FBI Director James Comey notified the U.S. Congress on Friday that his agency would renew its probe into the issue of Hillary Clinton’s handling of sensitive and classified information.
The announcement came in response to the discovery of thousands of emails sent to and from Clinton aide Huma Abedin on a laptop owned by her estranged husband, former U.S. Congressman Anthony Wiener, who is under investigation for sexting an underage girl.
The couple are in the midst of divorce proceedings.
“The FBI cannot yet assess whether or not this material may be significant, and I cannot predict how long it will take us to complete this additional work,” he wrote.
It was decided by senior officials at the FBI that it was preferable to notify Congress immediately about the discovery, rather than wait until the investigation was further along.
Clinton called on Comey in response to the revelation Friday to “release all the information he has,” telling reporters at a campaign event in Iowa, “The American people deserve to get the full and complete facts immediately,” the Wall Street Journal reported.
The Democratic presidential candidate, aware the new investigation has not yet gotten off the ground, told reporters, “So let’s get it out,” although Comey made it clear that it is likely such a probe could last well beyond Election Day.
No charges were filed this past summer against Clinton or her aides and the investigation was closed regarding emails sent and received on her private server, including those that were classified.
GOP candidate Donald Trump told reporters at a campaign event in New Hampshire, “I have great respect for the fact that the FBI and the Department of Justice are now willing to have the courage to right the horrible mistake that they made.”
At least 17 million American citizens have already cast their ballots.