U.S. Rep. Lamar Smith (R-TX) issued subpoenas on Monday to three companies that enabled Hillary Clinton to maintain a private email sever while she served as secretary of state.
Smith, the chairman of the House Science, Space and Technology Committee, issued the subpoenas with bicameral support from U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson (R-WI).
“Companies providing services to Secretary Hillary Clinton’s private email account and server are not above the law,” Smith said. “These companies have failed to comply with our committee’s request for documents and interviews that would provide information critical to understanding Secretary Clinton’s private server and informing policy changes in how to prevent similar email arrangements in the future.”
Smith said that his committee issued the subpoenas to help answer questions about the structure and security of the email system and if National Institutes of Standards and Technology (NIST) standards were met.
“The committee is also concerned about the preservation of the records on Secretary Clinton’s private server,” Smith said. “Our committee plans to provide the American people with the transparency they deserve from our government leaders and the systems used to secure operations.”
Johnson said that he strongly supports Smith’s decision to subpoena the three companies.
“The companies have direct and unique knowledge of her private server and email account,” Johnson said. “The information being sought is a crucial step in bringing greater transparency to Secretary Clinton’s ‘extremely careless’ — I would call it dangerously reckless and grossly negligent — email practices. I hope the information we will obtain will inform policy changes that can prevent similar misconduct in the future.”