Trump protests as FBI clears Clinton
Presumptive Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump shows a police officer his photo on the cover of a Playboy magazine during a campaign event at the Duke Energy Center for the Performing Arts on July 5, 2016 in Raleigh, North Carolina. Earlier in the day Hillary Clinton campaigned in Charlotte, North Carolina with President Barack Obama. PHOTO | SARA D. DAVIS | AFP
What you need to know:
- FBI Director James Comey drops a bombshell announcement, saying that while Hillary Clinton and her team were “extremely careless” in sending classified information via her personal email account, the agency does not support criminal prosecution.
- Donald Trump has repeatedly stressed that she has sought to mask her involvement in illegal activity by deleting more than 30,000 emails she claimed were personal and not related to her job as top US diplomat.
- Mr Trump appears exasperated after the FBI announcement.
CHARLOTTE, Wednesday
Donald Trump yesterday blasted White House rival Hillary Clinton as a liar abusing a “rigged” system after the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) recommended no charges be filed over her use of private email while secretary of state.
“Our system is in fact rigged. It’s corrupt, it’s rigged, it’s disgraceful,” a furious Mr Trump told a rally in Raleigh, North Carolina, just hours after Mrs Clinton appeared in the state for her debut 2016 campaign event with President Barack Obama. “She is laughing at the stupidity of our system.”
Federal Bureau of Investigation Director James Comey dropped a bombshell announcement earlier in the day, saying that while Mrs Clinton and her team were “extremely careless” in sending classified information via her personal email account, the agency does not support criminal prosecution.
Mr Trump, who polls show faces an uphill battle against Mrs Clinton in November, has repeatedly stressed that she has sought to mask her involvement in illegal activity by deleting more than 30,000 emails she claimed were personal and not related to her job as top US diplomat.
After the FBI announcement, Mr Trump appeared exasperated.
“Everybody thought based on what was being said she was guilty,” he said. “She was guilty, and it turned out that we’re not going to press charges. It’s really amazing.”
Mr Trump also blasted Mrs Clinton for lying, after Mr Comey confirmed that Mrs Clinton sent and received information that was deemed classified at the time.
“We now know that she lied to the country when she said she did not send classified information on her server,” he said.
Mr Trump said that “the lives of the American people were put at risk by Hillary Clinton”.
He savaged Obama’s campaign appearance with Mrs Clinton as “a carnival act” and derided him as a president “who doesn’t know what the hell he’s doing”.
