In a blistering correspondence delivered Monday to Attorney General Pam Bondi and FBI Director Kash Patel, Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Charles Grassley (R-IA) detailed new whistleblower allegations that high-ranking FBI officials actively “choked off” investigations into the Clinton Foundation during the run-up to the 2016 presidential election.
The letter, dated December 15, 2025, alleges a systematic effort by the Department of Justice and FBI leadership to insulate the Clintons from scrutiny, citing internal emails, timelines, and witness accounts that suggest agents were ordered to stand down.
Grassley’s inquiry centers heavily on the actions of former FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe. According to the documents released by the Committee, McCabe directed that “no overt investigative steps” be taken regarding the Foundation without his specific approval as early as February 2016.
The Senator’s letter draws a line connecting these directives to significant political contributions.
It notes that in November 2015, McCabe’s wife, Dr. Jill McCabe, received over $675,000 in campaign funds from entities controlled by Terry McAuliffe, a close Clinton ally and former Virginia Governor. Despite this financial connection, McCabe did not recuse himself from the investigation until November 1, 2016—just days before the election.
“Sensitivities” and Stand-Down Orders
The internal communications cited by Grassley paint a picture of frustration among rank-and-file agents. An email from July 20, 2016—marked as 111 days before the election—shows agents in the Criminal Investigative Division were prohibited from issuing subpoenas or conducting interviews “based on the sensitivities surrounding the Clinton Foundation.”
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One internal directive explicitly stated that the Bureau did “not want to create any impression we are investigating the Clinton Foundation or the Clintons.”
The obstruction allegedly extended to the discovery of the Anthony Weiner laptop in September 2016. While the laptop is infamously known for reopening the “Midyear Exam” regarding Hillary Clinton’s private email server, Grassley’s letter reveals that the New York Field Office also believed the device contained evidence relevant to the Foundation.
However, FBI Headquarters reportedly refused to allow the Clinton Foundation investigative team to access the laptop or even receive a briefing on its contents, insisting that only the “Midyear” team—which included agent Peter Strzok—could review the materials.
The 2017 “Clean Up”
The letter also details what happened when the investigation was quietly reopened in July 2017 by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Arkansas (EDAR). When prosecutors attempted to determine why the original case had stalled, they were reportedly met with continued resistance.
According to Grassley, when U.S. Attorney Cody Hiland requested a timeline of the original investigation from the DOJ’s Public Integrity Section, he was provided a document that “omitted ALL references to interference from DOJ and FBI leadership.”
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By September 2018, frustrations in Arkansas had boiled over. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jonathan Ross wrote an email expressing deep concern about relying on Main Justice for assistance, citing “conflicts of interest for the leadership there related to the 2016 investigations that undermine any confidence we might normally have.”
Demands for Transparency
Grassley is now demanding the release of unredacted records to allow Congress to perform a full post-mortem on the Bureau’s conduct.
“The above are just some examples of interference that occurred when agents and prosecutors investigated the Clinton Foundation,” Grassley wrote.
The Chairman has given Attorney General Bondi and Director Patel until December 29, 2025, to produce a trove of documents, including the full “Anthony Weiner Laptop Review” report from November 2016 and all communications involving key figures such as McCabe, Strzok, and former DOJ officials.
The release of these records could provide the most definitive account yet of how the Justice Department managed—and allegedly suppressed—one of the most politically sensitive investigations in modern American history.
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