Rep. Gowdy calls Sen. Reid ‘a hack,’ but did he want to use much stronger words? | McClatchy Washington Bureau

Talking about the fallout from the news on presidential candidate and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s emails, South Carolina Congressman Trey Gowdy called the Senate Minority Leader a “political hack” today only because, well, he didn’t want to cuss on national television.

Gowdy, a Republican representative, was speaking on Fox New’s America’s Newsroom program, when he talked about Senate Minority Leader and Nevada Democrat Harry Reid. During the weekend, Reid sent a letter to FBI director James Comey warning him that his most recent release of emails from the private server of Hillary Clinton might violate the law, specifically The Hatch Act.

Gowdy, appeared to question Reid’s motives in bringing up the Hatch act. His comment, in a longish version, about Reid: “I can’t really use the word I want to use because it would get us in trouble with the FCC, yeah, so we’ll just go with political hack.”

Overall, he was less than convinced the Hatch Act should have been brought up at all.

“It is laughable that Jim Comey committed a violation of the Hatch Act. I actually know what the Hatch Act is. If the president of the United States actively campaigning on company time for another candidate to be president of the United States is not a violation of the Hatch Act, then how is Jim Comey supplementing the record and telling the truth to Congress a violation of the Hatch Act? Harry Reid knows that this is not a violation. This is the same guy that went on the floor of the Senate and said that Mitt Romney didn’t pay taxes. So he is a political hack, and I would say more than that if I weren’t going to get fined by the FCC.”

Gowdy on Friday said Comey’s letter to Congress, in both its “manner of communicating to Congress and the content of said communication to be instructive.”

He had added that his views on the emails kept on the Democratic Presidential candidates private email account hadn’t changed.

“My objective remains as it has always been: a full, complete, independent investigation consistent with the history and reputation of the FBI and worthy of public respect and confidence.”

The Hatch Act is an almost 100 year old law intended to stop federal employees from using their official status to engage in politicking. The law exempts the president and vice president. Reid’s letter to Comey warned: "I am writing to inform you that my office has determined that these actions may violate the Hatch Act. Through your partisan actions, you may have broken the law.”