Clinton's first chance to turn the page was at a campaign event that featured her first joint appearance of the race with President Barack Obama.

The event was intended to transfer voters’ trust in Obama to his preferred successor, who has for decades struggled to earn many Americans’ trust. Instead, the image of Clinton boarding Air Force One seemed to play into Republicans’ portrayal of Clinton as the beneficiary of a political system tilted toward the country's elite.

Both Kellyanne Conway, a Trump adviser, and Jim Manley, a Democratic strategist, agreed that Comey’s remarks—even though they ultimately vindicated Clinton—would be turned into Republican television advertisements.

“If you listen real carefully you can hear the sound of 30-second attack ads being crafted all over town,” Manley said. “Comey gave Republicans plenty of ammunition.”

Clinton took no victory lap; neither she nor Obama mentioned Comey or his decision during their rally. Aides didn’t have immediate plans for Clinton to address the FBI’s decision in an interview or a press conference.

David Axelrod, Obama's former adviser, said Clinton had “cleared a major hurdle,” adding that it is not clear to him that Comey’s criticisms would further harm views of her trustworthiness because many voters already may have made up their minds.

“The question is, does it substantially change the dynamic, or is most of the negative already baked in the cake?” he said.

But Manley, a former top aide to Senate Democratic Leader Harry Reid, said “this issue is not going away anytime soon.”

“They're going to have to spend the rest of the campaign talking about it,” he said.

That is, if Trump plays ball. His eagerness to appear politically incorrect helped him during the Republican primary by soaking up all the media attention, but in the general election it's often been to Clinton's benefit.