlotte, North Carolina, on behalf of and alongside Hillary Clinton. The pair is scheduled to fly together aboard Air Force One from Washington this afternoon.
Donald Trump is crying foul over the president’s use of the presidential plane.Donald Trump is crying foul over the president’s use of the presidential plane.
Why is President Obama allowed to use Air Force One on the campaign trail with Crooked Hillary? She is flying with him tomorrow. Who pays?Why is President Obama allowed to use Air Force One on the campaign trail with Crooked Hillary? She is flying with him tomorrow. Who pays?
Good question, and here’s the congressional research service with the answer (h/t @ktumulty):Good question, and here’s the congressional research service with the answer (h/t @ktumulty):
When a trip is for political or unofficial purposes, those involved must pay for their own food and lodging and other related expenses, and they must also reimburse the government with the equivalent of the airfare that they would have paid had they used a commercial airline.When a trip is for political or unofficial purposes, those involved must pay for their own food and lodging and other related expenses, and they must also reimburse the government with the equivalent of the airfare that they would have paid had they used a commercial airline.
While Trump is raising questions this morning about decades-old regulations governing presidential travel, his director of social media, Dan Scavino Jr, is defending himself against charges of antisemitism:While Trump is raising questions this morning about decades-old regulations governing presidential travel, his director of social media, Dan Scavino Jr, is defending himself against charges of antisemitism:
For the MSM to suggest that I am antisemite is AWFUL. I proudly celebrate holidays w/ my wife's amazing Jewish family for the past 16 years.For the MSM to suggest that I am antisemite is AWFUL. I proudly celebrate holidays w/ my wife's amazing Jewish family for the past 16 years.
Scavino claimed responsibility Monday for a graphic tweeted from Trump’s account that showed Clinton’s head, a pile of $100 bills and a Star of David. The image in Trump’s original tweet was traced by the news site Mic to a white supremacist message board. Trump’s tweet was deleted on Saturday and replaced by a similar image featuring a circle rather than a star.Scavino claimed responsibility Monday for a graphic tweeted from Trump’s account that showed Clinton’s head, a pile of $100 bills and a Star of David. The image in Trump’s original tweet was traced by the news site Mic to a white supremacist message board. Trump’s tweet was deleted on Saturday and replaced by a similar image featuring a circle rather than a star.
Trump changed his Star of David to a circle. I took a screenshot of the original. pic.twitter.com/TkBxTaAORcTrump changed his Star of David to a circle. I took a screenshot of the original. pic.twitter.com/TkBxTaAORc
Trump got his Fourth of July started by saying that the star in question was a “sheriff’s star, or plain star”:Trump got his Fourth of July started by saying that the star in question was a “sheriff’s star, or plain star”:
Dishonest media is trying their absolute best to depict a star in a tweet as the Star of David rather than a Sheriff's Star, or plain star!Dishonest media is trying their absolute best to depict a star in a tweet as the Star of David rather than a Sheriff's Star, or plain star!
In a statement later Monday, Scavino explained that he had “lifted” the image “from an anti-Hillary Twitter user”:In a statement later Monday, Scavino explained that he had “lifted” the image “from an anti-Hillary Twitter user”:
The social media graphic used this weekend was not created by the campaign nor was it sourced from an anti-Semitic site. It was lifted from an anti-Hillary Twitter user where countless images appear.The social media graphic used this weekend was not created by the campaign nor was it sourced from an anti-Semitic site. It was lifted from an anti-Hillary Twitter user where countless images appear.
The sheriff’s badge – which is available under Microsoft’s “shapes” – fit with the theme of corrupt Hillary and that is why I selected it.The sheriff’s badge – which is available under Microsoft’s “shapes” – fit with the theme of corrupt Hillary and that is why I selected it.
As the Social Media Director for the campaign, I would never offend anyone and therefore chose to remove the image.As the Social Media Director for the campaign, I would never offend anyone and therefore chose to remove the image.
