Washington: Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump pressed his attack on Democratic rival Hillary Clinton's integrity as she struggled to get past a new firestorm over her emails with just eight days to go until Election Day.
ALSO READ: FBI Obtains Warrant to Examine Hillary Clinton Emails
Friday's announcement by FBI Director James Comey that his agency is investigating more emails as part of a probe into Clinton's use of a private email server gave new hope to Trump that he can make an improbable comeback and win on November 8.
The FBI spent a year investigating Clinton's use of a private email server, instead of government systems, while she was secretary of state from 2009 to 2013. Comey concluded in July that while Clinton and her staff had been "extremely careless" in handling classified information there were no grounds for any charges.
He said "we don't know the significance of this newly discovered collection of emails," which were found during an unrelated probe into the estranged husband of a top Clinton aide. But Trump seized on the news to charge that Clinton represents a corrupt political system.
"Hillary Clinton is not the victim. You, the American people are the victims of this corrupt system," said Trump.
US Senator Harry Reid, the Democratic leader in the Senate, accused Comey on Sunday of "a disturbing double standard for the treatment of sensitive information, with what appears to be a clear intent to aid one political party over another."
He said, without providing evidence, that the FBI was keeping “explosive information” under wraps about ties between the Trump campaign and Russian officials.
Democratic Representative Elijah Cummings hammered this accusation on Monday, urging the FBI to release information on Trump and his advisers’ dealings with Russia.
An FBI spokeswoman said late on Sunday: “When we receive the letter it will be handled through our usual process in responding to members of Congress,” referring to Reid's accusation.
The US government has accused Russia of a campaign of cyber attacks targeting the Democratic Party that has led to the release of thousands of illegally obtained emails, revealing the sometimes unflattering inner workings of the party. The Kremlin has denied this. Trump has declined to implicate Russia in any wrongdoing.FBI WARRANT
Democrats have demanded that Comey and the FBI rapidly work to make public what they know about the new email trove. A source familiar with the matter said on Sunday that the FBI had secured a warrant to examine the emails.
The latest emails were discovered as part of a separate probe of former Democratic US Representative Anthony Weiner, the estranged husband of Huma Abedin, who is Clinton's closest aide and confidante, sources close to the FBI investigation have said.
The FBI is investigating illicit text messages Weiner is alleged to have sent to a 15-year-old girl in North Carolina.
Trump said the new email cache could represent a "motherlode" of emails.
Cummings said on Monday that the FBI’s vague statement on new emails related to the Clinton investigation made it impossible for Clinton to defend herself and “basically gave Donald Trump a softball to hit over the fence."
On Sunday, Clinton campaign chairman John Podesta and campaign manager Robby Mook questioned the FBI head's decision to notify Congress of the email review before he even knew whether they were significant or relevant.
Comey was appointed FBI director by Democratic President Barack Obama in 2013.
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