The Comey Rule (2020): Season 1, Episode 1 - Night One - full transcript

Yeah. I just, uh...

I just...
There's so many Comey stories.

They're ju... they're
an emotional roller coaster,

I just don't know what to think
about James Comey.

First he seemed like
he's the good guy,

then he seemed like
he's the bad guy,

then it seemed like
he sacrificed himself

to save other people.

Oh, my God.

Is James Comey Severus Snape?

I was on the way to winning...



It was, in fact,
a big October surprise.

T-That's not the FBI. That's not
what the FBI is supposed to do.

It is clear they have no idea

what these e-mails are.

Jim Comey...

...reading of the law
is completely wrong.

I consider this decision
an outrage.

You chose to make
public statements

about one investigation
and not another.

There would be political
ramifications to your comments.

Do you have any regrets,

or are there any things
you would do differently?

You're wondering why
there isn't any cake.

Afternoon, Mr. Rosenstein.



Two reasons.

One, I don't really like cake.

And two, I hate false ceremony.

Thank-yous
are for Mother's Day.

Ah, Hoover.

There's a lesson
in Hoover's story, Justin.

Director of the FBI is afforded
an almost cultlike status.

To resist that takes discipline.

Humility.

Hmm. As opposed to...

You know what they do every year
on the Fourth of July?

Jim Comey and his family?

- No.
- They gather together and read

the Declaration of Independence
aloud to one another.

That's not in his book.

He just found a way to make sure

that everyone knows.

That's Jim.

In governance, there are people
who do the work,

and there are showboats.

Jim...

was always a showboat.

Don't worry.
He can't pick me.

They think I'm a Bush guy.

I know. They each make
such a different statement.

Yeah, but which tie?

- Ta-da!
- He goes gold.

- Very nice, Dad.
- Handsome.

You owe me a buck.

Have a great day.

- Say hi to Barack for me.
- Me, too!

Governor, I'm told you got

24 dead and over 200 injured.

Do we have that right?

I've ordered
Janet Napolitano at DHS

and Craig Fugate at FEMA
to coordinate with your team

to provide any assistance
you might need.

Just, uh, just hang in there...
Help's coming.

All right.

Come on in, Jim.

Good to meet you, Mr. President.

- You, too.
- I should confess, sir,

I supported John McCain.

And Romney.

I know.

Come on.

So...

Why...

should I hire you
to run the Bureau?

Why shouldn't I pick, say...

oh, someone who supports

my criminal justice reform
initiative?

Uh, you could, Mr. President,

and that's an issue on which
reasonable people can disagree.

But I believe stiffer sentencing
laws have, on the whole,

made the country safer.

A lot of Americans
aren't dead today

because the guys who might
have killed them were locked up.

Well, still, it might be easier
for me to have an FBI director

- who agrees with me.
- Well, that's true, but...

you've always struck me
as one of those leaders

who gains just as much
from thoughtful disagreement.

Hmm.

You garnered
a lot of attention for a...

well, taking on the Mob
as prosecutor

and defending the DOJ in '04.

I suppose that's true.

Do you need a lot of attention?

That's not a huge driver for me.

No, uh, interest in politics
down the line?

- None.
- Good.

Politicians are awful.

Advisor of mine says

you were a...
an outstanding deputy A.G.

- Thank you.
- He also says

you can be self-righteous
and, uh, morally superior.

Your advisor sounds like
an excellent judge of character.

What else do I
need to know about you, Jim?

What do you... what do you think
your weaknesses are?

Well...

um, sometimes
I can be impulsive and...

convince myself
I'm being decisive.

How's your health?
Any recurrence?

None, sir.
Clean scans for seven years now.

Hmm. Because, uh,

there's no pressure
in any private sector job

equivalent to the burden
of national security.

- That's understood.
- The director can be

a whipping boy for Congress.

And you certainly wouldn't make

what the private sector
can pay you.

Given all that, why would you
want to come back to government?

When I was, uh, 16...

a man in a knit cap
broke into our house

and put a gun
to my kid brother's head.

He said, "You move,
and I will blow his head off."

The guy had been terrorizing
our neighborhood for months.

They called him
the Ramsey Rapist.

I showed him where my parents
kept their few valuables

and begged him not to kill us.

For some reason, he didn't.

Just locked us
in the basement and left.

I slept with a butcher knife
in my bed for years.

The guy was never caught,
so I had this...

"what if" tape in my head.

"What if he comes back?

What if my sister is home
when he does?"

I'd been...

powerless.

Money is nice.

Stopping bad guys is better.

You know, uh...

if you were to get this job,

conversations like this
would be impossible.

The president
and the FBI director...

have to be at arm's length.

One day, uh,
you might be called upon

to investigate something someone
in my party may have done

- or someone on my staff or...
- You.

Well, for those investigations
to be credible,

well, we cannot be close.

Mr. President, I hope
I can look forward to years

of not being close with you.

Good morning, Mr. Director.

Mm.

All the field officers
regard us with some suspicion.

New York gripes the most.

They think
they're their own Bureau.

How have you handled that,
generally?

I tell them,
"If you're not happy, leave.

There's plenty of people
that want your job."

You can't run this place
if you mind being resented.

We do stand-up meetings,

so I don't have to waste time

while they sit
and then get back up again.

But...

you're gonna have
to make changes.

There's not a lot of talent
in the pipeline,

not even for deputy.

You need somebody
who's ready politically.

The FBI is the world
of the bank shot.

Director Mueller, this is
the promotion for the SAC

- in the Kansas City office.
- Okay.

Keep your eye on Cyber.

We're hugely vulnerable
to a coordinated attack.

- Bob?
- Yeah?

Shouldn't we discuss
what you're signing?

- What for?
- That's a senior executive

who's going to be reporting
to me in a week.

Can I know who he is
and why you're promoting...

You want it, take it.

I don't want it;
I just wanted to discuss it.

A word of advice, Jim.

If you've been doing this
for ten years,

and a president asks you
to stay on for another two,

say no.

You should know that I have

several expectations of you.

I expect you to work hard,

because you owe that
to the taxpayer.

I expect you
to exercise good judgment.

Being here means
you have the power to do good,

or, if you abuse that power,
great harm.

I expect you to find joy
in your work.

You are part of an organization
devoted to doing good,

protecting the weak,
rescuing the taken,

and catching criminals.

That is work with moral content.

Doing it should be a source
of great joy.

And I expect you to protect
this institution's reservoir

of trust and credibility,

which makes possible
all of our work.

I expect you
to fight for balance

in your lives.

You are all driven
by our mission,

and you are used
to absorbing stress.

That means you need more time
with your loved ones, not less.

So...

I order you to love someone.

It's the right thing to do.

It's also good for you.

Crime in any form
makes people feel powerless.

Let's fix that.

Oh. No, no, no.

I'm-I'm okay.
I'll wait.

Thanks.

Hi. Jim.

Pam.

What do you do here?

Counterterrorism analyst.

What did you do before?
What-what drew you here?

9/11. I was an analyst
at Cantor Fitzgerald.

Missed work that day
because of the flu.

Thanks, Pam.

Thank you, Pam.

Saved my spot.

What do you do here?

Hmm? Uh, computer tech,
Counterintel.

What were you before?
What-what called you here?

I worked for Monsanto.

Hated it.

What do you do here?

I'm the director.

Oh, yeah?

The director of what?

In his first two years
at the Bureau,

Jim did everything you'd expect
a Boy Scout to do.

He visited all 56 field offices

and dozens more overseas,

charming each and every one

of the Bureau's
37,000 employees.

He was adored.

Loved.

Nothing slowed him.

There were, you know,
kidnappings...

lone shooters, terror plots.

