>>> THEY'RE ALL LOOKING INTO TIES BETWEEN TRUMP CAMPAIGN AND
RUSSIA. ELIJAH CUMMINGS, THE PENTAGON
DID CONFIRM IT IS INVESTIGATING FORMALLY ABOUT FORMER WHITE
HOUSE NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISER MICHAEL FLYNN, AND THEY'RE
LOOKING AT WHETHER OR NOT HE
ILLEGALLY ACCEPTED PAYMENTS AFTER BEING WARNED AGAINST IT.
HE MISLED THE VICE PRESIDENT. WHEN ASKED TODAY ABOUT VETTING
FOR FLYNN, THE WHITE HOUSE ACTUALLY SHIFTED THE BLAME TO
THE OBAMA ADMINISTRATION. >> MY ONLY POINT IS THAT WHEN
GENERAL FLYNN CAME INTO THE WHITE HOUSE, HE HAD AN ACTIVE
SECURITY CLEARANCE THAT WAS ISSUED DURING THE OBAMA
ADMINISTRATION WITH ALL OF THE INFORMATION THAT'S BEING DISCUSS
THAT HAD OCCURRED IN 2015. >> OKAY.
MEANWHILE THE HOUSE INTELLIGENCE COMMITTEE IS LOOKING INTO
RUSSIAN ATTEMPTS ON INTERFERE WITH THE 2016 ELECTION AND
WHETHER THERE WERE ANY POSSIBLE LINKS TO ANY ALLIES OF THE TRUMP
CAMPAIGN. AND SINCE BE DEVIN NUNES, HE
JUST STEPPED DOWN FROM THIS INVESTIGATION EARLIER THIS
MONTH. WE COULD BE SEEING SIGNS THE
HOUSE INVESTIGATION IS STARTING TO MOVE ALONG AGAIN.
SO JOINING ME, THE TOP DEMOCRAT ON THE HOUSE INTELLIGENCE
COMMITTEE. WELCOME BACK TO THE SHOW.
>> GOOD TO BE WITH YOU. >> LET ME AND YOU ON THE MIKE
FLYNN SITUATION TO GET TO YOU RESPOND TO WHAT THE PRESS
SECRETARY SAID TODAY. DOES HE HAVE A POINT, THAT
SOMETHING DID FALL THROUGH? THAT MAYBE FLYNN NEVER SHOULD
HAVE GOTTEN HIS NATIONAL SECURITY CLEARANCE RENEWED?
DO THEY HAVE A POINT ON THIS? >> WE'RE TRYING TO GET THE
DOCUMENTS. WE'VE REQUESTED THEM ON A
BIPARTISAN BASIS. THE SAME DOCUMENTS THE
GOVERNMENT REFORM COMMITTEE HAS RECEIVED.
NO. THEY DON'T HAVE A POINT IN THE
SENSE THAT WHATEVER THE PROCESS WAS, AND WHETHER MIKE FLYNN
SOUGHT TO GET A RENEWAL OF HIS SECURITY CLEARANCE FOR THE NEW
POSITION, WHATEVER THE FACTS MAY BE, AND WE'RE LOOKING INTO IT.
IT WAS THE TRUMP ADMINISTRATION'S RESPONSIBILITY
TO VET THIS GUY. AND THERE OUGHT TO BE RED FLAGS
THAT WERE GOING UP ALL OVER, CONSIDERING THAT HE WAS FIRED BY
THE PREVIOUS ADMINISTRATION. HE HAD GONE ON A PUBLICIZED TRIP
AND SAT NEXT TO PUTIN AT THIS DINNER WHICH WAS INEXPLICABLE.
HE WROTE AN OP ED CALL FOR THE UNITED STATES TO TURN OVER THIS
CLERIC TO ERDOGAN. IT SHOULD HAVE RAISED A LOT OF
RED FLAGS ABOUT WHY WAS HE ADVOCATING THIS POSITION?
NOW WE KNOW HE WAS GETTING HALF A MILLION DOLLARS TO DO IT.
BUT NO, THE TRUMP ADMINISTRATION CAN'T BLAME OBAMA.
BUT I'M CONFIDENT, ON THE LAST DAY OF THE TRUMP ADMINISTRATION,
TRUMP WILL BE BLAMING OBAMA FOR SOMETHING.
EVIDENTLY THE POLICY OF THIS ADMINISTRATION IS THE BUCK STOPS
WITH BARACK OBAMA. SO I THINK WE CAN BE CONFIDENT
OF THAT. >> LET'S TALK ABOUT THE
INVESTIGATION. LET'S BE FRANK HERE.
