Whistleblowers have dropped a bombshell about the Justice Department’s four-year investigation into the Clinton Foundation, alleging a cesspool of conflicts and deliberate roadblocks.
The probe, marred by interference from senior FBI officials like then-deputy director Andrew McCabe, faced systematic obstruction, according to allegations and records released Monday by Sen. Chuck Grassley, the New York Post reported.
Documents and affidavits paint a grim picture of investigative efforts being stifled at every turn. Grassley’s letter to Attorney General Pam Bondi details how agents were barred from issuing subpoenas, conducting interviews, or sharing critical bank account data related to the Clintons or their flagship charity.
Before the probe even kicked off in 2016, red flags were waving high. McCabe’s wife, Dr. Jill McCabe, pocketed over $675,000 in contributions from a political action committee tied to Clinton Foundation board member Terry McAuliffe and Virginia’s Democratic fundraising arm.
McCabe didn’t recuse himself until November of that year, long after key decisions had been made. During his tenure, directives from the top explicitly limited the scope of what agents could pursue, citing “sensitivities” around the Clinton name.
Internal emails reveal a chilling instruction from higher-ups, likely McCabe himself, to avoid any perception of investigating the Foundation or the Clintons. Such caution smells less like prudence and more like the protection of powerful friends.
Meanwhile, a separate probe into Hillary Clinton’s handling of classified information as secretary of state hit similar walls. Prosecutors from the Southern District of New York were denied access to former Rep. Anthony Weiner’s laptop, despite a search warrant from the Manhattan US Attorney’s Office.
Only the DC-based team got clearance to review the files, a decision pinned on McCabe and Michael Steinbach, then-executive assistant of the FBI’s national security branch. Local prosecutors were initially stonewalled, even on briefings about the laptop’s contents.
This kind of gatekeeping raises serious questions about transparency. When justice plays favorites with who gets to see evidence, public trust erodes faster than a sandcastle at high tide.
Further south, the US Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Arkansas tried to reopen the Foundation case but hit a brick wall. Records show that FBI and DOJ leadership interference was conveniently omitted from reports when prosecutors sought updates.
Jonathan Ross, who later served as US attorney in that district, wrote in 2018, “there appear to be conflicts of interest for the leadership there related to the 2016 investigations that undermine any confidence we might normally have in looking to them for assistance.” His words cut sharp, exposing a system where loyalty to elites often trumps duty to the law.
By July 2019, the Arkansas office urged the DOJ’s Office of Inspector General to dig deeper into this meddling. Yet, even Inspector General Michael Horowitz was kept in the dark about key files showing these alleged conflicts during his 2018 review.
Grassley’s findings pull back the curtain on a Justice Department that, for too long, has picked sides rather than pursued truth. His statement, “the mainstream media smeared any investigation into Hillary Clinton as unfounded nonsense, but in reality, line agents and federal prosecutors seeking to follow up on legitimate leads were sidelined by partisan leadership looking to save Clinton’s reputation,” lands like a well-aimed dart at the heart of institutional bias.
The senator’s call for more records by Dec. 29, including details on the Weiner laptop and internal FBI correspondence, signals a refusal to let this fade into the ether. With neither McCabe nor the Clinton Foundation offering comment to The Post, the silence from those implicated speaks volumes.
Justice should never bend to power, party, or privilege, yet this saga suggests it often does. If the American people are to believe in equal treatment under the law, revelations like these demand accountability, not excuses, from those entrusted to uphold fairness.