ISIS is not
your parents' al-Qaeda.

The FBI nabbed
at least six people.

The battle between Apple
and the FBI.

Iran hacks into
the control system

of an American dam.

Yet his
sunniness was undimmed.

Until...

Good morning.

Morning.

What did the analysts
pull together?

What's in the PDB?

Got a potential
issue in the U.K.

Getting chatter
that AQAP is going to hit

another airliner
bound for the U.S.

JTF is reporting, uh,

chatter in New York
indicating the same thing.

We don't know yet
where they'll be flying from

or what techniques
they'll be using.

Do we have a time frame on this?

Nothing specific,
just increased chatter.

Is it something the boss needs
to brief the A.G. on?

- Not yet.
- What else?

Operation in Detroit
that's ready to go down.

Guy at a mosque there
told an informant yesterday

he was planning to target
a Jewish children's center.

Do we have enough to charge?

- Yes.
- Do we have the right

resources on the ground,
good takedown plan?

We do. We'll give them
to you off-line.

Okay. Let's skinny down
for the director.

Mark, we got an I.G. referral

on Clinton and her e-mails.

We're gonna have to open a case.

Say more.

- Boss.
- What's up?

Got a referral

from the intel I.G.

about Secretary Clinton's
e-mails.

We're gonna have to open a case.

Say more.

Secretary Clinton's aides
didn't hand over her e-mails

to government records...
Is that a failure

or is that an oversight?

Well, it's a failure
to comply with the law

that the secretary had
to know about,

that her aides had
to know about.

And it's a pattern of deception
that began from before

she became secretary
until her last day.

But I am a little bit worried

about the-the security
of those e-mails.

Uh, they would've been, uh,

prime targets
for cyber, uh, attacks.

They haven't given us
e-mails for nine of the ten

senior aides that she had.

It's been over a year.

Well, let's start
from the beginning.

Everything I did was permitted.

"Did she mishandle
classified information

by using her personal
e-mail system

while serving
as Secretary of State?"

You know you're screwed, right?

I do not see
a positive outcome here

no matter what we find.

Just do it right.

Welcome to your new home.

I want to say something
before we start,

which I know you all
already know.

Whatever this investigation
yields,

history will look at what we do
here through a microscope,

so our work needs
to be letter-perfect.

No leaks,
everything buttoned down.

We cannot cut corners,
cannot screw this up in any way.

Is that clear?

Now, this is not going to
become some kind of octopus.

We're not gonna
chase down spills

to the ends of the earth,
which could take a decade.

We're looking
for "corrupt purpose."

Did Secretary Clinton
knowingly break the law

either by using
a personal e-mail server

to handle classified information

while serving at State,

or by directing
the deletion of e-mails

from that server? Period.

I want to be briefed
on this thing every day.

Pete?

We have three primary lines
of inquiry.

One, the collection
and examination

of e-mails that traversed
Secretary Clinton's servers.

Her attorneys have produced
some of those,

but 31,830 e-mails
deemed too personal

by her attorneys to submit
to the State Department

have been wiped
from her current server.

Two, interviews
of relevant witnesses

who wiped all those files off
Secretary Clinton's

server using BleachBit.

Three, Secretary Clinton used
these devices overseas,

often within the borders
of sophisticated adversaries.

So... analysis.

Did that lead to classified
information being compromised

by hostile cyber actors?

Intrusion analysis has
already begun.

OTD will image all
of Secretary Clinton's devices,

including the two servers
we currently have in custody.

And a filter team will
remove any material privileged

by attorney-client,
medical or marital,

and attempt deduplication.

We are also sending
preservation requests

to the State Department,
the CIA, DIA, DOD and EOP

for e-mails
from Secretary Clinton

Are there any questions?

Yeah, are we stuck with
the two chickenshit prosecutors.

Justice has assigned
or can we demand somebody

with actual balls?

We're looking into that.

Those two are zeros.

Is there anything else?

Do you have all the resources

you need?
Do you need anything

pushed up the chain
across the street?

We'll let you know, Mark.

Thank you.

Okay, now I'm pissed off.

Midyear's gonna be run out
of NSD at headquarters

by a deputy... how the fuck is
that supposed to work?

Fucking D.C...
Those guys couldn't find

an elephant in the middle
of Yankee Stadium.

And the prosecutors
down there are even worse.

Boss... we have venue
on this one.

- You gonna put up with this?
- Gee, fellas.

You having trouble finding joy
in your work today?

Relax.

Everything comes
through here eventually.

- Right?
- Fucking A.

Fucking A.

Tell me about Midyear.

Do you have all
the resources you need?

Sort of.

Hillary's lawyers are
slow-walking everything,

and no one at Justice is
doing anything to stop it.

Her lead guy is David Kendall.

One of the prosecutors
used to work for him, so...

there's an intimidation there.

Midyear team's getting
frustrated with it.

I'll take care of it, thank you.

How's Judy?

She's good.

So this 18 months
you signed up for,

how would feel about
making that 24 months?

Now I understand
the picnic setting.

I need to make some
actual money, boss.

We're strapped.

Apartment here,
house in Atlanta,

two college tuitions.

If I want to get home, I have
to drive ten hours because

I can't afford to fly.

I'm sorry.

But I've got no one
to replace you, Mark.

No one's ready.

And the Bureau can't function

without a deputy who commands
the respect you do.

I made her a promise, boss.

We're steaming towards
an iceberg.

You know that.

Do you see anybody
who's ready to step in

and do the job at your level,
day one, no drop-off,

nothing gets missed?

Just six more.

Mom, you can breathe.

- She's gonna win.
- You don't know that.

- Who's gonna beat her?
- Trump.

Trump?

He's an idiot.

But he's a man.

And male voters are gender-loyal

in a way that women aren't.

And he isn't being
investigated by anyone.

Yeah.

What's up with that, Dad?

If she broke the law,
wouldn't you want to know?

No, not really.

Me, neither.

Hey, Mark, what's up?

Boss, sorry to hit you
on a Sunday.

Uh, you got a second?
It's important.

Okay.

- Go.
- Russia.

Some anomalous behavior
concerning the election.

What kind of anomalous behavior?

We think
they're trying to sabotage.

Secretary Clinton's campaign.

How?

Ever spend much time
on Facebook?

Donald Trump clearly,
uh, is-is scheduled,

at this point, to win
the Republican nomination.

It's not just
that he's ahead by so much.

It's the ways
in which he's ahead.

The Trump supporters see
Trump as political chemo.

He may be toxic, he may
kill every healthy cell

in the bloodstream,

but he is the only cure for
the cancer that is Washington...

Okay.

Secretary Clinton was
a part of 81 e-mail chains,

containing 193 e-mails ranging
from confidential to top secret,

all sent
from unclassified systems.

That's staff failure.

Tell me why.

On sensitive material,
staff is supposed

to include headers or footers
with classification markings.

That's how these things
get flagged.

It's standard.
Her staff didn't do it.

But she knew the material
was sensitive

and she knew the systems
were unprotected.

Let's chase that down later.

Where are we
with Huma Abedin's e-mails?

I asked. Justice doesn't feel
the need to get a warrant,

because Abedin's
work for Clinton was

"administrative in nature

and she was never an originator
of classified materials."

But she could have been
a forwarder

of classified materials;
She could have taken stuff

off of classified systems
and dumped it down.

They're just too fucking
scared to walk

into Williams & Connolly
and tell David Kendall

to stop obstructing
this investigation.

That's a pretty big word.

Hey, are you in on Midyear,
the Hillary case?

Yeah.

Godspeed, brother.

I hope you nail that bitch.

They have obfuscated
every step of this process,

and I don't blame them...
They should use every legal

advantage at their disposal.

