Out on the fairway

You may have seen this picture over the weekend:

Just two golfing buddies, probably discussing a little bidness while they were out there on the course. Of course one of the men is Bill Clinton, and the other is the Leader of the Free World. And there are other games afoot beyond a little $2 Nassau.

We're learning that the wife of Mr. Clinton, who has been much in the news lately, is in trouble over her conduct in office as Secretary of State. Many pixels have been piled up detailing the investigations under way, both by Congressional committees and, now, the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Much of the story involves the homebrew server that Mrs. Clinton used for correspondence and whether or not it was secure. One might guess that the conversation between these two men would have some import.

For her part, Mrs. Clinton continues to deny any wrongdoing:

Speaking to reporters Tuesday in North Las Vegas, Nevada, Clinton said she was "very comfortable that this will eventually get resolved and the American people will have plenty of time to figure it out."

She added: "In retrospect, this didn't turn out to be convenient at all and I regret that this has become such a cause celebre. But that does not change the facts." She reiterated that what she did was "legally permitted" and said she did not send any emails marked "classified."

If that were true, the FBI would not be involved. A few thoughts:

• While the questions concerning the marking on emails matters much, the larger question concerns the content of the emails that were on her server, particularly the thousands of emails that Clinton deemed "private" and therefore outside the purview of those pesky investigators.
• If I were to bet, what Mrs. Clinton deems "private" are not the details of her daughter's wedding planning, nor her yoga schedule. None of that matters and would be of no interest. What would be of huge interest? How much business were the Clintons doing with foreign governments through their foundation, and the relationship between the business they did and the office she held. People don't give the Clintons money because they admire their grooming.
• It's safe to assume that the Leader of the Free World knows exactly what was happening and thus has the fate of the Clintons in his hands. As a Chicago politician, the Leader of the Free World is willing to tolerate a little graft here and there, so long as it doesn't get in the way of larger agendas.
• If Mrs. Clinton becomes president, the balance of power changes and the Clintons would have access to rather a lot of information concerning the conduct of the Leader of the Free World. Does the Leader of the Free World trust the Clintons to safeguard the records? Would you? Or would it end up on some homebrew server, so to speak?
• If I were to guess, the FBI investigation is a sign that the Leader of the Free World has made his decision and that the Clintons need to go away now. He would be better off if someone more loyal is his successor. The Leader of the Free World could even live with Jeb Bush, because the Bushies know the code and wouldn't pursue any investigations, because who knows where that could lead?
• Further, if I were to guess, the meeting out on the fairway was about the terms of Mrs. Clinton's exit. If she leaves, the Clinton enterprise is safe and the money keeps flowing for now. And when the Leader of the Free World leaves office, it becomes his turn to cash in.

Stay tuned. The endgame may be coming sooner than later.