Adam Schiff Says He Will Force Release Of Final Russia Report If White House Tries To Block It
Adam Schiff said he knows that the White House will likely try to block the release of Robert Mueller’s final Russia report, and he is prepared to fight back.
The California Democrat, who is set to become the chair of the House Intelligence Committee once Democrats take control of the House of Representatives next month, said on Sunday that he expects Trump’s lawyers will try claiming that the final report falls under executive privilege. The report is expected to show whether Trump or anyone on his campaign colluded with Russia during the 2016 presidential campaign and whether Trump committed obstruction of justice in attempts to cover it up by firing FBI Director James Comey and taking other measures to thwart the investigation.
Schiff wants to make sure the public sees the report.
“I’m prepared to make sure we do everything possible so that the public has the advantage of as much of the information as it can,” Schiff said in an appearance on CNN’s State of the Union.
Schiff admitted that there may be parts of the report that are redacted because they contain classified information, but said the larger report is “too important to keep from the American people.”
Adam Schiff has often fought for greater transparency in the investigation and attacked Republicans for what he saw as efforts to thwart the investigation by refusing to call witnesses and bringing an early end to the probe, declaring that there was no evidence of Trump colluding with Russia.
In his appearance on Sunday, Schiff said he has fears that new acting Attorney General Matt Whitaker’s decision to go against the advice of a Justice Department ethics official and not recuse himself from matters regarding the Mueller probe. Whitaker had publicly cast doubt on the Russia investigation.
As he prepares to take over investigator’s powers in the House Intelligence Committee, Schiff has promised to look into a number of Trump-related scandals that Republicans had not investigated. That includes looking into whether there was any “illicit foreign funding or involvement in the inauguration” of Donald Trump.
On #CNNSOTU with @jaketapper, @RepAdamSchiff says that there is a "powerful case" that the President can be indictedhttps://t.co/aNk6KlF3a0
— State of the Union (@CNNSotu) December 23, 2018
“Whenever a foreign nation uses its financial wealth to violate the laws of our country, it undermines our democracy,” Schiff said in a statement, via the Washington Post. “When another country does so in concert with U.S. persons, it carries the additional risk of compromising them and presents a particularly acute counterintelligence risk.”
Adam Schiff has also said he plans to call additional witnesses in the investigation of whether there was collusion between Donald Trump’s campaign and Russia.
