'White House's praise of FBI chief blow to Clinton Campaign'

The White House praising the integrity of FBI Director James Comey, who has announced a review of Hillary Clinton's email scandal just before Presidential elections, is a blow to the Clinton Campaign, the rival Trump camp has said.

"Today, the Clinton Campaign took another blow as President (Barack) Obama shot down their desperate politicisation of the FBI's criminal investigation into Hillary Clinton's email scandal," Jason Miller, senior communication advisor to the Trump Campaign, said yesterday.

In a late night statement, Miller underscored that the White House spokesman has made it clear that the President does not believe the FBI is "secretly strategising to benefit one candidate or one political party."
 

"It is a sign of the Clinton Campaign's troubling times when even the White House cannot defend their desperate accusations.

"They have to take ownership that this is a result of corrupt Hillary having a secret illegal server for the obvious reason of shielding criminal activity from disclosure," he said.

"Their reckless and deceitful actions are evidenced by the fact that thousands upon thousands of confidential and classified emails involving Secretary Clinton and her top aide were found on a laptop of a suspect under investigation for sexting with a 17-year-old," Miller said.

Earlier in the day, White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest had described FBI Director Comey as a man of integrity. "He is a man of principle. He is a man who is well regarded by senior officials in both parties. He is somebody who served in a senior position in the Bush Administration," he said.

"And he is somebody who got strong bipartisan support when his nomination to be director of the FBI was considered by the United States Senate. So, all of those things are true. They speak to his good character," Earnest said.

"And the President's assessment of his integrity and his character has not changed. For example, the President doesn't believe Director Comey is intentionally trying to influence the outcome of an election. The President doesn't believe he's secretly strategising to benefit one candidate or one political party," he said.