AFTER THE WHOLE BACK AND FORTH WITH THE CHAIR WHO HAS RECUSED
HIMSELF, A LOT OF PEOPLE WROTE HIM OFF.
MANY SENATEORS, THEY'RE HOPING THEY WILL RUN THIS AND THEY
ALMOST USED YOU AS A PUNCHING BAG TO SAY WE'LL RUN A
RESPONSIBLE INVESTIGATION. WHAT HAVE YOU AND MIKE CONAWAY
WHO HAS TAKEN OVER, WHAT DO YOU PLAN ON DOING TO BRING
CREDIBILITY BACK TO YOUR INVESTIGATION?
>> WELL, IT THE HISTORY IS THIS. WE WENT INTO THIS INVESTIGATION
IN A VERY DELIBERATE NONPARTISAN WAY.
IT WAS BLOWN UP WITH THE CHAIRMAN'S TRIP TO THE WHITE
HOUSE AND ALL THE SUBTERFUGE ABOUT THE DOCUMENTS REVIEWED
THERE AND THEN RETURNED TO THERE.
NONETHELESS, I THINK THE MEMBERS OF THE COMMITTEE WANTED TO DO A
THOROUGH AND INDEPENDENT JOB. SET OUT TO DO THAT.
AND WE HAD THAT CLOUD OVER THE COMMITTEE AS A RESULT OF THAT
WHITE HOUSE TRIP. THAT CLOUD, I THINK, IS NOW
BEING REMOVED. MIKE CONAWAY IS DOING A GOOD
JOB. WE'RE WORKING TOGETHER VERY
WELL. WE'VE RESCHEDULED ONE OF THE
HEARINGS. WE'VE ALREADY INVITED WITNESSES
TO COME BEFORE THE COMMITTEE. WE ARE VEX FULL SPEED AHEAD.
EXACTLY WHERE WE SHOULD HAVE BEEN IF WE HADN'T HAD THE WHOLE
WHITE HOUSE BLOW THINGS UP. >> CNN REPORTED THAT THERE'S A
WITNESS LIST OF 36, BETWEEN 36 AND 48 PEOPLE.
IS THAT CORRECT? AND ARE ALL OF THESE GOING TO BE
INVITED WITNESSES? OR ARE YOU GOING TO HAVE TO
SUBPOENA ANYBODY? >> I DON'T WANT TO GET INTO THE
SPECIFICS OF HOW MANY WITNESSES OR THE NAMES OF PEOPLE WE'VE
INVITED. WE'VE CERTAINLY INVITED A
CONSIDERABLE NUMBER TO COME BE INTERVIEWED, DEPOSED OR APPEAR
BEFORE THE COMMITTEE IN A HEARING.
WE'VE ALSO AGREED TO THE PROCESS FOR THIS.
HOW WE'LL REQUEST DOCUMENTS FROM THESE WITNESSES.
SO WE'LL SEEK TO GET THE COOPERATION VOLUNTARILY BUT WE
ARE PREPARED TO SUBPOENA AS NECESSARY TO GET MATERIALS AND
INFORMATION WE NEED. SO WE'VE AGREED TO THE PROCESS.
WE'VE BEGUN IN TERMS OF OUR WITNESS LIST, TO ACTUALLY INVITE
THOSE PEOPLE BEFORE THE COMMITTEE.
AND I THINK IT IS IMPORTANT, WE'RE GOING TO TRY TO DO AS MUCH
AS WE CAN AGREE ON IN PUBLIC. I FEEL VERY STRONGLY ABOUT THAT.
I THINK IF WE CONDUCT THIS INVESTIGATION WHOLLY IN A
PRIVATELY CLOSED SESSION, AND THEN TELL PUBLIC TO BELIEVE WHAT
WE'VE COME UP WITH, THAT'S NOT LIKELY TO HAVE PUBLIC
CONFIDENCE. SO I'M VERY PLEASED WITH WHERE
WE ARE. I THINK WE'RE BACK TO MOVING
FORWARD AGAIN. >> HAVE YOU AND CONGRESSMAN
CONAWAY, ARE YOU STILL ACTIVELY REVIEWING THE REQUESTS BY MIKE
FLYNN TO ESSENTIALLY TRADE TESTIMONY, TRADE IMMUNITY FOR
TESTIMONY? >> I THINK IT IS REALLY PRE
MATURE FOR US TO BE CONSIDERING THAT FLYNN REQUEST, BEFORE WE'VE
HAD A CHANCE TO INTERVIEW A LOT OF OTHER WITNESSES.
