The foundation of any defense pertaining to Hillary Clinton's private server revolves around either negligence, or the debate regarding retroactive classification and overclassification. First, I explain in this YouTube segment that the views of Brian Fallon and others pertaining to overclassification "run amok" ignore 22 "Top Secret" emails on Clinton's server. Most importantly, if Americans can't see these emails, then everything the Clinton campaign has said regarding this story is completely irrelevant.
Like I stated during a recent appearance on CNN International with John Vause, Hillary Clinton is being investigated by the FBI and faces the risk of indictment. Thus, if you fear a Trump presidency, you better vote for Bernie Sanders, especially since nobody knows why Clinton owned a private server in the first place. This private server, and the "Top Secret" information on this server, will ultimately make Bernie Sanders the Democratic nominee. Bernie Sanders can easily win the primary race, but the FBI investigation will make him the only way Democrats stop Donald Trump.
The FBI and Justice Department aren't going to set a dangerous precedent for future secretaries of state, and future presidents, by allowing government officials to act like Hillary Clinton; without legal consequences.
As stated in a CNN article titled State Department will not release 22 'top secret' Clinton emails, there was never an issue with the classification of these documents:
The State Department announced Friday that it will not release 22 emails from former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton because they contain "top secret" information, the highest level of government classification...
If Americans can't see these "Top Secret" emails, and the State Department and other agencies refuse to show the public what they contain, then FBI and Justice Department indictments are likely imminent.
Either through negligence, or political utility (the basis for intent), the most sensitive U.S. intelligence was stored on an unguarded private server in the basement of a house. If Clinton doesn't get indicted, then precedent has been set for a President Trump, or the future Dick Cheney's of the world to act in a similar manner.
When Hillary Clinton stated her "predecessors did the same thing" with email, this statement was rated "Mostly False" by POLTIFACT.
Nobody in U.S. history, since the invention of email, has acted in the manner of Hillary Clinton as Secretary of State. Previous secretaries of state weren't investigated by the FBI, and never used a private server exclusively. Thus, a Democratic nominee at risk of indictment, or incited by the Justice Department at the request of the FBI, will lose to any Republican on November 8, 2016.
I explain why Democrats need Bernie Sanders now, more than ever, in this YouTube segment. The FBI votes soon, and they aren't voting out of fear of Donald Trump, they'll be voting to ensure future government officials don't act like Hillary Clinton.
Bernie Sanders is the only Democratic nominee not linked to an FBI investigation, or at risk of being indicted by the Justice Department. Once Donald Trump's racist campaign rallies are forgotten by the same people who've ignored Hillary Clinton's 3 a.m. ad with a "racist sub-message" against Obama (and "dirty tricks" involving race against Obama), establishment Democrats might find themselves in a difficult position. I mention Clinton's racist campaign ad against Obama on CNN International with John Vause, highlighting the fact that Donald Trump comes from an American political establishment where racism (used by both Democrats and Republicans) actually gets votes.
When several months pass and Trump tones down his insane antics, if Clinton is the nominee, he'll make the FBI investigation the basis of most political attacks against Democrats. Even the hint of FBI and Justice Department indictments against Clinton will hand the presidency to Trump, if Clinton is the nominee. In addition, several of these charges could revolve around the Espionage Act.
Also, if Bernie Sanders isn't the nominee, then it's possible the FBI could recommend indictment after Clinton's nomination, which would mean a Republican victory. There's no official end date to the FBI's investigation, although some sources say the FBI investigation could conclude in "early May." One can only imagine a GOP political strategy against Clinton, with the possibility that a Democrat could have broken laws under the Espionage Act.
The FBI investigation of Hillary Clinton's emails is ongoing, the FBI formally confirmed its investigation only one month ago, and 22 "Top Secret" emails on Clinton's private server will never be shown to the public. Furthermore, Reuters explains certain aspects regarding intelligence ignored by the Clinton campaign in a piece titled What everyone with a Top Secret security clearance knows - or should know:
What matters in the world of secrets is the information itself, which may or may not be marked "classified."
Employees at the highest levels of access are expected to apply the highest levels of judgment, based on the standards in Executive Order 13526. The government's basicnondisclosure agreement makes clear the rule is "marked or unmarked classified information."
In addition, the use of retroactive classification has been tested and approved by the courts, and employees are regularly held accountable for releasing information that was unclassified when they released it, but classified retroactively.
It is a way of doing business inside the government that may at first seem nonsensical, but in practice is essential for keeping secrets.
The overclassification excuse is complete spin, primarily because 22 "Top Secret" have been deemed "too classified to be made public." Clinton's campaign spokesman claimed this was an example of "overclassification run amok," however if this is true, then Americans throughout the country should be able to read these emails. Since Clinton's staff deleted 31,830 emails, the public will also never be able to see this information.
Hillary Clinton deemed these 31,830 emails "personal."
Finally, the FBI's own website serves as the foundation for future indictments against Hillary Clinton, and the foundation for Bernie Sanders becoming Democratic nominee, if Democrats have any hope of winning in November. In a section of the FBI website focusing on Cyber Threats, FBI Director James Comey's 2015 speech might provide a new way of evaluating Clinton's email fiasco:
Let me start by telling you what you know, which is that everything has changed in ways that are so fundamental that it's difficult to describe what it means when we say the world is changing because of cyber...
Let me start with the threat. I actually try to describe to people in very simple ways what we're talking about today because I don't see cyber as a thing, I see it as a way. As a vector...
That's where our nation's critical infrastructure is, that's where our government's secrets are and that's--because life is there, that's where bad people come who want to hurt children, who want to steal money, who want to take identities, who want to steal secrets, who want to damage dams and critical infrastructure in the United States. It's the way they come at us because that's where life is.
In the Cyber Threat section of the FBI's own website, we see why Clinton's email investigation will likely lead to repercussions. The fact that even American voters can't see the 22 "Top Secret" emails on Clinton's private server means that Clinton's server stored information that shouldn't have been outside government networks.
The "vector" Mr. Comey was referring to relates directly to Clinton's decision to own a private server.
Like James Comey stated, the cyber arena is "where our nation's critical infrastructure is, that's where our government's secrets are." If cyber is indeed a "vector," like Mr. Comey states, Hillary Clinton put the nation in jeopardy. For this reason, former Secretary of Defense Robert Gates believes Iran, China, and Russia may have gotten to Clinton's server. In addition, Lt. General Michael Flynn believes Clinton should "drop out" of the race, in part because "If it were me, I would have been out the door and probably in jail." Finally, Edward Snowden states it's "ridiculous" to think Clinton's emails were secure.
I'm never voting for anyone linked to an FBI investigation, and I state my case to write-in Bernie Sanders (if Clinton is nominated) in this YouTube segment. I also have a polite message to people who don't like my thoughts in this YouTube segment. When the FBI votes, Democrats must rally around Bernie Sanders, especially since Americans won't elect a person under indictment.