DPCC Co-Chair Jeffries Discusses the Trump-Russia Scandal
WASHINGTON, DC – U.S. Congressman Hakeem Jeffries, Co-Chair of the House Democratic Policy & Communications Committee (DPCC), appeared on MSNBC to discuss Russia's interference with our election and the meeting between President Trump's eldest son, Donald Trump Jr., and a Russia-linked lawyer in June 2016. Below are excerpts from the interview, click here to watch the video.
"17 different intelligence agencies concluded that Russia interfered with our election for the purpose of helping to elect Donald Trump. They're the only ones in town, or throughout the country perhaps, that don't buy the fact that the intelligence community in the United States unanimously concluded that Russia interfered with our election in very specific ways in order to help get Donald Trump elected. That's a settled question."
"No reasonable person should take a meeting with Russia for a variety of reasons, including if you're involved in the context of a campaign. It is a crime to solicit or receive assistance or in any way collude with a foreign power anywhere throughout the world, but particularly [given]Vladimir Putin's treacherous dictatorship and his Russian empire, it makes no sense. It's not logical that Donald Trump Jr. would proceed with that meeting for any other reason than what should be obvious to almost everyone, which is indicative of a mindset that was designed to work with the Russians to receive information that could help Donald Trump seize the Presidency and undermine Hillary Clinton's chances of being elected."
"I think he will perhaps testify at some point. Although we've heard a lot of protestations of a willingness to be cooperative by all of these folks who are involved: Paul Manafort, Roger Stone, Michael Flynn for instance. Jeff Sessions has suggested that they're going to be cooperative in different ways and different places [but] we haven't necessarily seen it. Now, the intelligence committee I think is going to have to proceed with its work on the House side and on the Senate side. I'm hopeful that that will be done in an open and transparent way because the American people deserve answers. It is clear that exhibit A right now – in terms of this quest for trying to figure out what happened – are the e-mails between Donald Trump Jr. and these Russian operatives who may have been part of an effort to steal this election away from Hillary Clinton and attack our democracy."
"Everybody understands that Vladimir Putin had it in for Hillary Clinton based on tension that existed during the time in which she was the Secretary of State. The most important question I think that we've got to ask in this whole sordid affair is why were all of the President's men - Paul Manafort, the Campaign Chairman, Jeff Sessions, the Attorney General, Michael Cohen, his personal attorney, Carter Page, his Foreign Policy Advisor, Donald Trump [Jr.], his son, his son-in-law Jared Kushner, Roger Stone, his advisor - why were all of the President's men meeting with Russian spies during the same time that they were attacking our democracy?"