The Department of Justice’s Office of the Inspector General announced today that it will launch a review of the actions taken by the FBI and DOJ ahead of November’s election in connection to the Hillary Clinton email investigation.
The inspector general will look at whether FBI Director James Comey’s press conference and notifications to Congress before the election were appropriate under DOJ guidelines.
Specifically, the watchdog will look into allegations that DOJ or FBI «policies or procedures were not followed» in connection with Comey’s public announcement on July 5, 2016, and his letters to Congress on Oct. 28 and Nov. 6, 2016. The review will also look at whether certain underlying investigative decisions «were based on improper considerations. «
In a statement, Comey said, «I am grateful to the Department of Justice’s IG for taking on this review. He is professional and independent and the FBI will cooperate fully with him and his office. I hope very much he is able to share his conclusions and observations with the public because everyone will benefit from thoughtful evaluation and transparency regarding this matter. «
In July, Comey announced in a news conference that his agency was not recommending that charges be brought against then–presidential candidate Clinton after a yearlong investigation into her use of a private email server while she was secretary of state.
On Oct. 28, Comey issued a letter informing Congress that in connection with an unrelated case, the FBI had learned of the existence of emails that appeared to be «pertinent to the investigation» and was reopening the probe into Clinton less than two weeks before Election Day.
In a second letter to Congress, delivered on Nov. 6, two days before the election, Comey said that after a review of the newly discovered emails, the FBI concluded that there was no reason to change its previous conclusions.
After the election, Clinton blamed Comey’s first letter to Congress, saying it was a turning point in the race between her and now-President-elect Donald Trump, according to a source familiar with her remarks.
The Office of the Inspector General will also look into allegations that the FBI deputy director and the DOJ’s assistant attorney general for legislative affairs should have been recused from participating in certain matters.
In addition, the office will look at whether DOJ and FBI employees improperly disclosed nonpublic information and whether decisions regarding the timing of the FBI’s release of certain Freedom of Information Act documents «were influenced by improper considerations. «
The review of the FBI and DOJ is in response to «numerous» requests from members of congressional oversight committees, various organizations and the public, according to Inspector General Michael E. Horowitz.
However, it will look not at the substance of the FBI investigation but at whether FBI and DOJ actions adhered to department guidelines.
Former DOJ officials and others were critical of Comey’s handling of the situation at the time.
«Many of us have worked with Director Comey; all of us respect him. But his unprecedented decision to publicly comment on evidence in what may be an ongoing inquiry just 11 days before a presidential election leaves us both astonished and perplexed,» read an open letter penned by former federal prosecutors and high-ranking Department of Justice officials in October.
The situation was complicated because Attorney General Loretta Lynch informally recused herself from overseeing the Clinton investigation after she met with former President Bill Clinton on an airplane over the summer.
ABC News’ Liz Kreutz contributed to this story.

Similarity rank: 15

Sentiment rank: 1.8

© Source: http://abcnews.go.com/US/department-justice-watchdog-launches-investigation-fbis-pre-election/story?id=44737813
All rights are reserved and belongs to a source media.

Jessica Taylor
President Obama presents a teary-eyed Vice President Biden with the Presidential Medal of Freedom at the White House on Thursday.
Susan Walsh/AP
hide caption
President Obama presents a teary-eyed Vice President Biden with the Presidential Medal of Freedom at the White House on Thursday.
President Obama awarded outgoing Vice President Biden the Presidential Medal of Freedom on Thursday afternoon.
Calling the former longtime Delaware senator «the best vice president America’s ever had» and a «lion of American history,» Obama gave his White House partner the surprise award in an emotional ceremony, initially billed as a farewell.
After extolling the job that Biden has done, Obama ended it with the unexpected news that he was giving the vice president the nation’s highest civilian honor, with distinction — a designation previously given only to President Ronald Reagan, Pope John Paul II and Gen. Colin Powell.
«To know Joe Biden is to know love without pretense, service without self-regard, and to live life fully,» Obama said.
Overcome with tears and completely caught off guard by the award, Biden praised the president as «remarkable man who did remarkable things for this country» who had truly treated him like an equal partner in governance.
«This honor is not only well beyond what I deserve, but it’s a reflection of the generosity of your spirit,» Biden told Obama. «I don’t deserve this. But I know it came from the president’s heart. »
The two have enjoyed an unusually close working relationship over the past eight years, and Obama himself even joked at the outset of the ceremony that «this also gives the Internet one last chance to talk about our ‘bromance.’ »
Throughout the ceremony it was evident not just how close the two men were but how close their families and staffs had become, and Obama said his «family is honored to call ourselves honorary Bidens. »
Obama has frequently said that picking Biden, his former primary rival, as his running mate in 2008 was one of the best decisions he ever made. Before accepting the nomination, Biden had spent more than three decades in the Senate, amassing a large portfolio and body of work, including stints as chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and the Senate Judiciary Committee.
The president said, laughing, that the people of Delaware sent Biden to the Senate as soon as they could, electing him to the Senate at the age of 29 (he turned the constitutionally required age of 30 before he was sworn in).
But before Biden could even head to Washington, his life would be marked with unspeakable tragedy for the first time. While Christmas shopping, his first wife and 1-year-old daughter were killed in a car wreck; his sons Hunter and Beau were injured in the accident. Biden considered resigning before he even took office but was persuaded not to. He was sworn into office at the hospital beside his sons, and for years he would famously commute back and forth every day on Amtrak to be with his family. Later on, he would meet and marry his now-wife, Jill, and they would have a daughter together, Ashley.
In 2015, tragedy would strike the Biden family again when his eldest son, Beau, the former Delaware attorney general who was long seen as his father’s political heir, died at the age of 46 from brain cancer. The loss came as the elder Biden was weighing whether he should make his own run at the Oval Office to succeed Obama. Months later, the still very emotional vice president acknowledged his window had passed and said that he wouldn’t launch his own presidential campaign.

Similarity rank: 14

Sentiment rank: 2.9

© Source: http://www.npr.org/2017/01/12/509545778/in-surprise-send-off-president-obama-awards-biden-presidential-medal-of-freedom?utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=news
All rights are reserved and belongs to a source media.

Vice President Joe Biden was in tears after President Barack Obama surprised him at his farewell address Thursday.
Obama took the podium and had Biden crying in a seconds with a touching tribute.
WATCH:
Then, in an apparent complete surprise to Biden, Obama awarded him the Presidential Medal of Freedom — causing him to lose it all over again.
“So, Joe. For your faith in your fellow Americans, for your love of country, and for your lifetime of service that will endure through the generations, I’d like to ask the military aide to join us on stage,” Obama said. “For the final time as president, I am pleased to award our nation’s highest civilian honor, the Presidential Medal of Freedom.”
The medal is the highest award a civilian can receive.
Follow Katie on Twitter and Facebook
Content created by The Daily Caller News Foundation is available without charge to any eligible news publisher that can provide a large audience. For licensing opportunities of our original content, please contact [email protected].

Similarity rank: 12

Sentiment rank: -1.8

© Source: http://dailycaller.com/2017/01/12/biden-couldnt-hold-back-his-tears-when-obama-did-this-video/
All rights are reserved and belongs to a source media.