The Clinton email report is out

By Veronica Rocha, Meg Wagner and Brian Ries, CNN

Updated 6:51 p.m. ET, June 14, 2018
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2:17 p.m. ET, June 14, 2018

Jeff Sessions: We must "learn from past mistakes"

Attorney General Jeff Sessions said the just-released report into the FBI and Justice Department's handling of the Clinton email investigation must be a learning opportunity.

"The Inspector General’s report reveals a number of significant errors by the senior leadership of the Department of Justice and the FBI during the previous administration," Sessions said in a statement. "Accordingly, this report must be seen as an opportunity for the FBI — long considered the world’s premier investigative agency — and all of us at the Department to learn from past mistakes. The Department is not above criticism, and it is accountable to the Chief Executive, Congress, and most importantly, the American people." 

Sessions went on to thank the Inspector General "for his tireless and thorough work on this matter."

2:18 p.m. ET, June 14, 2018

Democratic senator: I hope new report puts to rest "suggestions that there is some deep state conspiracy"

From CNN's Liz Turrell

Sen. Chris Coons, a Democrat from Delaware, told reporters that his understanding is that the Inspector General's report “reaches the conclusion that the Mueller investigation was not influenced by political favors or returns in the FBI” despite the President’s “repeated loud and public assertions to the contrary.”

“I hope this will put to rest suggestions that there is some deep state conspiracy at the FBI or Justice Department and we can move forward with respecting the professionals who work in federal law enforcement," he said.

Coons, who was briefed by his staff on the report, said he was looking forward to reading it this weekend.

2:02 p.m. ET, June 14, 2018

JUST IN: The Clinton email report is out

From CNN's Laura Jarrett

The Department of Justice Inspector General has released a highly anticipated report on DOJ and FBI's handling of the Clinton email investigation.  

CNN is reading through it now, and we'll post highlights and analysis here.

2:19 p.m. ET, June 14, 2018

Republicans are not happy about new texts between 2 FBI officials

Republican members of Congress are livid about the new findings in the Justice Department's Inspector General's report, specifically those involving text messages between two FBI officials.

The text messages, which were exchanged between former FBI lawyer Lisa Page and FBI counterintelligence agent Peter Strzok, have come under scrutiny for their unfiltered criticism of then-presidential candidate Donald Trump.

Here's what some members of Congress are saying about the texts:

  • Rep. Jim Jordan of Ohio told reporters that his main takeaway is that "Peter Strzok should no longer be employed at the FBI."
  • Rep. Darrell Issa of California said Strzok "clearly had a Democrat bias."
  • Rep. Mark Meadows of North Carolina said he doesn't see how Strzok could "continue to serve with the confidence" of the FBI and DOJ. He also tweeted this apparent conversation between Page and Strzok.

2:19 p.m. ET, June 14, 2018

Analysis: Trump is likely to be very disappointed when he reads this report

President Trump could use the Justice Department's Inspector General's report to bolster his reasons for firing former FBI Director James Comey, but that's probably about it, CNN justice correspondent Evan Perez noted.

So how's Trump going to feel? "I think he's going to be very disappointed when he reads this report," Perez said. He said he thinks the President will be able use some of the findings in the report to support his claim that he was right to fire Comey because the Justice Department had lost confidence in him.

Watch more:

2:19 p.m. ET, June 14, 2018

GOP congressman says he is "alarmed, angered, and deeply disappointed" by the report

House Oversight and Government Reform Committee Chairman Trey Gowdy just released a statement after having viewed the Inspector General's report.

In the statement, Gowdy, a former federal prosecutor, said he was "alarmed, angered, and deeply disappointed" by the Inspector General's findings and called on both Attorney General Jeff Sessions and FBI Director Christopher Wray "to take decisive action to restore Americans' confidence in our justice system."

2:19 p.m. ET, June 14, 2018

Here's what we know is happening after the report is released

While we're still waiting to read the Justice Department's Inspector General's report on the Clinton email investigation, sources say the report found that former FBI Director James Comey's actions deviated from the department's norms. Comey, two sources familiar with the report say, was not motivated by political bias.

Here's how things will play out after the report is publicly released:

  • 5:30 p.m. ET: FBI Director Christopher Wray will have a press conference today about the report.
  • Later today: Trump's legal team plans to meet with him at the White House (The team is meeting all day long today to discuss ideas and strategy.)
  • Monday: The Senate Judiciary committee will hold a hearing about the report. Former FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe is invited.

1:02 p.m. ET, June 14, 2018

Justice watchdog faults Comey on Clinton email probe, but says not politically motivated

From CNN's Jeremy Herb and Manu Raju

The Justice Department's internal watchdog found that former FBI Director James Comey's actions in the Hillary Clinton email investigation deviated from the department's norms but that Comey was not motivated by political bias, according to two sources familiar with the report.

The inspector general is releasing a sweeping report Thursday detailing a series of failures by the top federal officials in charge of the investigation ahead of the election, including how Clinton handled classified information while secretary of state.

A key finding: Comey erred in his decision not to coordinate with his superiors at the Justice Department at key moments in the Clinton email investigation, according to the sources. But the inspector general found that Comey was not motivated by political bias, as President Donald Trump and his conservative allies have charged. 

Bloomberg News first reported the details of the inspector general report. 

1:19 p.m. ET, June 14, 2018

Here's what the inspector general does

From CNN's Eli Watkins

Simply put, an inspector general is a watchdog who is part of the government and simultaneously independent from the entity they are tasked with investigating.

Somewhat analogous to internal affairs at a police department, the inspector general's office for a given agency is tasked with looking into potential malfeasance by that agency or members of that agency, and issuing reports and recommendations on its findings.

On the federal level, the inspectors general are each assigned to a different part of the executive branch, with an inspector general's office for the Environmental Protection Agency, one for the Department of Defense and so on.

These inspectors conduct investigations and audits, either in the course of their work or in response to requests that they pursue a particular avenue.

They issue reports with recommendations for changes or other actions as the offices see fit. Congress, in its oversight role over the executive branch, receives the reports and can pursue more information or changes in the course of its work.