Story highlights
Hillary Clinton chalked GOP attacks on her private server use up to "overheated rhetoric"
She laughed at Chris Christie's debate comment that she could be prosecuted over her private server
Hillary Clinton on Thursday laughed off Chris Christie’s suggestion that she could be prosecuted for her use of a private email server during her tenure as secretary of state.
In an interview with CNN’s Wolf Blitzer on “The Situation Room,” Clinton said there’s “no evidence” that her server has been hacked – or any national security secrets have been obtained from it.
She was responding to criticism that Christie, the New Jersey governor, made Wednesday night during the second Republican presidential debate.
“This is overheated rhetoric, baseless charges, trying to somehow gain a footing in the debate and in the primary, and it really doesn’t deserve any comment,” Clinton said.
It took five months for Clinton to apologize for her use of personal email connected to a private server – instead of a government account – in her four years as America’s top diplomat under President Barack Obama.
She explained the delay Thursday, saying, “I was trying to explain what had happened, and obviously it was clear that I should have used two different email accounts. And I’ve said that was a mistake, I’m sorry, I’ve taken responsibility.”
RELATED: Republican debaters ‘really don’t have much else to say,’ Clinton says
Clinton has turned her server over to the Justice Department. The State Department, meanwhile, is releasing new batches of her emails at the end of each month under a federal judge’s order after open records lawsuits.
She’s set to testify in front of the House committee investigating the Benghazi incident on October 22, where she’s likely to be grilled about her email use.
“I’m trying to be as transparent as possible,” Clinton said. “That’s why people are reading the contents of the emails that are being released; it’s why I’ve turned over my server; it’s why I will testify.”
Shortly after Clinton’s interview on Thursday, the Republican National Committee issued a statement blasting her over the email issue while drawing attention to her decision to not push for more Democratic primary debates.
“Once again Hillary Clinton laughed off questions about her secret email server even though it put our national security at risk and is being investigated by the FBI,” RNC spokesman Michael Short said in a statement. “With her campaign under siege, it’s no wonder she is refusing to join the growing chorus of Democrats calling for more debates.”