Statement by Chairman Gowdy on Reports of Classified Information in Secretary Clinton’s Emails

Washington, DC—Select Committee on Benghazi Chairman Trey Gowdy today issued the following statement in response to reports by the Inspectors General of the State Department and the United States Intelligence Community, which found potentially hundreds of classified emails among those self-selected and turned over by Secretary Hillary Clinton to the State Department from her private custody. As a result, the IGs are recommending the State Department transfer Clinton’s emails to a system capable of processing Top Secret material, which represents the highest classification level of the U.S. government: 

“Committee Members on both sides have been aware of concerns about classified emails within the self-selected records turned over by Secretary Clinton. The Committee appreciates that Inspectors General appointed by President Obama have confirmed this is a serious and nonpartisan national security matter by any objective measure. This certainly merits further review by the Executive Branch to determine the legal and national security implications posed by the former Secretary’s unusual email arrangement in order to mitigate any potential counterintelligence risks and minimize the damage caused by this scheme. These issues should be evaluated under the same strict standards that would apply to anyone found to be in possession of classified information outside of an approved system.

“The number of questions surrounding Secretary Clinton’s unusual email arrangement continues to grow. The best—the only way—to resolve these important factual questions is for her to turn over her server to the proper authorities for independent forensic evaluation. Regardless of whether the server is voluntarily relinquished or acquired by other lawful means, there is clearly sufficient cause to examine the contents of said server for the presence of other classified information. Moreover, whether it was classified initially or later classified, it is appropriate for the Executive Branch and intelligence community to determine where these now classified documents are housed and by whom they are possessed.”

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