A State official offered FBI 'quid pro quo' to change an email classification during Clinton probe

Pat Kennedy.
(Image credit: Mark Wilson/Getty Images)

Newly released FBI 302 forms summarizing the Hillary Clinton email investigation reveal the State Department undersecretary of state attempted to persuade the FBI to change certain emails in Clinton's private email server from classified to unclassified in the middle of the investigation into the former secretary of state's email usage. The form states that an unnamed individual was "contacted by Patrick Kennedy, undersecretary of state, who asked for his assistance in altering the email's classification in exchange for a 'quid pro quo.'" The unnamed individual "advised that, in exchange for making the email unclassified, [the State Department] would reciprocate by allowing the FBI to place more agents in countries where they are presently forbidden."

The 302 form further reveals that Kennedy later asked again if the FBI could "see their way to making the email unclassified." "The FBI said in a statement that no quid pro quo took place, and that the email in question remained classified at the 'secret' level," the Washington Examiner reports. "Still, the findings are the latest sign that the State Department was coordinating with the Clinton campaign to downplay the impact of the classified information found on Clinton's emails."

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Jeva Lange

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.