Comey has said he thought at the time, “If I hide this from the American people, she’ll be illegitimate the moment she’s elected.” He was right. Voters going to the polls deserved to know whether Clinton was under investigation. (If the Democrats didn’t want an FBI investigation to be part of the campaign, they could have nominated someone who wasn’t under FBI investigation.)

But wait: Trump associates were also under investigation at the same time, as part of the Russia probe, which began in July of 2016. It is unforgivable for Comey to argue that the principle of transparency required him to disclose an investigation affecting one candidate but not the other.

Asked about this discrepancy, Comey gave an inadequate answer.