Lynch had made major career advances in the 1990s under President Bill Clinton — and her boss, President Barack Obama, plainly supported Hillary’s candidacy. Plus, Obama was also implicated in the scandal, since he’d exchanged multiple emails with Clinton at her non-government address — a fact they were all keeping from the public.

Stewart reports that Comey’s “highly placed informant” indicated that Lynch wouldn’t let the FBI investigation add to Clinton’s woes. An email reportedly from the head of the Democratic National Committee assured a civilian that “Lynch wouldn’t let the Clinton investigation get very far, suggesting that Lynch would protect Clinton,” Stewart writes.

All this, plus Lynch’s tarmac tête-à-tête with Bill Clinton as the investigation … er, “matter” was coming to a close, led Comey (by his own account) to hold his remarkable press conference where he declared that Clinton shouldn’t be prosecuted for her “extremely careless” behavior.