But Scavino did not stop with his statement. In an angry defense of his work as Trump social media director, Scavino bragged about having run the online strategy that won the Republican primaries. His tweet, since deleted, was captured by BuzzFeed’s Andrew Kaczynski:But Scavino did not stop with his statement. In an angry defense of his work as Trump social media director, Scavino bragged about having run the online strategy that won the Republican primaries. His tweet, since deleted, was captured by BuzzFeed’s Andrew Kaczynski:
pic.twitter.com/yAJmRenl8xpic.twitter.com/yAJmRenl8x
That tweet caught the attention of Stuart Stevens, a top strategist for Mitt Romney in 2012. The Trump and Romney camps have never gotten along. Scavino’s exchange with Stevens, in which Scavino ended up slamming the entire Romney operation, is not likely to help matters:That tweet caught the attention of Stuart Stevens, a top strategist for Mitt Romney in 2012. The Trump and Romney camps have never gotten along. Scavino’s exchange with Stevens, in which Scavino ended up slamming the entire Romney operation, is not likely to help matters:
Welcome to NFL. Talk of college glory never goes far. https://t.co/WZYdbSRNW2Welcome to NFL. Talk of college glory never goes far. https://t.co/WZYdbSRNW2
Thanks Mr. Stevens! Hopefully one day I will have the opportunity to be as successful as you...and Mr. Romney. https://t.co/vCOBclpbR8Thanks Mr. Stevens! Hopefully one day I will have the opportunity to be as successful as you...and Mr. Romney. https://t.co/vCOBclpbR8
FiveThirtyEight’s Harry Enten jumped in to note:FiveThirtyEight’s Harry Enten jumped in to note:
At this point in 2012, Romney was down 1 and at 45%. At this point, Trump is down 6 and under 40%. https://t.co/rSKMIqqHxLAt this point in 2012, Romney was down 1 and at 45%. At this point, Trump is down 6 and under 40%. https://t.co/rSKMIqqHxL
A brief history of previous Scavino fuck ups. This: https://t.co/TJ0JHH7O2u pic.twitter.com/U4Tg4YOsTcA brief history of previous Scavino fuck ups. This: https://t.co/TJ0JHH7O2u pic.twitter.com/U4Tg4YOsTc
Trump's campaign team has turned what should have been a two-hour social media kerfuffle into a three-day shit show. Just a tremendous team.Trump's campaign team has turned what should have been a two-hour social media kerfuffle into a three-day shit show. Just a tremendous team.
Read further:Read further:
Related: Donald Trump blames 'dishonest media' in furor over 'antisemitic' Clinton tweetRelated: Donald Trump blames 'dishonest media' in furor over 'antisemitic' Clinton tweet
Trump will also be in North Carolina today. Tennessee senator Bob Corker, the chairman of the foreign relations committee, will campaign with him in Raleigh this evening. Trump was expected to announce his selection for vice president prior to the national convention, which starts 18 July. He met Monday with Iowa senator Joni Ernst and on Friday with Indiana governor Mike Spence, and he tweeted praise of Arkansas senator Tom Cotton.Trump will also be in North Carolina today. Tennessee senator Bob Corker, the chairman of the foreign relations committee, will campaign with him in Raleigh this evening. Trump was expected to announce his selection for vice president prior to the national convention, which starts 18 July. He met Monday with Iowa senator Joni Ernst and on Friday with Indiana governor Mike Spence, and he tweeted praise of Arkansas senator Tom Cotton.
Two new polls Monday have Clinton up only five points on Trump nationally. (Polling averages have her up by 4.6 points and by six points.) A USA Today/Suffolk University poll has Clinton ahead of Trump 45.6-40.4. The latest NBC News/SurveyMonkey tracking poll had Clinton up 48-43 – but showed Ohio governor John Kasich leading Clinton by eight in a hypothetical matchup in which Trump dropped out and Kasich slid in.Two new polls Monday have Clinton up only five points on Trump nationally. (Polling averages have her up by 4.6 points and by six points.) A USA Today/Suffolk University poll has Clinton ahead of Trump 45.6-40.4. The latest NBC News/SurveyMonkey tracking poll had Clinton up 48-43 – but showed Ohio governor John Kasich leading Clinton by eight in a hypothetical matchup in which Trump dropped out and Kasich slid in.
Obama sang Happy Birthday to his daughter Malia at the weekend:Obama sang Happy Birthday to his daughter Malia at the weekend:
President Obama sings 'Happy Birthday' to Malia https://t.co/prZBWME2lsPresident Obama sings 'Happy Birthday' to Malia https://t.co/prZBWME2ls
Thank you for reading and please join us in the comments.Thank you for reading and please join us in the comments.
UpdatedUpdated
at 3.19pm BSTat 3.19pm BST