Judge orders Hillary Clinton’s aides questioned over email controversy

A judge on Tuesday ordered former aides of Hillary Clinton to testify about whether they broke the law while the former first lady used her private email account for national security activities when she was secretary of state from 20092013.

In a hearing, District of Columbia Judge Emmet G. Sullivan ruled that Clinton’s aides and State Department officials should testify under oath about whether the Democratic presidential hopeful used her private email account to deliberately circumvent the Freedom of Information Act.

The magistrate asked the conservative Judicial Watch organization, a party to the case, to present in April a plan for how they would pursue “narrowly tailored discovery” into the circumstances surrounding Clinton’s extensive use of her private email server.

The Washingtonbased Judicial Watch, known for its antipathy toward Democrats, asked that the questioning include former State Department officials and Clinton herself.

The court decision is “a major victory for the public’s right to know the truth about Hillary Clinton’s email system,” Judicial Watch president Tom Fitton said in a statement.

The latest batch of emails from Clinton’s personal server will be made public by the State Department at the end of February, probably between Feb. 26 and 29, just before Super Tuesday March 1 when Democrats in 10 states will hold primaries to express their preference regarding who will be the party’s presidential nominee.

The publication of the final batch of emails right in the middle of primary season could affect the presidential hopes of Clinton, who has the support of 47.6 percent of Democrats nationwide, according to Real Clear Politics.

The controversy over the emails erupted in early 2015 when Clinton was preparing to launch her presidential run and the media revealed that she had used her private email account to handle matters of national interest while she was serving as the top U.S. diplomat.