Demonstrably Guilty
In addition to her insatiable need for power, money and control, Hillary Clinton likely had another strong motivation for her near maniacal drive for the presidency. That extra motivation likely revolves around the legal jeopardy that, as an attorney, she undoubtably recognizes that she’s in.
I have described at some length a number of her crimes in several previous posts (See “Common Sense Scoreboard, 10/12/16, for example). I’ll reiterate a few of them here.
Briefly, Mrs. Clinton has clearly violated the Espionage Act of 1917, section 793: “Transmitting or losing defense information.” Penalty: up to 10 YEARS IN PRISON. And, by the way, intent is NOT needed to invoke this statute. Along similar lines, she also violated Federal Penal Code Title 18, section 2071, subsection b: mishandling classified intelligence. Penalty: up to 3 years IN PRISON.
Then there’s the matter of deleting 30,000 emails UNDER SUBPOENA. By deleting those documents under subpoena, she’s openly committed the dual crimes of evidence tampering and obstruction of justice. And both of these crimes have penalties of PRISON TIME as well.
In short, Hillary NEEDED to win the Office of the Presidency to defend herself and finesse her precarious position. This finesse might have played out in a scenario where she would, in effect, PARDON HERSELF! It would be a first, admittedly. But even though unprecedented, a gambit along those lines might have worked for her. Now, if she did try such a strategy, it’s true that an impeachment action could have been initiated, invoking “high crimes and misdemeanors” language. However, although impeachment would be a possibility, it would be less likely to be successful. So a presidential “self pardon”, if it came to that, might have been her “get out of jail free” card. Even more likely, however, is that the initiation of prosecution or impeachment proceedings under such uncharted circumstances would never be attempted to begin with. So, the presidency would have been Hillary’s best defense. But, as things worked out, this is no longer a possibility for her.
And, another potential legal protection, a presidential pardon, is not available to her either. Mr. Obama can’t issue it, because the charges have not yet been brought, and once he’s out of office, he will no longer have that prerogative. And a Presidential pardon from Mr. Trump is not likely to be forthcoming. Although Mr. Trump has distanced himself from the popular campaign slogan “lock her up” I don’t think he’s likely to go out of his way to protect Mrs. Clinton. Congress can appoint a Special Prosecutor (several legislators have hinted they might do just that). Mr. Trump will keep above the fray, of course, but will take the position that the American system of justice must be allowed to function as the framers of the Constitution intended, in effect letting the investigations and prosecutions run their course. And if convictions are handed down he would then demure from issuing a pardon, with the simple position that “no one is above the law.”
In addition to actions by a special prosecutor, once Attorney General Loretta Lynch has left the Department of Justice, there may be some enthusiasm in the DOJ for prosecution on one or more of the violations discussed above. In each of these instances Mrs. Clinton is demonstrably guilty using only the information that, at present, is publicly known! Imagine what else further investigation and scrutiny might uncover. Other potential lines of prosecution include, but are not limited to, fraud, bribery (the Russian Uranium processing deal) and blackmail (Juanita Broderick).
And, keep in mind, that, although the FBI “closed” their investigation of her private email server (Such investigations, by the way, are NEVER closed permanently. They may be reopened, at the agency’s discretion, at ANY time if deemed necessary), they have NOT closed their investigation linking the Clinton Foundation with bribery. Despite the fact that this was glossed over by the media, that investigation is still ongoing. Once Director Lynch is gone, it, too, could come back to haunt her.
All of this is, of course, a lot for Mrs. Clinton to worry about. Especially without the legal advantages that would have been accorded to her by the office of the presidency.