By Rep. Tom Marino

Philadelphia Inquirer

The Department of Justice has proved time and again that it cannot act as an unbiased enforcer of the law when it comes to investigating the corrupt Clinton machine. Instead, the attorney general and the political appointees at the Justice Department have acted as a political arm for President Obama and his administration. Their actions have continuously ignored our rule of law in order to protect Hillary Clinton and the White House.

Unfortunately, this is not speculation. The facts are clear and they speak for themselves.

For example, Attorney General Loretta Lynch held a private meeting with Bill Clinton while the Department of Justice’s investigation into his wife, Hillary Clinton, was open and ongoing. In addition to this clear conflict of interest, Lynch was also a political appointee during Bill Clinton’s administration.

And while I could draw on my 18 years’ experience as a prosecutor to conclude that their meeting borders on misconduct, this level of impropriety is apparent to even the most untrained eye. Lynch admitted this meeting was a mistake, but she, like many others within this administration, suffered no consequences and remained in charge of the investigation into Hillary Clinton.

Keep in mind that the mere appearance of a conflict of interest is enough to justify the appointment of an independent, special prosecutor. Unfortunately, in this case, the fox is guarding the hen house.

Since the expiration of the Office of Independent Counsel statute in 1999, only the attorney general can appoint a special prosecutor when a conflict of interest is present. In regards to the investigation into Hillary Clinton, the perception of conflict is undeniable. Still, Lynch refused to recuse herself to allow a truly impartial investigation.

And even if we were to ignore this egregious lapse in judgment, we could then focus solely on the circumstances of this investigation and still reach the same conclusion.

Hillary Clinton was appointed as secretary of state by Obama. She was part of the very administration charged with investigating her misconduct. The allegations — the illegal use of a private email server, the extremely careless handling of classified information, the apparent pay-to-play scheme between Clinton Foundation donors and the State Department — all happened while she was secretary of state. This alone proves a clear conflict of interest exists and makes the appointment of an independent, special prosecutor necessary. Any suggestion to the contrary flies in the face of logic.

Yet the president is so clearly fixated on preserving his legacy through the election of Hillary Clinton that he has failed to hold our government officials accountable, even in the face of irrefutable evidence.

I have no faith in Obama or his political appointees acting in the interest of our rule of law and appointing an independent prosecutor, but I do have faith in the American people _ faith that they will not tolerate such blatant disrespect for our constitution and for our system of justice.

The voters have an opportunity to stand up against this flagrant misuse of power and elect someone who will put the American people before personal gain and self-promotion. They have the ability to return our government to one truly for the people, by the people.

The only candidate who can do that is Donald J. Trump and it is one of the many reasons why I will be voting for him come November.

U.S. Rep. Tom Marino (R.-Pa.) represents the 10th Congressional District. He wrote this for the Philadelphia Inquirer.