I blame our snowflake
prosecutors

- for letting them do it.
- Where are they, by the way?

- Where's Bob?
- Uh, Bob won't be able

- to make it tonight.
- Why not?

He's in his office, uh, crying.

Is there any pizza left?

Over there? I mean...

Uh...

I-I asked him

to push Hillary's team
for the PRN server,

and apparently
Kendall yelled at him.

Our line prosecutor is
crying in his office

because a fancy lawyer
yelled at him.

This is what
I'm talking about, Pete!

- She's not wrong.
- Yeah.

Every day, I hear from another

disgruntled member
of the Midyear Exam team.

And every call has
this assumption under it.

That somehow Justice
isn't engaged here.

If you want those calls to stop,

- stop slow-walking everything.
- Listen, Mark...

In a case this high-profile,
there are bound to be tensions.

Sally, my team feels their
investigation is being impeded.

And my team feels their work
is being second-guessed.

Our strong consensus is that
Secretary Clinton's attorneys

have not been operating
in good faith

with this investigation,

that they're being allowed
to obfuscate

by the line prosecutors
here at Justice.

You think
I'm not doing my job, Jim?

You think I'm getting played?

I think you're risk-averse, Bob.

Crying in your office
doesn't help.

Every document or device
we've requested,

we're going to get.

Her attorneys
are only going to be

as helpful
as you push them to be.

We're trying to be careful.

- Can you be careful faster?
- That's what I'm talking about.

Thank you, everyone.

Loretta, uh, one other thing.

The Bureau's been getting
bombarded with questions

about whether or not we're
investigating Secretary Clinton.

It's starting to feel silly
to keep issuing a "no comment."

People are openly talking
about it in the press,

and even Secretary Clinton
herself has referred to it.

So I'd like your permission,
i-if asked, to acknowledge it

with, "We don't comment
on investigations."

Fine.

But I think it would be better

to refer to it as a "matter."

Why would we do that?

Because we don't comment
on investigations.

But if we're trying to establish

that we're treating this
like any other case,

wouldn't it be helpful
to use the same language

we'd use on any other case?

I'm trying
to thread the needle here.

I think "matter" does that.

Okay. We can make that work.

Good.

Oh. Hey, Jim.

Hi, Rod.

- Uh, budget meeting.
- Oh.

- How you been?
- Fine, fine. Good to see you.

Would you ever want to come talk
to my team about leadership?

I bring guest speakers in
for them now and then.

- Various topics.
- Mm.

Leadership's a big focus
of yours, isn't it?

It is.

Well, then, would you?

I'm sure that they would
appreciate it.

Uh, right now,
their idea of leadership is me.

We've got
a Child Exploitation Force

right down the street
from there, don't we, Mark?

I could visit both
in the same day.

- Make it a twofer.
- Sure.

Yeah. Great.
Contact my office,

- will you, Rod?
- I sure will, Jim. Thanks.

- Mm-hmm.
- Mark.

After primary wins

in New Hampshire,
South Carolina and Nevada,

the Trump campaign

is charging
towards Super Tuesday.

Um, it would be messy, and it
would be bloody, but if you...

For those who say Donald Trump
cannot win, you're wrong.

Want an entertainer in chief?

Someone who will say
whatever he wants to,

you know, to make it...
make it all about him?

He is heading
towards the nomination,

but he is in conflict
with his party.

What people are saying now is,
"Please,

everyone get together
so we can keep this front-runner

from winning and destroying
the Republican Party."

Democratic
front-runner Hillary Clinton

remains saddled
with accusations of impropriety

stemming from
the FBI's investigation

into her use of e-mails

while serving
as Secretary of State.

One party insider saying

the only primary
that matters now

is the Comey primary.

Got a minute, boss?

Sure. What's up?

Twenty-four months.

Now that your days
of actual hard work are over...

Congratulations.

Thank you.

Huh. There it is.

- Hi, Peter.
- Hey, Lisa.

I'm sorry if I spoke out of turn
in the brief today.

Those two are idiots,

and you should
shitcan them pronto.

Anyone else
not up to your standards?

Well, now that you ask, yes.

There's a couple of losers
in the WFO

that are really slowing us down,

and the A.G. is no great shakes,
either.

How about the commissioner
of baseball?

He's retarded.

I mean, you either have
the designated hitter

in both leagues or not at all.

Do you want some punch?

Got a flight to catch, boss.

Thanks for the swell party.

Thanks for the two years.

I got Andy up to speed
on a few things.

He'll do a great job.
The guy's so smart.

He'll learn how
to connect better with people.

And he can reach out
anytime he needs to.

So can you.

I'll be taking you up on that.

You ever want to talk through
the endgame on Hillary,

just call.

He said while slipping
into a lifeboat.

No. Thanks, Mark.

I owe you.

Don't be a stranger.

Be good, Althea.

Okay.

Oh, my God.

Couple things before I go?

Sure.

Oh, yeah.
Found these under the desk.

Yours, right?

Keep an eye on Russia.

I know how much bandwidth
Midyear is eating up,

but I don't like
what I'm seeing.

I agree.

Every field office,
we got Shorty and Boo

running around,
looking for Hillary's e-mails.

- Meanwhile, we're under attack.
- I'm with you.

One other thing.
Completely unsolicited,

but I got to say it.

Your counsel's
gonna become a problem,

- I think.
- Lisa?

People complain to me about her.

She rubs some the wrong way,
I know.

- Opinionated people do that.
- She's divisive.

She creates issues where
there don't need to be any.

I don't let her in my briefings.

She's smart.

She helps me get shit done.

- And I like a contrarian voice.
- Hey, dummy.

Are you hearing me?
She creates problems.

She rips everyone a new asshole
in meetings,

and as soon as the boss
is around,

it's, "Sir,
may I raise a concern here?"

People hate that.

You better get snapped in
to this.

- Anything else?
- Yeah, there is.

This is a lunchpail culture.

Driving a blue Porsche,

wearing matching blue cuff links

may not be the best message
for you to send.

These were a gift from Jill.

- They're on your wrists.
- Mark.

I didn't get here
by dressing well.

Take care of the boss, will you?

He thinks that being right
will save him.

It won't.

And as smart as he is,

his political instincts
are not good.

Good night.

Mark.

I'll talk to her.

Hmm.

Ah, General. Good to see you.

And you, Sergei.

General Flynn, President Putin.

I very much appreciate
the invitation, Mr. President.

And the-the courtesy
of this visit.

"A colorful

and talented man."

Well, he is that.

Um, I understand, uh...

you're not a fan
of our current president,

Mr. Obama.

Neither am I.

We think
you should enjoy the gala.

Julian Assange
is hosting via satellite,

and Jill Stein
will be at your table.

She's also running
to be the U.S. president.

Well, I guess
that pretty much sums up

how you folks feel
about Secretary Clinton,

doesn't it?

Come.

Let's.

Caught me.

There's been a cyber breach

of the Democratic
National Committee.

Looks like the hack
went all the way up to Podesta.

Foreign actors or domestic?

Malware led us to a string of
code that we've seen before...

emanating from Russia.

All right,
let's start recruiting sources.

Find out more.

What the hell are they up to?

So, uh,

you were saying, uh, Russia?

Russia.

Wow, are those guys smart.

Do you, uh...
You know Professor Mifsud?

Joseph Mifsud?

- Uh, no, afraid I don't.
- Huh.

- Is he Russian?
- Maltan. Or Maltese.

Maltanese.
He's from fucking Malta,

but he has connections
in Russia.

All the way up to Putin.

We've been talking for months.

What about?

Hillary.

In what context?

Russia's got dirt on her.

Lots of embarrassing stuff.
Thousands of e-mails.

And they made them all
available to us.

