Anaya Nolan
In 2016, Bill Clinton and then-Attorney General Loretta Lynch met at Phoenix Sky Harbor airport. At the time, Lynch's Department of Justice was investigating presidential candidate Hillary Clinton over her handling of classified information sent through emails. The meeting caused a political furore, with Republicans asserting that Lynch's encounter with Bill Clinton compromised the Justice Department's investigation.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Date of meeting | 28 June 2016 |
| Location of meeting | Sky Harbor Airport, Phoenix |
| People involved | Bill Clinton, Loretta Lynch |
| Lynch's position at the time | Attorney General |
| Clinton's position at the time | Former President |
| Investigation | Lynch's Department of Justice was investigating Hillary Clinton over her handling of classified information sent through emails |
| Outcome | FBI Director James Comey's decision to publicly announce that Clinton would not face criminal charges |
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What You'll Learn
- Loretta Lynch's meeting with Bill Clinton at Phoenix airport
- The meeting's impact on the investigation into Hillary Clinton's handling of classified information
- The FBI's conclusion that Hillary Clinton did not break any laws
- The meeting's role in Hillary Clinton's electoral college loss
- Christopher Sign's book about the meeting, *Secret on the Tarmac*
Loretta Lynch's meeting with Bill Clinton at Phoenix airport
In June 2016, then-Attorney General Loretta Lynch met with former President Bill Clinton at Sky Harbor Airport in Phoenix, Arizona. The meeting took place on Lynch's private plane on the airport tarmac. At the time, Lynch's Department of Justice was investigating presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, Bill Clinton's wife, over her handling of classified information sent through emails during her time as Secretary of State under Barack Obama.
The 20-minute meeting between Lynch and Bill Clinton fuelled speculation that the Attorney General's investigation into Hillary Clinton was compromised. This ultimately played a role in the circumstances leading to Hillary Clinton's narrow electoral college loss later that year, despite winning the popular vote by millions.
News anchor Christopher Sign broke the story of the so-called tarmac meeting, later claiming in a book that the meeting was planned in advance and was not, as Lynch and Clinton said, a chance encounter. Sign died by an apparent suicide in 2021 at the age of 45.
While the meeting created political complications for the Clintons, it was ultimately determined that Hillary Clinton did not break any laws in her handling of classified information. In July 2016, then-FBI Director James Comey announced that Clinton would not face criminal charges, although he did say that her handling of classified material was "extremely careless".
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The meeting's impact on the investigation into Hillary Clinton's handling of classified information
It is unclear whether Loretta Lynch broke any laws by meeting with Bill Clinton. However, the meeting did have an impact on the investigation into Hillary Clinton's handling of classified information. At the time of the meeting, Lynch's Department of Justice was investigating Hillary Clinton, who was then a presidential candidate, over her handling of classified information sent through emails. The meeting with Bill Clinton would cement then-FBI Director James Comey's decision that he, and not Lynch, would be the person to publicly announce that Clinton would not face criminal charges. Comey, in that July statement, said that while Clinton did not break the law, her handling of classified material was "extremely careless". The meeting created complications for Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign, even after the FBI determined that she did not break any laws. It ultimately played a role in the circumstances leading to her narrow electoral college loss later that year.
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The FBI's conclusion that Hillary Clinton did not break any laws
The meeting between Bill Clinton and Loretta Lynch at Phoenix airport lasted 20 minutes and was described as an impromptu encounter on Lynch's private plane. However, news anchor Christopher Sign, who broke the story, later wrote a book claiming the meeting was planned in advance.
The meeting caused a political storm, with Republicans asserting that it compromised the Justice Department's investigation into Hillary Clinton's email practices. Despite the FBI's conclusion, the incident created complications for Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign and played a role in her eventual electoral college loss.
In his July statement, FBI Director James Comey said that while Clinton did not break the law, her handling of classified material was "extremely careless". A 568-page report revisits Comey's decisions, concluding that while he broke protocol during the election year, his decisions were not politically motivated.
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The meeting's role in Hillary Clinton's electoral college loss
The meeting between Bill Clinton and Loretta Lynch at Phoenix Sky Harbor airport in 2016 has been described as consequential and compromising. At the time, Lynch's Department of Justice was investigating presidential candidate Hillary Clinton over her handling of classified information sent through emails.
The 20-minute meeting between Bill Clinton and Lynch was described by then-FBI Director James Comey as a factor in his decision to publicly announce that Clinton would not face criminal charges. Comey said that while Clinton did not break the law, her handling of classified material was "extremely careless".
The meeting was also significant because it created complications for Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign and ultimately played a role in her narrow electoral college loss, despite winning the popular vote by millions. The meeting raised questions about the integrity of the investigation into Hillary Clinton's email practices and fuelled political furore.
While there is no evidence that Lynch broke any laws, the meeting raised concerns about the potential conflict of interest and the appearance of impropriety. It is important to note that the Obama administration declined to comment on the meeting, and the 568-page report on Comey's decisions concluded that while he broke protocol during the election year, his choices were not politically motivated.
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Christopher Sign's book about the meeting, *Secret on the Tarmac*
In his book *Secret on the Tarmac*, Christopher Sign describes the secret meeting between Bill Clinton and then-Attorney General Loretta Lynch, which took place on Lynch's private plane at Phoenix airport in June 2016. At the time, Lynch's Department of Justice was investigating presidential candidate Hillary Clinton over her handling of classified information sent through emails.
Sign, a local TV news anchor, broke the story of the meeting, which he claimed was planned in advance and was not, as Lynch and Clinton said, a chance encounter. In the book, Sign gives a step-by-step account of how the story unfolded, including the role played by a secret informant and his former teammates and coaches at the University of Alabama.
Sign describes the setting for the meeting as "perfect": no cameras, no microphones, and plenty of security. Clinton exited Lynch's private plane 20 minutes after boarding. Sign writes that the meeting "would only complicate things" amid a heated presidential race, federal investigations, and a society looking for clarity on the future of the country.
Secret on the Tarmac received positive reviews, with one reader describing it as an "excellent read" and another praising its "lots of fine details". However, some reviewers noted grammatical errors that "an editor should have caught".
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Frequently asked questions
No, she did not break any laws.
The 20-minute meeting at Phoenix airport cemented then-FBI Director James Comey's decision that he, and not Lynch, would be the person to publicly announce that Hillary Clinton would not face criminal charges.
At the time, Lynch's Department of Justice was investigating presidential candidate Hillary Clinton over her handling of classified information sent through emails.
The meeting created complications for Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign and ultimately played a role in the circumstances leading to her narrow electoral college loss.
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