Hillary Clinton shuts down Republican over question about emails


During a hearing before the House Select Committee on Benghazi, Hillary Clinton shut down Rep. Susan Brooks (R-Ind.) after the congresswoman brought out two printed stacks of emails representing Clinton's correspondences in 2011 and 2012. Brooks demanded to know why the 2012 stack was so short — 67 emails — compared to the 2011 stack that contained 795 emails, and questioned why there were no emails about the U.S. compound in Benghazi in 2012.
"When we go to 2012 — Libya, Benghazi, Chris Stevens, the staff there — they seem to fall off your radar. And the situation was getting much worse there," Brooks challenged.
Clinton, who has had some practice answering questions about her emails, was ready. For the first time during the hearing, Clinton seemed to get a little fired up, defending herself by saying, "I did not have a computer, and I did not conduct most of my work on email." Clinton additionally said she did not send emails during the day but instead had several meetings with officials every morning as well as regular weekly briefings. Clinton also said she received most of her news from memos, some of which she said were so confidential that they were brought to her in a locked briefcase.
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Jeva Lange was the executive editor at TheWeek.com. She formerly served as The Week's deputy editor and culture critic. She is also a contributor to Screen Slate, and her writing has appeared in The New York Daily News, The Awl, Vice, and Gothamist, among other publications. Jeva lives in New York City. Follow her on Twitter.
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