>>> WERE JOINED AGAIN BY JAMES BAKER.
BAKER.
MR. BAKER IS ABLE TO TALK TO US
ABOUT SOME OF THESE THINGS IN PART BECAUSE THE MUELLER REPORT
HAS NOW BEEN PUBLISHED SO IT
FREES TO SPEAK ABOUT MATTERS YOU
COULDNT TALK ABOUT.
I HAVE A QUESTION ABOUT THE MUELLER REPORT AND WHAT ITE
MUELLER REPORT AND WHAT IT DOESNT SAY THAT I WAS SPEBTINGE
IT TO SAY.
ONE ISSUE IS MIKE FLYNN GETTING FIRED WHICH IS SOMETHING THATNG
FIRED WHICH IS SOMETHING THAT UNFOLDED WHILE YOU WERE GENERAL
COUNSEL OF THE FBI.
SPEAK TO THE RUSSIAN AMBASSADOR.
HE PUBLICLY LIES ABOUT IT.
ULTIMATELY HE ALSO LIES TO THE
FBI ABOUT IT AND THATS ALL
INTERESTING.
INTERESTING.
THAT BECOMES PART OF A GUILTY
PLEA AND HE LIED TO THE FBI. THERE WAS ANOTHER THING WE CAME
TO LEARN.
TO LEARN. SALLY YATES AS ACTING ATTORNEY
GENERAL GOES UP TO THE WHITE
HOUSE IN THE FIRST WEEK OF THE NEW ADMINISTRATION TO TELL THEM
NOT JUST THAT MIKE FLYNN HAS
BEEN IN CONTACT WITH THE
RUSSIANS BUT THAT THERES A PROBLEM BECAUSE FLYNN HAD THAT
CONTACT, THE RUSSIANS KNOW HE
HAD THAT CONTACT BECAUSE THATS
WHO HE WAS TALKING TO AND FLYNN
IS LYING ABOUT IT PUBLICLY.
THAT MEANS THAT THE RUSSIANS HAVE SOMETHING ON FLYNN.IANS
HAVE SOMETHING ON FLYNN. THEY KNOW ABOUT HIS CONTACTS
WITH THEM.
WITH THEM.
THEY CAN LEVERAGE THAT AGAINST
HIM.
HES IN A COMPROMISED POSITION
WHICH IS VERY DANGEROUS AS
NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISER.
WE LEARNED THE CRIMINAL PART OF WHAT FLYNN DID INCLUDING LYINGF
WHAT FLYNN DID INCLUDING LYING TO THE FBI.
BUT THAT COUNTER INTELLIGENCE
CONCERN IS WHAT LEADS US THE
AMERICAN PEOPLE TO UNDERSTAND WHY IT WAS SO IMPORTANT THAT HE
HAD TO GO.
I FEEL LIKE THERE IS A VERY
SIMILAR SITUATION WITH TRUMP
TOWER MOSCOW. THE MUELLER REPORT DESCRIBES ALL
THE DETAIL ABOUT ALL OF THE
CONTACTS BETWEEN THE KREMLIN AND
KREMLIN CONNECTED PEOPLE AND THE
TRUMP ORGANIZATION, ABOUT TRYING
TO DO THAT RUSSIA DEAL.
WE KNOW THAT THE PRESIDENT WAS
LYING ABOUT IT AT THE TIME.
NOTHING IN THE MUELLER REPORT
ABOUT WHETHER OR NOT THAT
REFLECTS ANY COMPROMISE, ANY
EFFORT TO GAIN LEVERAGE OVER
THAT PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE, THAT CAMPAIGN, ULTIMATELY OUR
GOVERNMENT.
GOVERNMENT. I FEEL LIKE THATS THE MISSING
PIECE.
PIECE.
WAS THAT INVESTIGATION NOT DONE?
>> WELL, I THINK THE MUELLER REPORT MAKES CLEAR THAT WHAT
THEY FOCUSED ON WERE THE
CRIMINAL ASPECTS OF THE COUNTER
INTELLIGENCE INVESTIGATION THAT
WAS BEING CONDUCTED. SO WHEN THE FBI INVESTIGATES
SOMETHING, IT COMES TO IT WITH
ALL OF ITS AUTHORITY, WHICH
INCLUDES COUNTER INTELLIGENCE AUTHORITY AND CRIMINALLIGENCE
AUTHORITY AND CRIMINAL AUTHORITIES AND FOREIGN
INTELLIGENCE COLLECTION
AUTHORITIES.
ALL THE AUTHORITIES UNDER LAW
AND UNDER ATTORNEY GENERAL
GUIDELINES THAT THE BUREAU HAS, IT RINGS TO THE PROBLEM.AU HAS,
IT RINGS TO THE PROBLEM. AND CERTAIN ASPECTS OF A
SITUATION COULD BE CRIMINAL AND
SOME MIGHT BE COUNTER INTELLIGENCE. COUNTER
INTELLIGENCE.
AND SO WHAT I THINK IS MISSING IN LARGE PART FROM THE REPORT IS
AN ANALYSIS OF THE COUNTER
INTELLIGENCE ASPECTS OF WHAT IT
IS THAT THEY FOUND. I THINK ITS EITHER IN THE
REPORT OR IN SOME COLLATERAL
DOCUMENTS WHERE THEY MAKE QUITE
CLEAR THAT WERE NOT TALKING
ABOUT THAT HERE.
