On Sunday, Face the Nation moderator John Dickerson interviewed Hillary Clinton for her first Sunday show interview as a 2016 presidential candidate and the CBS News host repeatedly tossed softball questions at the Democratic frontrunner over use of a private e-mail server.
During the interview, the CBS News Political Director did his best to stress how Clinton has “been transparent, in the release of these e-mails” and repeatedly asked his guest open-ended questions but failed to push back against her standard talking points defending her e-mail practices.
Dickerson began the topic of Clinton’s e-mails by eagerly giving his guest an opportunity to defend her actions following the discovery of a private server:
If we use this episode as a way to think about the way you would run your presidency. Let's say there’s a [sic] Clinton headquarters and you’re with your staff saying looking at the e-mail situation from the day you decided yes, to have the server all the way to where we are now. What went well, what didn't go so well?
After Hillary gave her stock answer about regretting her decision to not have separate e-mail accounts, Dickerson promoted how the Democrat has been “transparent” since her e-mails have been released and then asked a generic question about why such alleged transparency didn't take place from the beginning:
[B]ut what about before, because there was a period where you held on to the whole kit and caboodle before any investigators were asking for it long after you were out of the State Department?
Once again, Clinton was given ample time to provide a lengthy answer about her e-mails, with no pushback from Dickerson about her server potentially containing classified information. Instead, the CBS host allowed her to apologize for apparently causing so many questions regarding her e-mail use without actually apologizing for choosing to have a private server: "Just to button this up here, you’ve said you were sorry…What exactly are you sorry for and to whom?"
Dickerson concluded his litany of softball questions on the subject of Clinton’s e-mails by asking her to describe who advised her to set up a private server:
Some people know you and have worked with you say what this e-mail situation suggests is that there's nobody around you who can say, Secretary Clinton, this is a bad idea, don't do this, do you have such a person?…No but before the fact not after. After everybody’s giving you advice…But not at this level. Not solely a server just for you.
See relevant transcript below.
CBS’s Face the Nation
September 20, 2015
JOHN DICKERSON: So, questions about Benghazi have lead to discovery of your personal server. If we use this episode as a way to think about the way you would run your presidency. Let's say there’s a [sic] Clinton headquarters and you’re with your staff saying looking at the e-mail situation from the day you decided yes, to have the server all the way to where we are now. What went well, what didn't go so well?
HILLARY CLINTON: Well, look, I've said that I didn't make the best choice. I should have used two separate e-mail accounts, one personal, one work related, what I did was allowed, it was fully above board. People in the government certainly knew that I was using a personal e-mail. But I tried to be transparent. And that includes releasing 55,000 pages, which is unprecedented, nobody else that I'm aware of has ever done that, plus turning over the server, plus testifying at the end of October. So, you know, I think people have questions, I want to try to answer them.
DICKERSON: Was it a failure in judgment on your part?
CLINTON: Well, look it was permitted, it was allowed, I did it. And I think that people can make their own judgments about that. But I've tried to be as transparent as I can.
DICKERSON: You talked a lot about transparency, that, when you think about trust, there’s been a lot of talk about that in your campaign and voters having questions, they have questions. Maybe related to this, trust and transparency are related, you've been transparent, in the release of these e-mails but what about before, because there was a period where you held on to the whole kit and caboodle before any investigators were asking for it long after you were out of the State Department?
CLINTON: It wasn’t that long, what I did was to send e-mails to people at their government accounts which I had every reason to believe would be captured on the government systems. And when we were asked to help the State Department make sure they had everything from other secretaries of state, not just me, I’m the one who said, okay, great, I'll go through them again.
And we provided all of them and more than 90% were already in the system and in fact I gave so many that were not work related just to be as comprehensive as possible, they are already sending back about 1200 of them. So, look I did I what was as I said allowed, I said it wasn't the best choice. And it turned out to be a mistake in retrospect but at the time, and given the fact that most of them were in the government systems, people are going to get a chance to see all kinds of behind the scenes conversations, most of which I'm embarrassed to say are kind of boring.
DICKERSON: Just to button this up here, you’ve said you were sorry.
CLINTON: Yeah.
DICKERSON: What exactly are you sorry for and to whom?
CLINTON: Well, you know, I'm sorry that I made a choice that has raised all of these questions. Because I don't like reading the people have questions about what I did and how I did it I'm proud of the work we did at the State Department. And I’m really proud of all the career professionals that I worked with, I'm proud of the people who came in with me and we got sanctions on Iran put together that international coalition, we got a new arms treaty with Russia we did a lot of really important work. And I want that to be the foal us of what people know about my tenure at the State Department.
DICKERSON: Some people know you and have worked with you say what this e-mail situation suggests is that there's nobody around you who can say, Secretary Clinton, this is a bad idea, don't do this, do you have such a person?
CLINTON: I have too many, actually.
DICKERSON: No but before the fact not after. After everybody’s giving you advice.
CLINTON: John, this was done by prior government officials including --
DICKERSON: But not at this level. Not solely a server just for you.
CLINTON: It was done by others. Let me just say that, yes, when I did it it was allowed, it was above board. And, now I'm being transparent as possible more than anybody else ever has been.
