This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2016, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.

Washington • After weeks of bad news on the election front, Republicans were giddy Friday when the FBI announced it had discovered further information about Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton's use of private email servers while serving as secretary of state.

Rep. Jason Chaffetz, a Utah Republican and chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, tweeted that FBI Director James Comey "just informed me, 'The FBI has learned of the existence of emails that appear to be pertinent to the investigation.' Case reopened."

The bureau said in July it had not found any criminal wrongdoing during its investigation and the Department of Justice declined to pursue any charges. Friday's announcement did not say the case had been reopened — it was never technically closed — nor if the new information was significant.

In a news conference Friday in Des Moines, Hillary Clinton called on the FBI to release more information about what it had found "without delay."

"I'm confident that whatever" is found "will not change the conclusion reached in July," Clinton said. "Therefore, it's imperative that the bureau explain this issue in question, whatever it is, without any delay."

Comey, in a letter to eight congressional committees, said emails found in an unrelated case, later reported to be that of former Rep. Anthony Weiner, D-N.Y., necessitated a continued investigation of Clinton's use of private servers.

The FBI would "determine whether they contain classified information, as well as to assess their importance to our investigation," Comey wrote.

GOP presidential nominee Donald Trump, who had blasted the FBI for its lack of findings in the Clinton probe and questioned whether the Justice Department was covering for the Democratic candidate, seized on the news at a rally in New Hampshire.

"Perhaps," Trump said, "finally, justice will be done."

The Trump crowd erupted into chants of, "Lock her up," a common refrain at the Republican nominee's events.

Chaffetz, who says he won't endorse or defend Trump but will vote for him, told The Washington Post recently that he was preparing to investigate Clinton should she win the White House.

"Even before we get to Day One, we've got two years' worth of material already lined up," Chaffetz told the newspaper. "She has four years of history at the State Department, and it ain't good."

Chaffetz declined to comment Friday when asked about the FBI announcement, an unusual silence for the normally talkative congressman.

Clinton Campaign Chairman John Podesta remarked in a statement that the FBI had previously said "no reasonable prosecutor would move forward with a case like this and added that it was not even a close call."

"FBI Director Comey should immediately provide the American public more information than is contained in the letter he sent to eight Republican committee chairmen," Podesta said. "Already, we have seen characterizations that the FBI is 'reopening' an investigation but Comey's words do not match that characterization."

Comey's letter did not say whether the emails that came to light are significant, Podesta noted.

"It is extraordinary that we would see something like this just 11 days out from a presidential election," he added. "The director owes it to the American people to immediately provide the full details of what he is now examining. We are confident this will not produce any conclusions different from the one the FBI reached in July."

President Barack Obama did not respond to reporters who shouted a question at him while boarding Marine One on Friday.

Reince Priebus, chairman of the Republican National Committee, said the announcement so close to Election Day shows "how serious this discovery must be."

"This stunning development raises serious questions about what records may not have been turned over and why, and whether they show intent to violate the law," Priebus said. "What's indisputable is that Hillary Clinton jeopardized classified information on thousands of occasions in her reckless attempt to hide pay-to-play corruption at her State Department."

He said the revelation shows Clinton should be disqualified from seeking the presidency and that her daily intelligence briefings should end.

— Tribune wire services contributed to this story