Well, how did they get them?

Hacked straight out of the DNC

and the Clinton campaign.

And the Russians are making them
available to you?

"We have dirt on Hillary,

and we want to help."
That's a quote.

They said they could
release it anonymously,

some big data dump
on the Internet

timed to do maximum damage
to her.

Who else knows about this,
George?

That's the beauty of it.

No one.

God bless America.

Indeed.

We should go to France.

Okay. When?

2024?

Oh, good. Good. That's good.
Distract me.

Everything looks great,
Mr. Comey.

The doctor doesn't see
any hot spots

- or signs of recurrence.
- That's wonderful. Thank you.

You're still taking the aspirin?

Every day.

Good. Don't want
any more blood clots.

- See you in a year.
- He still has numbness

- in his fingertips and his feet.
- That's common.

- The chemo.
- Ten years out?

Are you getting enough rest?

- No.
- I think so.

How you doing on stress?

I don't imagine Hillary's
making that any easier.

I'll tell ya, I don't know
how you keep your cool

in the face of that kind
of arrogance and entitlement.

I think I'd explode.

Actually, he makes it a...

Thanks for the good news.

We'll see you next year.

Everyone's got an opinion,
you know?

And the right to voice it.

That "Crooked Hillary" stuff
is sticking to her.

Now it's part
of your colonoscopy results.

You know...

it's been a good day.

Let's just celebrate.

In Paris?

Love you.

The Midyear team's
investigation

of Hillary Clinton ground on.

They issued
56 grand jury subpoenas,

conducted 72 voluntary witness
interviews.

Search warrants,
court orders,

immunity agreements.

They got every last one
of her laptops,

examined them all, and found...

Nothing.

No crime that any reasonable
prosecutor would charge.

We think she's guilty of
great neglect and carelessness,

but we don't see
anything indictable.

The systems at State
are so arcane,

if you wanted to charge her,

you'd have to charge
150 other people, too.

After poring
through the relevant case law,

we've reached
the same conclusion.

Neither the Espionage Act
nor Volstead apply here.

And we think it's time
to start asking what the endgame

on this might look like.

In the middle of an election,

something this visible,

I don't think DOJ can put out
a statement reading,

"We looked at it. We're not
prosecuting Secretary Clinton.

"Case closed." I think we need
to explain our thinking on this

to the American people
via the press.

- We feel that way, too.
- But...

there is a very real downside

to having the A.G.
make a statement on this.

It cannot appear
to be partisan in any way.

We thought
the right approach might be

for you and the A.G.
to make the statement jointly.

We hold hands and jump off
the bridge together.

How would you feel about that?

As I see it,
you got a few options...

All of them terrible.

You can make a joint statement
with the A.G., as requested,

which is... terrible,

uh, because there's
a widespread belief,

rightly or wrongly,

that Loretta is overly friendly
with the Clinton campaign.

So standing beside her makes the
Bureau seem complicit as well.

Two, you can fall back
on department norms,

just issue a brief statement
declining the case and move on.

That's terrible if our goal
is to show the public

we really did try to make a case
against Hillary,

aggressively, thoroughly.

Then there's the idea of me
making the statement on my own.

Well, which is the worst idea,
by a mile.

The Bureau doesn't do that.

Ever. It-it would violate
a sacred norm

in a culture built on norms.

And, in my opinion,
it would look horrible.

But it's the only one that
allows us to tell the truth.

Loretta
would never just stand there

and allow me to explain
what Hillary did

and why we think
it was dangerous.

This is a first attempt
at a statement.

It represents
our outer boundaries

in terms of transparency.

Uh, I really wish
you hadn't done that.

Anything committed to writing
is discoverable.

I'd ask you to assess
three things:

The accuracy of the facts
laid out in the draft,

any policy or other limitations
around making such a statement,

and the wisdom and mechanics
of presenting it

to the American people.

All right?

Is there anything on your mind?

- Why?
- A little bit quiet.

Maybe a dead-end, politically
motivated investigation

on a certain female
presidential candidate?

Do you ever worry about my ego?

Why?

Has it not been feeling well?

Do you want to tell me
something?

Just that I love you, Treecy.

- So, how'd the 302 go?
- Awesome.

- He lied his ass off.
- Of course.

Guy went from
"I was never inside the SCIF"

to "I may have removed
the trash from there twice..."

- Mm.
- ...to "I troubleshot the fax

in there a couple of times"

to "Every time there was
a secure fax sent, I sent it."

It kills me
that people lie to our face

when they know that we know

- that they're lying.
- I know.

Meanwhile, there's a Russian
inside everybody's computer,

and nobody's talking about it.

It's been an hour.

We should log in.

Sorry.

It's good to meet you all.

Thank you for coming
such a long way.

We are happy to help.

Natalia, the floor is yours.

The floor...?

Oh.
I apologize.

That's an American expression.

It means we're ready to hear

every single disgusting detail

of the dirt you have on Hillary.

Amen.

Some days,
our job is chasing Russians.

Let's talk
about the Magnitsky Act.

On others,

we chase monsters.

And Jim had to do a lot of that.

Assemble the first responders
for me, would you?

I want to thank them.

Not a good time, Andy.

Sorry, boss.

Just...

It's about the A.G.

- Uh, General Lynch?
- Mm-hmm?

Former President Clinton
is here.

He'd like to, uh...

pay his respects.

Here where?

On the tarmac. That...

That's his plane.

What should I tell him?

Well...

Show him in.

An impromptu meeting

between Attorney General Loretta
Lynch and former President.

Bill Clinton is raising
questions of impropriety

amid the ongoing
FBI criminal probe

into Hillary Clinton's
e-mail server.

At the Phoenix
Airport Monday night,

the former president saw
Lynch's plane on the tarmac.

...doesn't wait to-to schmooze

with the attorney general
who's gonna decide whether

- his wife is indicted or not.
- I...

The A.G. has just announced

that she will not recuse herself
from this investigation.

But she will accept our
findings, whatever they may be.

Meaning this is now on us.

What a profile in courage.

I no longer believe that
I can credibly stand beside her

to announce that Justice
is closing the Clinton case.

This bureau
and the whole department

will look utterly compromised
and partisan.

Does anyone see it differently?

No.

Mm, we all agree on that.

But I think the public is now
going to demand an explanation

for our declining the case.

So I'm going to go ahead and
deliver the declination alone.

Um...

That could go really wrong,
boss.

For a million reasons.

I mean,
it is just so not what we do.

I get that, Andy.

And conventional wisdom
might mitigate against it.

But this is not
a conventional circumstance.

This is a 500-year flood.

If we let Justice issue
a one-sentence declination now,

it will place a corrosive doubt
about our investigation

and, more broadly,
the rule of law

into the public square.

Even standing next to her
at this point

will make our work look suspect.

And it isn't.

Then why not call
a special prosecutor

and take it off our plate?

That would be brutally unfair
to the Clinton campaign.

A world-class FBI team just
investigated her for a year.

And there is not one of us
who believes

there is
a prosecutable case here.

Calling for a special prosecutor
would suggest just the opposite.

It would be a lie.

Trisha.

I...

It's fine.
Withdrawn.

No. I-I want to hear
your thinking.

Well, I guess
what I'm thinking is

grand juries are secret
for a reason.

We don't comment
on the propriety

of a subject's conduct,

especially during
an election year.

DOJ's given that kind of detail

about conduct in uncharged cases
when the public needs it.

They did it after Ferguson.

But the Bureau's never done it.

This is going to expose you
to enormous fire.

Unnecessarily.

It-it will look political,

when our entire intent
is to appear apolitical.

People in D.C. know
I'm apolitical.

They know I'm not a hack.

In any other year,
that might matter.

