Thursday on his syndicated radio show, talk show host Hugh Hewitt asked for Sen. Ron Johnson’s (R-WI) reaction to reports that former FBI Director James Comey may have prematurely drafted a memo exonerating Hillary Clinton, the 2016 Democratic presidential nominee, for any alleged wrongdoing regarding her use of an unauthorized email server.
The memo was drafted two months before the FBI’s final determined about the server used by Clinton while secretary of state.
Johnson was asked by Hewitt if the way the investigation was conducted could have contradicted Comey’s testimony before a U.S. Senate committee and potentially meant Comey perjured himself.
Partial transcript as follows (courtesy of HughHewitt.com):
HEWITT: What about the Comey letter, the May memo before the July decision? Does that give you qualms, Senator Johnson?
JOHNSON: Absolutely. My committee is trying to get the unredacted testimony from those FBI agents to get more information. There’s a number of committees trying to get to the truth on that as well.
HEWITT: Last question, do you believe that the existence of that draft memo undermines Jim Comey’s testimony to the extent that it might go into question its truthfulness before the Senate?
JOHNSON: Yes, I always thought the investigation into Hillary Clinton’s emails was never designed to really get to the bottom of it. I thought it was always designed to exonerate her. So that…
HEWITT: Then that would…
JOHNSON: …It seemed obvious to me, and now we’re getting more and more evidence that was probably in fact the case.
HEWITT: Then that would put the former FBI director in peril of having perjured himself, would it not?
JOHNSON: He might be in trouble.
HEWITT: Senator Ron Johnson, always a pleasure, good luck in getting those reforms. Go talk to Bob Corker about being the example that sets the way, because if we get our own house in order, maybe people will pay attention to us. Thank you, Senator.
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