The U.S. Department of State has been center stage in our Presidential elections. At first glance it may seem odd that a foreign policy agency could so significantly impact domestic Presidential elections but it has on several occasions in the recent past. We cannot escape the near constant news media and Congressional attention concerning the 2016 Presidential election. Secretary Clinton’s use of a private email server, why she lost the election, and concerns about the legitimacy of the Presidency are nearly daily topics in news media reports. The Federal Bureau of Investigation, Department of Justice, Inspector Generals of the Intelligence community, and the Department of State conducted inquiries. Yet it is not easy to put the pieces together to understand what really happened. Records and Information Management expert and former Department of State Records Officer Tasha Thian tells the untold, behind the scenes story with never before released material that is certain to surprise the readers.
State Department Records & the Elections will shed light on the inter-workings of government, the impact of our political system on agencies and their staffs, and why records management and information access are so important to our American experience. You will learn about U.S. citizenship laws and how they relate to the Presidency, why Department of State records are important, what happens when political parties seek protected information, and the various investigations and news media outcry that ensues during very contentious and hotly debated elections. Tasha Thian gives an eye witness account and detailed analysis of records activities as they related to the Bill Clinton Passport File Search, the Hillary Clinton Email Server investigation, and on a number of other famous politicians, as well as other significant events.