White House: ‘No idea’ when Obama learned of Clinton email scandal

Despite reports the White House learned six months ago that Hillary Clinton exclusively used a private email server during her time as secretary of state, administration officials said Friday they have “no idea” when President Obama learned of the situation.

The New York Times first reported this week that Mrs. Clinton, the Democratic party’s frontrunner for the 2016 presidential nomination, did not use an official government email account during her entire four-tenure at the State Department. Her use of private email surfaced after the State Department requested former secretaries turn over all emails as part of a larger records-gathering project.

Mrs. Clinton has turned over about 55,000 pages of email, including 300 messages related to the 2012 Benghazi terrorist attack provided to House Republicans investigating the incident.

Politico on Friday cited sources familiar with the situation in reporting that “key people” in the White House first learned of Mrs. Clinton’s private account six months ago.

Still, administration officials clearly want to keep the president far away from the growing scandal, which could complicate the former secretary of state’s expected presidential bid.

“I have no idea when the president first learned,” White House press secretary Josh Earnest told reporters aboard Air Force One. “I wouldn’t be surprised, however, if he had learned about that by reading the newspaper. The president has a lot of things on his plate. I’m not sure the details of a senior administration official’s email arrangement lands on the president’s desk with any regularity.”