The Key Question Rep. Jason Chaffetz Will Press FBI Director to Answer During Thursday Hearing

FBI Director James Comey will testify Thursday morning before the House Judiciary Committee to defend his recommendation that Hillary Clinton not be criminally charged for her handling of classified emails while serving as secretary of state.

Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R-Utah), chairman of the House Oversight Committee, shared Wednesday on Fox News' "America's Newsroom" that he has one key question he'd like to ask Comey.

Image source: Fox News

"I would really like to know the difference between carelessness and negligence," Chaffetz said, referring to the FBI director's admission that Clinton was "extremely careless" in her handling of national secrets.

The question points to a key objection many have raised in the wake of the FBI's Tuesday announcement. The reason for this, they argue, is that the phrase "extreme carelessness" is synonymous with "gross negligence," which is a felony when it refers to "gathering, transmitting or losing defense information."

"His decision is different than I would come to," Chaffetz said of Comey.

Chaffetz explained that the statute that prohibits gross negligence does not state that a person must show intent when mishandling classified material.

He also noted that Comey "dispelled" many of Clinton's past statements regarding her email server and asked to see a transcript of the FBI's interview with the former top diplomat.

Chaffetz said lawmakers will also be looking into whether laws dealing with the handling of classified information should be updated.