James Comey 'Mildly Nauseous' Over Clinton Email Probe and Election, Defends His Decision

James Comey went to bat for his decision to publicly announce reopening an investigation into Hillary Clinton's emails days before the election ... and got very worked up while doing it.

The FBI Director spoke at a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing Wednesday, and Sen. Dianne Feinstein grilled him about his timing on the Clinton announcement, which HRC herself has blamed for her loss.

Comey passionately defended his actions, saying it came down to picking the lesser of 2 evils -- speak and possibly affect the election ... or conceal and damage the FBI's rep.

He did add that he was "mildly nauseous" over the thought his decision might have influenced voters. Not sure that will ease Hillary's pain.