But not now.

Would Justice know ahead of time

- what you'd be saying?
- No.

I wouldn't want any appearance
of coordination

between the Bureau and Justice
on this.

We have to appear
completely independent.

What if Loretta or Sally
ordered you not to do it?

Then I would do as ordered.

But that's why I don't want it
to get out.

There's still the option
of standing beside Sally

to do this.

There is a valid argument
for that.

She's my immediate superior.

But she also reports directly
to Loretta,

who is now tainted.

I have looked at this
from every angle.

They're all terrible.

Horrible.

Once you embrace that,

this option
becomes easier to accept.

Well...

if anyone can pull it off,
boss...

...it's you.

If he'd just been

a little humbler,

a little less certain
that his morality

was somehow all that mattered...

the world wouldn't
know my name today.

Do you see?

Sir, may I raise a concern?

Sure.

Paragraph three of your draft.

"Grossly negligent."

I think it's confusing to use
a term with a legal definition,

especially as we're not charging
her with gross negligence.

Let's say "extremely careless."

Copy that.

If the country
ever starts to distrust

the Bureau's intentions...

it's a bell
that can never be unrung.

Jim, none of this can be unrung.

Mark it up.

And be brutal.

Let me reframe this for you.

We rescue a mom and three kids
from an abusive father,

and you tell her
that her children

cannot attend her school
because of a paperwork error?

Uh...

Do you see the disconnect there?

That's great.

Thank you.

I'll see you Monday.

Maybe you should be running
the Bureau.

You just happened to be

- in the neighborhood?
- I just...

no, I couldn't stand the idea
of you eating alone.

You're gonna get clobbered, Jim.

Eh, got a ten-year term,
don't I?

I think we should add:
"Had these same e-mails

"been sent
on a state. Gov system,

the FBI never would have
investigated this matter."

Let's not say "matter," huh?

I would also change
"It's reasonably likely"

"that states hostile to the U.S.
gained access to her servers"

to "It's possible"
that they did so.

Forensics can't take us
any farther than that.

I don't think we should say
that the president was

one of the people
she was e-mailing with.

There's no reason to make
the GRU's job any easier.

Replace it with, uh,
"senior government official,"

"another
senior government official."

Who lives at
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue?

It's important to say
why the FBI can, in good faith,

recommend to DOJ that
no charges be brought here.

Not just because
no reasonable prosecutor

would bring such a case,
but because

it's the right thing to do.

But that's not the tone
of this statement at all.

The tone is: "I'm now going
to prove the Bureau"

did not take it easy
on Hillary Clinton.

And I'm going to do that
by telling you

what a horrible thing
Hillary Clinton did,

even as I'm recommending
against prosecution

"in her case."

Look, if she had
followed normal protocol

from the beginning,
then we wouldn't have spent

a year fighting with
her fucking lawyers.

Why does she get coddled now
for breaking protocol,

and possibly the law?

Because we've decided
not to charge her.

And I have real concerns about
criticizing uncharged conduct.

And-and I also think
that this statement

might violate the department's

election year
sensitivity policy.

We are not supposed to
do anything

within six months of an election
if it might affect the outcome.

No, that only applies to
election-crime cases.

Well, then the policy
isn't broad enough,

but it should at least guide us.

Trisha, half this country
thinks these e-mails are 9/11.

We have to go big here.

Don't you think
she crossed the line?

I think her behavior
was appalling.

I think that she's been told
that she's so smart for so long

that she didn't think that
normal rules applied to her.

But it's not our job to say so.

I also think the director's
gonna get slaughtered for this.

You may be right, Trisha.
I don't know.

Does everyone agree with her?

I think the piece is superb.

I think the A.G.
put us in a box,

and this is a credible response.

Anybody else?

I'm with Trisha, boss.

I-I think you're underestimating

how poisonous the political
climate is at the moment.

I'm not a politician.

Yes?

Good morning.
I wanted to let you know

that I've called
a press conference for today

to announce the Bureau's
recommendation

on Secretary Clinton.

And what will you be
recommending?

I'm sorry, but I'm not
going to answer that.

It's, uh, it's very important

that I not have coordinated this
in any way with DOJ.

Do you understand why?

Today? This morning?

Yes. At 11:00.

Thank you for letting us know.

Good morning.

I'm here to give you an update

on the FBI's investigation

of Secretary Clinton's use
of a personal email system

during her time
as Secretary of State.

After a tremendous amount
of work over the last year,

the FBI is completing
its investigation

and referring the case
to the Department of Justice

for a prosecutive decision.

What I would like to do today
is to tell you three things:

What we did, what we found,

and what we are recommending
to the Department of Justice.

His announcement caught

a lot of people off guard.

You know how Washington works.
Not knowing

the theme of a...
of a press conference

is not something that's
very typical.

Sean, your candidate,
Donald Trump,

the presumed Republican nominee
just tweeted.

He said, "The system is rigged.

General Petraeus got
in trouble for far less.

Very, very unfair!
As usual, bad judgment."

Republicans believe that

he made the wrong decision

in not referring this case
to the Justice Department.

They believe that she was given
preferential treatment

in that decision to not

prosecute this case
even further.

They say this is a clear
violation of federal law,

so expect to hear questions
about why.

Comey made this decision.

And from Comey's perspective,
he believes...

Are you sure you want
to watch this?

Everybody else is.

...that what Comey stated

is that Hillary Clinton should
have been fired from her job.

By who? President Obama,
if she were still...

...and
high temperatures moving back

just in time for the weekend.

Those are your local
weather headlines.

And now...

At least I'm finished
with her e-mails already.

Daddy, I don't think so.

Lock her up! Lock her up!

Lock her up! Lock her up!
Lock her up! Lock her up!

The latest e-mails released
by Wikileaks suggest that

top officials at the
Democratic National Committee

planned to undermine Bernie
Sanders' presidential campaign.

We have more material
related to the...

Hillary Clinton, uh, campaign.

The FBI is now investigating
the hack that led to

the leak of Democratic
National Committee e-mails.

That's Sporyshev, Podobnyy.

- How recent are these shots?
- Within a week.

Really?

Okay, Russia.

Bill?

Who picks these file names?

Randomly generated in C.I.

His name's George Papadopoulos,
advisor to the Trump campaign.

We've just learned that
in March,

Papadopoulos told
an Australian diplomat

that the Russian government
had dirt in the form of

e-mails on Secretary Clinton,

and had offered it
to the Trump team.

Say more.

Diplomat didn't think much of it

until last week,
when he saw that the Russians

had hacked the DNC.

How high up is Papadopoulos?

He had a hand in writing Trump's
first foreign policy speech,

the Mayflower Hotel address,

which was basically
a love letter

to the Russian government.

Okay.

If Russia were going
to make other contacts

inside the Trump campaign,

who would be their
likely targets?

Carter Page.

Carter Page.

Yeah,
we briefed you on him in '14,

when he was working
at Merrill Lynch Moscow.

The GRU recruited him
as an asset.

The guy's a dope.

He was living in his car
not long ago.

But he was the first member of
Trump's national security team.

He's blinking red.

How high up is he?
Who does he report to?

In Russia or on the campaign?

You know General Flynn.

Fired by President Obama
two years ago.

He was paid $45,000

by Russia Today last December

to speak at their gala
in Moscow,

where he sat next to Putin.

He was also paid to lobby
for Saudi Arabia and Turkey.

Now a senior advisor to Trump.

We tried to bump him with a CHS.

We're not getting anything.

Let's see if we can
develop anything else.

Who's next?

You know Paul Manafort.

Also under
criminal investigation

since 2014.

He's on the payroll
of Russian oligarchs,

Oleg Deripaska

and Dmytro Firtash,
for ten million a year.

