House Speaker opposes classified briefings to Clinton

US House Speaker Paul Ryan today opposed providing any classified briefing to presumptive Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, saying it is necessary to reassure the public that the country’s secrets are secure.

His comments came after FBI Director James Comey said that the agency would not recommend criminal charges against Clinton over her private email use when she was secretary of state.

In a letter to Director of National Intelligence James Clapper, Ryan requested that the intelligence community refrain from providing any classified information to Clinton. “This is necessary to reassure the public that our nation’s secrets are secure,” he said. In another letter to Comey, Ryan requested that he release all of the unclassified findings from the Bureau’s investigation into Clinton mails.

The White House yesterday said that both the Democratic and Republican presidential nominees would start receiving classified intelligence briefings from the intelligence community after they are formally nominated during their respective party conventions. In his letter, released to the press, Ryan said as a former vice presidential nominee, he is keenly aware that Clinton is set to begin receiving classified intelligence briefings after the Democratic National Convention.

“However, Director Comey stated that ‘this is not to suggest that in similar circumstances, a person who engaged in this activity would face no consequences. To the contrary, those individuals are often subject to security or administrative sanctions’,” he wrote.

“Given the FBI’s findings, denying Secretary Clinton access to classified information certainly constitutes appropriate sanctions. This is necessary to reassure the public that our nation’s secrets are secure,” Ryan said.

“The American people deserve to know exactly what your investigation uncovered and why the FBI came to the decision to recommend that no criminal charges be brought against secretary Clinton,” Ryan said.