FIND OUT WHAT WE CAN LEARN THAT'S RELEVANT WITHOUT HAVING
TO GIVE ANY KIND OF IMMUNITY. THEN WE WOULD WANT TO SIT DOWN
WITH THE JUSTICE DEPARTMENT AND FIND OUT WHAT THEIR EQUITIES
ARE. AND GIVEN HIS FAILURE TO REPORT
THIS INCOME, THE FACT THAT HE TOOK INCOME AT ALL, AND WHETHER
THERE ARE ISSUES OF FALSE STATEMENTS.
A LOT OF POTENTIAL INEQUITIES HERE.
AND FINALLY, WE WOULD WANT A DETAILED PROFFER AS TO WHAT HE
WOULD SAY BEFORE WE GIVE ANY KIND OF BLIND THE GRAND OF
IMMUNITY. THAT'S STILL A LONG WAY OFF.
>> A MONTH AGO, WHEN YOU WERE ON THIS PROGRAM, YOU TOLD US THAT
THERE WAS, QUOTE, MORE THAN CIRCUMSTANTIAL EVIDENCE,
UNQUOTE, THAT THERE WAS COLLUSION BETWEEN TRUMP
ASSOCIATES AND RUSSIA. DO YOU STILL BELIEVE THAT TO BE
THE CASE? IT IS OTHER CHARGE YOU'VE MADE
ONCE BUT YOU'VE NOT MADE IT AGAIN.
ANY REASON? >> NO.
I SAID IT EARLIER TODAY. THAT REMAINS MY VIEW.
I OFFER THAT IN CONTRAST BECAUSE I KNOW SOME MEMBERS HAVE SAID
THAT TO THE CONTRARY. THEY BELIEVE THERE'S NO
EVIDENCE. I CAN'T GO INTO THE PARTICULARS.
I'LL HAVE TO WAIT UNTIL WE GET THROUGH INVESTIGATION TO BE ABLE
TO SHARE WHATEVER IT IS THAT WE'RE ABLE TO PROVE.
BUT I WILL SAY THIS. IT IS NOT JUST MY VIEW.
THE FACT THE FBI IS DOING AN INVESTIGATION, AN OPEN ONE IN
JULY AND CONTINUING TO THIS DAY. THAT'S NOT SOMETHING I THINK
THEY UNDERTAKE ON A HINT OR A SUSPICION.
I THINK THEY NEED A BASIS TO INVESTIGATE A MAJOR CAMPAIGN OR
THE ASSOCIATES. SO I DON'T THINK IT IS JUST MY
UNDERSTANDING. >> THERE IS A GROWING CHORUS OF
LAWMAKERS, DEMOCRAT AND REPUBLICAN WHO SAY, IF, WHERE IS
THE THERE THERE ON THIS? WHERE IS THE FIRE?
THERE'S BEEN A LOT OF SMOKE. WHY HAS IT TAKEN, WHY ISN'T IT
MORE OBVIOUS WHERE THE FIRE IS? >> WELL, ON THIS I HAVE TO SAY,
THOSE OF US WHO HAVE WORKED ON INVESTIGATIONS BEFORE, AND
PARTICULARLY LARGE WHITE COLLAR INVESTIGATIONS, AND THIS IS SORT
OF IN THAT CATEGORY. UNDERSTAND THAT IT TAKES A LONG
TIME TO INVESTIGATE EVIDENCE OF THIS NATURE.
PARTICULARLY WHEN YOU'RE DEALING WITH EVIDENCE THAT MAY BE HELD
BY A HOSTILE GOVERNMENT OR WITNESSES THROUGHOUT THE GLOBE.
THIS IS NOT SOMETHING THAT'S EASY TO PROVE IN THE BEST OF
CIRCUMSTANCES. AND YOU HAVE TO LAYER ON TO THAT
THAT WE HAVE A FULL TIME DAY JOB IN OVERSEEING THE INTELLIGENCE
AGENCIES. IT IS ONE OF THE REASONS I WOULD
FEEL MORE CONFIDENT IF WE HAD AN INDEPENDENT BODY DOING THIS WORK
THAT WOULD BE COMPLETELY IMMUNE FROM ANY POLITICAL PRESSURE BUT
ALSO STAFFED APPROPRIATELY. SO FOR THOSE SAYING, HOW COME
YOU HAVEN'T SHOWN THE PROOF YET AND WRAPPED UP YOUR
INVESTIGATION YET. I CAN ONLY SAY WE ARE TRYING TO
MOVE EXPEDITIOUSLY. BUT PEOPLE SHOULDN'T EXPECT THAT
WE CAN COMPLETE OVERNIGHT OR BE AT LIBERTY TO DISCLOSE AS WE GO
ALONG. THAT'S NOT HOW THE INVESTIGATION
WILL WORK. >> OF COURSE, ADAM SCHIFF,
RANGING DEMOCRAT. HE JUST MADE, THIS IS A