He's got close ties
to Konstantin Kilimnik

of Russian intel,
and he served

as a paid lobbyist to a bunch
of Russian-backed officials

in Ukraine.

Now he's serving as
Trump's campaign chair.

Also blinking red.

Why are there four guys
with ties to Russia

on one campaign?

Maybe Trump doesn't
vet people very well.

Maybe he does.

We're starting to see propaganda
about Secretary Clinton

from Radio Sputnik
and Russia Today

showing up verbatim
in Trump's stump speeches.

I don't know that
it's coordinated, but...

Obviously, we're going to keep
this extremely close-hold.

Any connection between
Russian efforts

to influence this election
and the Trump campaign

is a very serious
and explosive matter.

I don't want it mentioned
in morning briefings.

Thanks, everyone.
We'll skinny down now.

Can someone find out why
I keep seeing

Rudy Giuliani on TV saying
things about our investigations

that he shouldn't know?

We suspect another leak at NYO.

Well, plug it, will you?
Before I go rip-shit?

Yes, sir.

It really frosts me.

Yes, sir.

You've got a leaker
in your office.

Want to give me
some context, Andy?

Rudy Giuliani is on TV nonstop
since the declination

predicting things that
he shouldn't know.

Now, I know you've got
a bunch of Hillary haters

up there pissed off
that we dropped her case.

You've got to
shut this down, Bill.

You sure it wasn't
one of the formers?

They've got the ties to Rudy.

The formers wouldn't have access
to the kind of intel

that he's revealing.

Could be SDNY.
He's got ties there, too.

Let me level-set this
for you, Bill.

Reign your guys in.

You fire people if you have to,

but get your office's
shit together.

Will do.

Thanks.

Ma'am?

Hello, Justin.

I thought you might want
another soda.

Oh, no. Just one a day.
But thank you.

Have a seat.

Really?

Sure.

Mind if I ask you, ma'am...

what is that in the frame?

That was from
my first trial ever.

Pro bono case when I was

at King & Spalding.

An all-white jury that found
for an African-American woman

named Lovie Morrison
against a... a white family

trying to steal her land
in Barrow County, Georgia.

And that cloth was the deed.

I had never tried a case before.

I didn't even know
where to stand.

My star witness was
a bootlegger's wife.

But...

that jury did right anyway.

And you remember that
next time somebody tells you

this country can't be
its best self.

Or the law doesn't matter.

Thank you, ma'am.

I'll let you get back
to your work.

Night, Justin.

Boss, we've now
been presented a dossier

concerning Russia and its
possible connection to Trump.

We've not independently
corroborated

any of the conclusions here,
but...

they come from
a highly credible source,

ex-MI6, who has a history
of cooperation with the Bureau

and the rest of the I.C.

Then let's hear it.

The dossier asserts that Putin
began cultivating Trump

as an asset more than five years

prior to his entry
into politics.

They traded favors with him.

They aided his Miss Universe
pageant.

They offered their help in
future Trump real estate deals

within Russia, including
the Trump Tower in Moscow.

And granted him access
to hundreds of millions

in loans from banks controlled
by the Russian oligarchy

just as U.S. banks
had declared Trump

to be an unworthy credit risk.

It was a years-long effort to...

recruit and maintain Trump
as an asset of the FSB

with the long-term goal of...

using him to sow discord
and disunity within the U.S.

The dossier further asserts
that since last year,

the Trump campaign has "accepted
a regular flow of intelligence

from the Kremlin
on his political rivals."

Again, we have not corroborated
any of this independently,

and it should be noted
that the original financier

of the dossier was
a Republican "Never Trumper,"

and the funds to finish
the dossier

then came from the Democrats.

Go on.

The dossier holds
that the FSB's main leverage

over Trump is likely blackmail,

made possible because
the Russians had videos

of Trump engaging
in "perverted sexual acts"

when he stayed
in the Presidential Suite

of Moscow's Ritz-Carlton hotel
in 2013.

Specifically,
a "golden showers show."

I'm-I'm sorry.
What-what does that mean?

It means, uh, they defiled a bed
that Barack and Michelle Obama

slept in during a state visit
by urinating on it, sir.

- I see.
- Again, the Bureau has not yet

been able to independently
corroborate the claim,

or any of the conclusions here,
but... given what we now know

of Trump's complicated
financial ties to Russian banks,

his loans from known oligarchs,

his ongoing attempt to get
that tower built in Moscow,

the dossier does provide
a plausible,

if alarming working theory:

Russia has compromised Trump.

That supposition
does not leave this room.

Let's just find out
if it's true.

How aggressively?

The harder we pursue,
the more likely we are

to burn our source.

We can't think that way
on this one.

We can't take the traditional,
years-long C.I. approach.

- Why not?
- Because what if candidate Trump

becomes President Trump
before we've determined

whether or not
any of this is true?

If he takes office

and we still think
he may be a Russian asset,

how do we share intel with him?

How do we vet his
national security nominees?

Just find out if it's true.

Get me Jim Clapper.

Mr. President, as you know,
for the past year,

we've been watching
the Russians engage

in a multifaceted
influence campaign

concerning our election,
directed by Putin himself.

Cyber espionage,

propaganda across
all social media platforms,

hacking DNC e-mails
and then releasing them

at the moment of maximum damage.

Now, the goal of this effort,
in our assessment,

had been to harm our democracy,

weaken Secretary of State
Clinton's future presidency.

We can now say
with a high degree of confidence

the Russians have a third goal.

They are trying to secure
the election of Donald Trump,

by any and all means.

- Who else knows about this?
- It's extremely close-hold.

A very small circle
within the I.C.

Does it make sense to alert
the public of this attack?

Sir, w-we have
some disagreement on that.

Mike and I think
it's the right thing to do.

But there is a compelling
argument against it.

It might achieve

the Russians' goals
by undermining

the public's confidence
in our electoral system.

Well, I'm determined
not to do that.

Do the Russians
know we have this?

Mr. President, I'm not
entirely sure that they care.

Crossfire Hurricane

suddenly became
priority number one.

Then came Anthony Weiner.

Anthony Weiner caught

in yet another sexting scandal.

The disgraced
former congressman, husband

to longtime and powerful
Hillary Clinton advisor.

Huma Abedin,
humiliated once again,

this time on the front page
of the New York Post.

Abedin said,
"I have made the decision

to separate from my husband."

Trump couldn't resist
weighing in on the separation,

accusing Clinton of bad judgment

for having someone like Weiner
in her orbit.

Elaine, we notice that Weiner

has now deleted
his Twitter account,

about five and a half years
too late.

Holy shit.

There are 141,000 e-mails

on the laptop that might
be relevant to Midyear Exam

associated with seven domains,
primarily state. Gov,

Now, as I said,
NYO only has the legal authority

to look at the material
on the Weiner laptop

relevant to the sex crime
charges against him.

We can't look
at any of the Midyear stuff,

nothing to which Abedin
was a party.

Andy, it's our feeling here
that, uh,

you're gonna have
to get a new warrant.

Okay. CD and NYO personnel
should connect on this,

figure out what you have there.

Hopefully it's all
just duplicates

- of what we've already seen.
- Duplicates?

Uh, the time frames
overlap with the periods

you're looking at here.
I mean, this is very much

- in the Midyear lane.
- We did such

a thorough scrub before,
this is likely all duplicates

- of what we've already seen.
- Okay, Andy, we...

Listen, Bill,
can we take this off-line?

I have to get to Quantico.
I'll call you from the car.

- Sure.
- What a shitshow.

I don't think it's a crank lead,
but there are all kinds

of process issues attached
to it and technical issues, too.

My guess is it's something

we wait until the first
of the year to deal with.

