Charles Krauthammer, "Comey: A Theory": Welcome "Banana Republic Day," America's Newest National Holiday

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July 7, falling a mere three days after Independence Day, has become a US national holiday.

Yesterday, on July 7, 2016, FBI Director James Comey continued to claim before the House Government Reform and Oversight Committee that no reasonable prosecutor would file charges against Hillary Clinton for mishandling classified information, owing to a lack of intent on Clinton's part. However as noted by Charles Krauthammer in a Washington Post opinion piece entitled "Comey: A theory," "it’s a felony to mishandle classified information either intentionally or 'through gross negligence'" pursuant to 18 U.S.C. section 793(f). Krauthammer goes on to say regarding Comey's refusal to recommend prosecution because of a lack of intent:

"Just last year, the Justice Department successfully prosecuted naval reservist Bryan Nishimura, who improperly downloaded classified material to his personal, unclassified electronic devices.

The government admitted that there was no evidence that Nishimura intended to distribute the material to others. Nonetheless, he was sentenced to two years of probation, fined and forever prohibited from seeking a security clearance, which effectively kills any chance of working in national security."

More to the point, however, is Comey's acknowledgement yesterday, under questioning by Rep. Jason Chaffetz, Chairman of the House Government Reform and Oversight Committee, that Hillary provided access to her home server and government emails to between 2 and 10 people without security clearances. As reported by Alana Goodman in a Washington Free Beacon article entitled "FBI Director: Clinton Gave Non-Cleared People Access to Classified Information":

"The FBI director hedged when Chaffetz asked whether Clinton’s non-cleared attorneys ever read her classified emails.

'I don’t know the answer to that,' said Comey. 'I don’t know whether they read them at the time.' [Hillary's campaign has claimed that the attorneys read all of her emails.]

Chaffetz pressed the FBI director on the question of access.

'Did Hillary Clinton give non-cleared people access to classified information?' asked Chaffetz.

'Yes,' said Comey, before adding that he did not see evidence of criminal intent.

'Her intent was to get good legal representation and to make the production to the State Department,' added Comey. 'I don’t see the evidence there to make the case that she was acting with criminal intent in her engagement with her lawyers.'

Chaffetz appeared confounded by Comey’s response, arguing that the act of giving an unsecured person access to classified information was a crime on its own.

'I read criminal intent as the idea that you allow someone without a security clearance access to classified information,' said Chaffetz. 'Everybody knows that, director. Everybody knows that.'"

Equally awful as previously admitted by Comey, Hillary's attorneys, who lacked security clearances, "deleted all emails they did not return to State, and the lawyers cleaned their devices in such a way as to preclude complete forensic recovery.” This is not indicative of intent to mishandle classified information?

Will Nishimura now appeal his conviction?

Welcome "Banana Republic Day," celebrating yet another instance in which Hillary Clinton made a monkey of 323 million Americans.

[Do you have six minutes to spare? Watch Rep. Trey Gowdy destroy Comey's claim of "no intent" before the House Government Reform and Oversight Committee.]