Washington Post Exonerates Hillary by Subordinate Clause
27th May 2016
Yesterday, the Washington Post’s editors weighed in on the new report from the State Department’s Inspector General regarding Hillary Clinton’s use of a private email server. Their editorial is a classic example of a familiar genre — expressing disapproval of misconduct by politicians one likes, while dismissing without analysis the possibility that the behavior is criminal.
The Post has even come up with the perfect phrase with which to pull this off. It finds Hillary guilty of “willful misjudgment.” “Misjudgment” suggests innocent mistake. “Willful” suggests some level of wrongdoing.
I’m not sure there can be such a thing as a “willful misjudgment.” The term certainly doesn’t apply to Clinton’s use of the email server after being told (including by a memo she signed) that this is improper.
If you “judge” that you can use a private email server but then receive authoritative notice that you shouldn’t do so, this is no longer a “misjudgment,” it is a willful violation. If the notice comes from you, then to call the violation a “misjudgment” is as cynical as it gets.
My, what a surprise! Aren’t you surprised? I’m sure surprised.