WERE -- WE HAD EMBEDDED FBI AGENTS WITH US TO DEAL WITH THE
COUNTER INTELLIGENCE
COUNTER INTELLIGENCE INVESTIGATION AND THATS SOME
OTHER FILE, SOME OTHER THING
THAT MAY OR MAY NOT BE UNDER THE
REPORT.
>> IN FACT, IN THAT PART OF THE
REPORT WHERE THEY DESCRIBE
HAVING OTHER FBI AENLGENTS WHO W
SITTING IN AND GLEANING ANYTHING
THAT HAD INTELLIGENCE, THEY SAY
THEY WERENT PART OF MUELLERS
INVESTIGATION.
DOES THAT MEAN MUELLER DIDNT DO
A COUNTER INTELLIGENCE
INVESTIGATION?
ON TRUMP TOWER MOSCOW, WAS THERE
AN FIB ASSESSMENT AS TO WHETHER
OR NOT THAT WAS AN EFFORT TO
GAIN LEVERAGE OVER THAT
PRESIDENTIAL CAMPAIGN?
>> I DONT THINK I CAN CONFIRM
OR DENY THAT PARTICULAR THING.
BUT IF THE FBI IS THE ENTITY
THAT WOULD BE EMPOWERED TO DEAL
WITH COUNTER INTELLIGENCE
ASPECTS OF THIS.
MUELLER IS LIKE, AND HE SAYS IN
THE REPORT, HES LIKE -- HE WAS
LIKE A U.S. ATTORNEY.
SO HES A PROSECUTOR. THE FBI CAN INVESTIGATE CRIMES,
BUT ITS ALSO PART OF THE
INTELLIGENCE COMMUNITY AND IT
HAS DIFFERENT AUTHORITIES AS A
RESULT OF THAT UNDER A DIFFERENT SUPERVISORY STRUCTURE. DIFFERENT
SUPERVISORY STRUCTURE. SO MUELLER I DONT THINK ITS
FAIR TO THINK HE WAS TASKED WITH
CONDUCTING A PURELY COUNTER
INTELLIGENCE INVESTIGATION.
INTELLIGENCE INVESTIGATION. HE WAS TASKED WITH AT LEAST AS I
THOUGHT ABOUT IT DEALING WITH
THE CRIMINAL ASPECTS OF THE
LARGER COUNTER INTELLIGENCE
INVESTIGATION.
>> DOES ANYBODY OUT THERE HAVE TO TELL -- WE THE AMERICANHAVE
TO TELL -- WE THE AMERICAN PEOPLE OR THE INTELLIGENCE
COMMITTEES IN CONGRESS WHETHER
THERE WAS RUSSIAN LEVERAGE OVER
THE CAMPAIGN? WHETHER THOSE CONTACTS AND FOR
EXAMPLE THE TRUMP TOWER MOSCOW
DEAL AMOUNTED TO PERHAPS A
SUCCESSFUL OR EVEN UNSUCCESSFUL
EFFORT TO GAIN THE LEVERAGE?
ADAM SCHIFF NOW SAYS HE HASNT
HAD A BRIEFING ON THE INTELLIGENCE IMPLICATIONS OR
FINDINGS OF ANY INVESTIGATION
RELATED TO THIS SINCE COMEY WAS
FIRED.
>> SO I CAN SAY HOW I USED TO HANDLE IT AND I USED TO HANDLE
IT THINKING THAT THE
INTELLIGENCE COMMITTEES WERE AN
INTEGRAL PART OF HOW THE UNITED
STATES CONDUCTS INTELLIGENCE AND
HOW WE MAINTAIN THE -- WE THE
INTELLIGENCE COMMUNITY MAINTAIN
THE TRUST AND CONFIDENCE OF THE
AMERICAN PEOPLE BECAUSE THEY
NEED TO KNOW THAT THEIR
REPRESENTATIVES GET ACCESS TO CRITICAL INFORMATION SO THAT TLA
THEY CAN UNDERSTAND IT.
THE REALITY IS THE INTELLIGENCE
COMMUNITY IS UNDER THE COMMAND OF THE PRESIDENT.R THE COMMAND
OF THE PRESIDENT. AND SO AT THE END OF THE DAY,
ITS THE PRESIDENTS JOB TO DEAL
WITH THE COUNTER INTELLIGENCE --
WITH THE INTELLIGENCE THREAT
THAT WE FACE AS A COUNTRY. >> EVEN IF THEY IMPLICATE HIM?
>> WE HAVENT HAD TO DEAL WITH
THIS KIND OF THING BEFORE SO
THATS TRICKY.
HOW YOU DO THAT IS VERY
DIFFICULT.
I THINK THIS IS A PLACE WHERE,
FOR EXAMPLE, THE DIRECTOR OF
NATIONAL INTELLIGENCE COULD STEP
IN AND TRY TO HANDLE SOME OF
THESE THINGS IN A CERTAIN WAY.
IM NOT GOING TO DESCRIBE IT AS
A RECUSAL, BUT IT WILL BE SAFER
AND ADVISABLE FOR THE PRESIDENT
TO STAY OUT OF THIS PART OF IT
UNLESS HE REALLY HAS TO AND
DELEGATE SOME OF THAT AUTHORITY
TO THE DNI.
>> IT IS SO CHILLING TO ME THIS
IS STILL A TOTAL BLACK BOX TO