- Hmm.
- Anyway, I'm, uh,

- I'm going up there tomorrow.
- You're a dick.

Leaving me here with all this
fake e-mail hysteria

while you're lounging
on the Acela?

Well, somebody's got to do it.

Like I said. Dick.

Trump can't
become president, right?

Right?

No. He won't.

We'll stop him.

"We" as in the Bureau?
You just gave me a boner.

No, "we" as in the public.

That's who you're counting on?
Oh, honey.

I just got a call from NYO,

asking where we were
on the Anthony Weiner laptop.

Where are we
on the Anthony Weiner laptop?

We're behind.

We were unable to begin the
carving process on the laptop

in New York last month
due to legal limitations.

We needed either
a new search warrant

or a modification
of the prior one.

And did we seek a new warrant
or a modification?

No. There was
a miscommunication.

But we now know that the laptop
contains 347,000 e-mails,

including backups of Secretary
Clinton's BlackBerry e-mails.

Her BlackBerry e-mails.

- Yeah.
- The ones we did not have

access to in round one.

The ones that might
prove criminal intent?

Yes.

I see.

So we are now 15 days before
a presidential election,

and we have to go through
347,000 e-mails

to determine if one of
the candidates in that election

needs to be indicted,

and we could have had
that answer a month ago?

Yes, sir.

- Was that Andy?
- Yeah. Why?

So is this.

I'm aware.

- And?
- And I think it's crap.

A story like that brings
an unnecessary vector

of suspicion upon the Bureau.

He must have told you
about the contribution, right?

I mean, he'd have to have,
before he had anything to do

with an investigation
into Hillary.

Jill should never have run,
anyway.

No Democrat was ever gonna win
in Loudoun County.

It was long before he became
a deputy, and he's doing fine.

He's working his tail off.

Jim, don't go Jimmy Stewart
on this one.

He's an operator. Mr. Porsche.

No law against driving
a Porsche, Treecy.

Doesn't it make you angry?

Anger doesn't help.

Boss, the Anthony Weiner laptop

that NYO recovered last month.

Okay.

It contains e-mail metadata
from Secretary Clinton.

From her BlackBerry
domain account,

which she used in her
first three months at State.

As you know,
these were the e-mails

we did not have access to
in our initial investigation.

I-If any e-mails
were going to indicate

criminal intent on her part,
it would be these.

I see. And we discovered these
last month?

Yes, sir.

I did mention it
to you initially.

I imagine you didn't index it.

No.

Andy, you can drop off now.

I don't need you on this call.

Yes, sir.

- Sir, would you excuse me?
- Of course.

What do you need?

Permission to seek
an expanded search warrant.

You got it. How fast
can you review and assess

- these extra e-mails?
- Several weeks.

The election's 12 days away.

- Can we bring in more bodies?
- We determined

that that would be ineffective.

Outsiders wouldn't know

- what to look for.
- And our chance

of resolving this by November 8?

Zero.

Okay.

Do it as quickly as you can.

Do it well, always well,
no matter how long it takes.

Now, does Congress
need to be advised of this?

We just told Congress in July
that this was all over.

That is now materially untrue.

We are reopening
our investigation.

If we conceal that fact,

will it look like we sat
on information

to benefit one campaign
over another?

All right, I want all of you
to take a break for an hour.

Get out of this room,
get some air.

Then we'll reconvene
so I can hear your thinking.

Sir,

the FBI has never commented

on the reopening
of an investigation.

It might very well be unfair

to Secretary Clinton
in terms of due process.

We wouldn't be
publicly commenting on it.

We'd be notifying Congress.
A letter to the chairs

of the eight
appropriate committees

- in the House and Senate.
- I understand, but...

But, uh,
this close to an election,

that will almost certainly leak,

so notifying Congress

is tantamount
to notifying the public.

So we should conceal it?
Lie by omission?

Well, what if we announce
and then don't find anything?

What if we don't announce
and then find criminal intent?

Even if we did conceal it,

- NYO would leak it anyway.
- Mm-hmm.

We'd look sneaky
and ineffective.

- We don't know that.
- Of course they'd leak it.

That place is a sieve.

And they hate Secretary Clinton.
In five minutes,

Rudy Giuliani would be
screaming it on Fox News.

He's a former prosecutor
and a former U.S.A.

- So?
- So he knows better.

Well, that's hysterical.

This whole campaign
is a job audition for him.

What was the saying at SDNY,
boss, about him back in the day?

"The most dangerous place
to stand in the world

is between Rudy Giuliani
and a microphone."

Right.

One hour.

Thoughts?

My fear
is how partisan we'll look

if word gets out
and we've said nothing.

Saying something would be worse.

And we don't know,
categorically,

- that NYO will leak it.
- Weiner's lawyers could leak it.

DOJ could leak it.
It's not close-hold.

That's my fear, too.
We don't announce,

and three days
before the election, word leaks.

"The FBI has reopened
the investigation

on Hillary Clinton,
not told anyone about it."

Where does that put
the credibility

of this institution?

Another scenario.

Hillary's just been elected.

A Republican-controlled House
is drafting bills of impeachment

before she's even sworn in.

Now imagine we find
something incriminating.

We present those findings
to House Judiciary.

They ask us when we first found
these e-mails,

and we'll be obliged to say
that we learned of them

a month before the election.

And the world will conclude

that we actively concealed this
from the American public

in order to tip the election.

Where does that leave
the credibility

of this institution?

Any letter that you put out
at this juncture

is going to be interpreted
by the public

to mean that we've found
new evidence of wrongdoing.

If I don't inform Congress
on this,

I should be fired.
Run out of town.

But, boss,
what if our doing this

results in the election
of Donald Trump as president?

That's a great question.
Thank you for asking it.

Down that road lies the death
of the FBI

as an independent force
in American life.

If I ever start considering
whose political fortunes

might be affected by a decision
even for a second,

we're done.

You still disagree?

I know you believe
in telling the truth.

I do, too.

But there are all kinds
of truths out there.

We're also, for example,

investigating the possibility

that Trump's campaign
is in bed with Russia.

But that's intel.

But it's a truth.

And concealing one truth
and publicly announcing another

is selective honesty.

Isn't it?

Trisha, I told Congress
and the country

that this case was closed.

If that's revealed to be a lie,

how would they
ever believe us again?

Hey, boss?

A-And then, I think he's got

a surprise or two
that you're gonna hear about

- in the next two days.
- Right. Rudy...

I-I mean, I mean,
I'm talking about

some pretty big surprise.

Stay tuned.

- He's gonna leak it.
- If he hasn't already.

That's likely true.

A second ago you were
telling him not to do this.

I'm trying to find some door

other than the one
that leads to hell.

As I see it,
we only have two options here:

Speak or conceal.

One is really bad,
the other catastrophic.

That's right.

Welcome to really bad.

Is this a conversation
or a decision he's already made?

The official line
is "The director believes

he has a duty to inform

the appropriate
congressional committees."

That's not quite "I alone
can fix it," but it's close.

And to me, that means
he's going to do it.

Unless you order him not to.

And then he does it anyway,
and we have to fire him.

Or he resigns
and people find out why.

Or the contents of the letter
are leaked and we've exposed

ourselves to an obstruction
of Congress investigation

for preventing him
from correcting

- a misimpression.
- But you're his boss.

You can order him to stand down
and deal with the consequences

if and when they come.

Loretta,
he's taking a beat here.

To me, that means he's giving us
the option to step in

and make the decision for him.

Mm-mm. We cannot be perceived
to be leaning on him.

The best way to convince him
not to do it is to convince

the people close to him
to stop him from doing it.

You agree?

I think norms
and policies matter.

