The watchdog group Judicial Watch on Tuesday filed a plan for “narrowly tailored discovery” into former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s email matter with a federal court. Judicial Watch’s discovery plan seeks the testimony of eight current and former State Department officials, including Clinton’s two top aides at the State Department Huma Abedin and Cheryl Mills. Others on the list are top State Department official Patrick Kennedy, and former State IT expert Bryan Pagliano.
Judicial Watch’s plan says that “based on information learned during discovery, the deposition of Mrs. Clinton may be necessary” but would only occur with permission by the Court.
During a court hearing on February 23, U.S. District Court Judge Emmet G. Sullivan granted Judicial Watch’s motion for discovery into whether the State Department and Clinton deliberately thwarted the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) for six years. The discovery arises in a Judicial Watch FOIA lawsuit that seeks records about the controversial employment status of Huma Abedin, former Deputy Chief of Staff to Clinton. The lawsuit was reopened because of revelations about the clintonemail.com system.
Huma Abedin was Clinton’s Deputy Chief of Staff and a senior adviser throughout her four years as Secretary of State and also had an email account on clintonemail.com. Abedin, who now serves as vice chairwoman of Clinton’s 2016 campaign for President, is married to Anthony Weiner, the former Congressman from New York who resigned in disgrace. Abedin was born in Kalamazoo, Michigan, but at the age of two moved with her family to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, where she was raised and lived until returning to the United States at age 18.
