Getty State Department watchdog subpoenaed Clinton Foundation

The State Department's internal watchdog office subpoenaed the Clinton Foundation last fall for records about projects the foundation was involved in during Hillary Clinton's time as secretary of state as well as records related to longtime Clinton aide Huma Abedin, a foundation representative confirmed Thursday.

The subpoena from State's Office of Inspector General did not focus on Clinton nor on the foundation, said the foundation official, who asked not to be named.


The document demand was first reported by the Washington Post.

A spokesman for Inspector General Steve Linick declined to comment on the subpoena or the scope of the office's inquiry. Lawyers for Abedin did not respond to messages seeking comment on the development.

However, a spokesman for Clinton's presidential campaign suggested the inquiry was unfounded and unnecessary.

"It's very hard, to be honest with you, for me personally to keep track of all the fishing expeditions that this IG office has conducted," spokesman Brian Fallon said on CNN.

Last month, Clinton dismissed a report from Fox News claiming that the foundation was the focus of a public corruption investigation by the FBI.

"It’s an unsourced, irresponsible claim that has no basis," she told the Des Moines Register editorial board. "It is something that is really without merit and should not have any influence whatsoever in this nominating process....There is nothing like that happening."

The FBI said late last year and confirmed earlier this month that it is conducting an investigation into issues related to Clinton's use of a private email server as secretary of state. It is unclear whether that probe is criminal or simply an inquiry into the potential compromise of classified information on the server or whether there is a meaningful distinction between the two. However, there is still no confirmation of an FBI investigation into the foundation's work.

Abedin has been the focus of a State Department inspector general inquiry into salary she received while on maternity leave. That probe was closed without any criminal charge but State is still considering how to deal with the IG's finding that she was was overpaid.

Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) has been prodding the IG's office to look into possible conflicts involving Abedin's simultaneous service as a "special government employee" at State and with consulting firm Teneo. In October, Teneo declined to answer Grassley's questions about Abedin's work, citing an ongoing inspector general inquiry the firm said it was cooperating with.

State's inspector general office is known to have been involved in at least two inquiries triggered by Clinton's use of a private email account and server for official business during her tenure as secretary. The IG has already completed an inquiry that found poor handling and inaccurate responses to Freedom of Information Act requests for records in the secretary's office. That report said the office is also examining how use of personal email accounts has impacted State's recordkeeping abilities.

"This is the same office that launched an investigation into one of Secretary Clinton's top aides over maternity leave and when the Justice Department refused to go along with that fishing expedition they had to give it up and, now, ever since, they've had to look for other things," Fallon told CNN . "That was ridiculous and the Justice Department laughed at it when the IG made a referral over there and rightfully so."

Fallon also raised questions about two top aides to Linick, one of whom was a longtime aide to Grassley and the other who played a role as a federal prosecutor in an investigation that led to the indictment and acquittal of a Clinton campaign finance aide a decade ago. The IG's office and the staffers there have denied any impropriety or conflict of interest.

"Strangely, we've seen a pattern of leaks emerging on the eves of primary elections and debates, so I think it's a very troubling phenomenon," the Clinton spokesman added. "I think that it's intended to create headwinds for her campaign. It's not going to work."