And I think
Director Comey believes

that his own ethics
are now worth more

than the norms
that have always steered us.

You want to bring him in?

Tell Director Comey
we think this is a bad idea...

- Yes.
- ...but we do not wish

to discuss it with him.

Hey.

- Hey, Dad.
- Got a minute?

Yeah, definitely.

Abs...

...your father's about
to get punched in the face

in public again.

Thought I should warn you.

It's not something I'm looking
forward to, but I'll be fine.

Another press conference?

No, but the effect
will be the same.

Worse.

Are you doing the right thing?

I think so. Pretty sure.

Then that's it.

I love you, Dad.

I love you, too, babe.

Oh, I'm proud of you.

Thanks.

It's too close to the election.

It's much too close.

- Do you want him to win?
- I can't talk about this

- with you anymore, Treecy.
- Jim. Jimmy.

- I can't.
- What are you doing?

Now, I would never ask you
to prosecute someone

or not prosecute someone
in my life.

I wouldn't do that.

But you have four daughters.

Now think about
what it would mean for them

to see a woman become president.

Now think about
what it would mean for them

to see her lose... to him.

And you would have
to live with that.

And they would have
to live with that, forever.

Please don't make it seem
like my choices

are between loving my daughters
or doing my job.

This is not your job.

Swinging elections
is not your job.

- But protecting the Bureau is.
- No.

You went there
to put bad guys away.

The Ramsey Rapists of the world.

Not to help them
become president.

You have no idea
what I'm dealing with.

- Then tell me.
- I can't.

You are going to convince
everyone that she is Crooked...

...Crooked Hillary.

And then what?

I'm begging you...

...for once in your life,
don't do your duty.

Just let it go. Please?

Honey, I can stand
the whole world

being mad at me, I really can.

But not you.

Then listen to me.

Jimmy.

Dad.

Morning, Rod.

Can't tell you what an honor
this is, Jim.

The whole office is so excited.

- Flattered to be asked.
- Right this way.

By now,

you all know
Jim Comey's résumé.

Former U.S. attorney in SDNY.

Former deputy attorney general.

Currently director of the FBI.

He is a man of utter integrity
and patriotism.

He's also the reason
I am a U.S. attorney.

Jim selected me
for the post 12 years ago,

which I guess means
he owes all of you an apology.

I wanted him
to speak with you today

about an obsession of his:

Leadership,

especially as seen
through the lens

of the firestorm
he experienced this summer

during
the Bureau's investigation

of Secretary Clinton.

Please welcome
my friend and colleague,

Jim Comey.

Thank you, Rod.

Thanks, Rod.

I'll try to live up to that.

Um, first,

I want to thank each of you.

You came here to do good.

You've all made sacrifices
to keep that promise.

You stay up late working on
a summation to explain why a...

drug dealer
or child pornographer is guilty.

You chase materials
to organize court exhibits

that some yo-yo
from the Bureau mislabeled.

And you shrug pleasantly
when people speak

of the "awesome resources
of the federal government,"

as you eye the fancy supplies
at a law firm

and think
about swiping some stuff

to take back to your office.

Despite obstacles,
you do the work.

You protect people.

That's noble.

What makes that work possible

is a reservoir
of trust and credibility,

a reservoir
that was built for us

and filled for us by those
who went before us in this work,

many of whom we never knew.

Our obligation is
to protect that reservoir,

to keep it full
or make it fuller,

for those who will follow us
into public service.

The problem with reservoirs is
that it's hard to fill them

and one tiny hole
can drain them.

And that's what happens
if our vigilance fails,

if, even for a second,

we ever put anything...

Politics, partisanship...

Above the primacy
of truth and justice.

I love the Bureau.

I love its mission.

That guides me every day,

in everything I do.

And if it leads me
to make mistakes, well...

I know they'll be honest ones.

The presidential election

was rocked Friday

by news
that FBI Director James Comey

had sent a letter
to congressional leaders

announcing that he was
reopening the investigation

into Hillary Clinton's use
of a private

e-mail server
while Secretary of State,

following the discovery
of new e-mails.

Democrats
are blasting the FBI director,

saying he's essentially
throwing Donald Trump

a softball with just days to go
before the campaign ends.

The Clinton campaign
and Democratic lawmakers say

the move was political.

They're calling
for more transparency.

Clinton campaign chairman
John Podesta

held a heated conference call
with reporters Saturday.

Dianne Feinstein, a Democrat
and the vice chairperson

of the Senate Select Committee
on Intelligence,

said she was shocked
to read Comey's letter.

He doesn't know
whether the e-mails referenced

in his letter
are significant or not.

I'm confident,
whatever they are,

will not change
the conclusion reached in July.

Therefore, it's imperative
that the Bureau explain

this issue in question,
whatever it is,

without any delay.

According
to officials, Director Comey

does not plan on providing
any public updates

about the investigation
until it is done.

That means no piecemeal updates
on how many e-mails

were discovered that related
to the investigation

or anything else specific until
a conclusion has been reached.

So that means we will likely
not hear about it

from Director Comey
until after the election.

We got through
all the e-mails, boss.

The wizards downstairs
built a program.

There's nothing here.

No new evidence of intent.

You're sure? This is not
just fatigue talking?

We double and triple-checked
each other's work,

and every e-mail.

Our conclusion is solid.

And our feeling
is that the Bureau is obligated

to write another letter
to Congress, advising them.

I want you all to go home
and get some sleep,

with my deepest thanks
for your hard work.

No one in America
appreciates it, but I do.

With about 48 hours
to go before the polls

begin to close,
there's breaking news tonight

from FBI Director James Comey

on those
recently discovered e-mails

connected to Hillary Clinton's
private server.

Comey sent a letter to
a congressional committee today

saying the FBI's review
of the additional e-mails

has not changed
the Bureau's decision

not to prosecute
Secretary Clinton.

A Clinton aide says her reaction
to the Comey letter

was understated, and she hasn't
mentioned it here in Cleveland.

They believe the word
will get out

whether Clinton talks about it
or not in these closing days.

It's really,
it's not a huge part.

Mm, it's an important part.

- Eh...
- You get two songs.

- I think it's awesome.
- Two songs.

- Me, too.
- Okay, Dad.

Go Hillary.

You got your I.D.?

Yes, I have my I.D., Mom.

Go ahead.

I'm so proud of you.

- You gonna join us, Dad?
- Nah. Nah.

Well, you can, you know.

No, it's not something
an FBI director should do.

You're still a citizen.

The point was
to see you cast a vote. Go.

- You okay?
- Yeah.

Treecy.

I wanted to stop the bad guys.

Brilliantly done, brother.

Go.

Now, Wolf,
I have... Wolf, I have

a little bit of information,
but I just want to be sure

- that I have it right...
- Mom?

All right, go ahead, John.

To just go
through this, as you go

through these, again, you go
through the outstanding states.

Wisconsin, you see the lead,
you're looking for the...

To try to find
the Democratic votes

and the math's just not there.

Uh, and that, you know, again,
if it was one state,

you'd say,
"Okay, they're gonna be

extra careful about
one last state."

You go back to Michigan,
it's very hard for the math,

and I just want
to pop this up, Wolf.

It is not inconceivable

that Donald Trump catches up
in Minnesota.

Uh, you know, Minnesota,
the one state

Walter Mondale won, uh,
in the Reagan sweep.

Uh, now, it's... you know,
the math is hard still...

- All right, stand by.
- ...but this is a sweep.

Dana, you were, you wanted

to be precise, so go ahead.

That's right. Uh, CNN can
report that Hillary Clinton

has called Donald Trump
to concede the race.

She has called Donald Trump
to say that

she will not be president.

Boss.

The networks have all
called it for Trump.

Thank you, Bill.