Obama says Clinton’s private email account was news to him

FILE – In this Sept. 12, 2012 file photo, then-Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton speaks at the State Department in Washington. Clinton used a personal email account during her time as secretary of state, rather than a government-issued email address. Deputy State Department spokesperson Marie Harf says the department asked former secretaries of state last year for records that should be preserved. In response to that request, Clinton provided emails from her time as the nation’s top diplomat. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon, File) - MB

WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama says it was through news reports that he first learned that Hillary Rodham Clinton used a private, non-government email account while serving as his secretary of state.

In an interview Saturday with CBS News, Obama says he’s glad that Clinton has instructed that those emails about official business be disclosed. He also maintains that his administration remains the most transparent administration ever.

Clinton, the leading Democratic contender in the 2016 presidential campaign, has drawn criticism for using a private server during the four years she was the nation’s top diplomat. Her sidestepping official government email also raises questions about whether all pertinent messages have been preserved as well as turned over for congressional investigations and lawsuits.

Clinton says that she’s turned over all relevant emails for review.