David French of National Review Online assesses the latest evidence of then-FBI Director James Comey’s job performance in 2016.
In one hour of television, Comey and [George] Stephanopoulos inadvertently reaffirmed what we already knew: In 2016, the entire American political system cracked, including — in crucial ways — the FBI. …
… [L]et’s pause for a moment and ponder the immense challenge that the Bureau faced. The two major political parties nominated candidates who had long histories of ethically, morally, and legally problematic behavior. Neither possessed a character fit for the presidency. But the Democrats went so far as to nominate a candidate who was known to be under active, credible FBI investigation. …
… {W}hen placed in the middle of an extraordinary, high-stakes investigation, James Comey applied the wrong legal standard, and he’s still applying the wrong legal standard today.
While applying the actual law to the relevant facts may be politically difficult, that happened to be Comey’s job. Comey very ably outlines various types of pressure and “inappropriate” conduct from the Obama administration (from the attorney general’s insistence that Comey call the Clinton investigation a “matter,” to her tarmac meeting with Bill Clinton, to President Obama’s own pronouncements about Hillary’s conduct), but in the end it appears that he couldn’t withstand the heat. …
… With the first move — applying the wrong legal standard to the case — he cleared the way for Hillary’s candidacy. With the second and third — issuing unusual statements that highlighted Hillary’s misconduct — he may have fatally undermined her campaign. And all the while, he was not considering the proper legal standard but pondering polls and public perception.