Russian Interference Investigation

Floor Speech

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Mr. CLEAVER. Mr. Speaker, I am thankful that we have this moment that we are using to make some expressions of concern, and I thank Mr. Perlmutter for organizing it.

Let me preface my comments, Mr. Speaker, by saying that when President Trump was elected, against the advice and concern of my family, my many campaign workers, and supporters, I attended the swearing in because I believed--and still believe and will always believe--that my responsibility as a Member of Congress was to be at the inauguration as a Member of Congress.

Then at the first joint session--not the State of the Union, but the joint session--many of my friends and family said: You know, do not go. The President is alien to our concept of decency and democracy. I came anyway. I sat not too far from where I am standing now.

I also then went to the State of the Union. Some of our colleagues chose not to come. When there were Articles of Impeachment placed on the table for a vote, I voted to table it against a person I have known in Congress longer than I have known anybody else because I know he is a decent and thoughtful person, Congressman Al Green. He had brought it to the floor. I voted to table it, along with just about every Republican and a sizeable number of Democrats, and the reason was, I believed that it was important for Mr. Mueller to complete his investigation.

I resent any discussion about trying to impeach the President. I am not in that group.

I must say, however, how troubled I am by many of the things that I have seen. And when I grew up down in Texas in the 1950s and 1960s, in elementary school at the Booker T. Washington Elementary School, we had these tests. Back then, there was a great threat from Russia. And economically, Wichita Falls, where I attended high school, was completely dependent on Sheppard Air Force Base for its survival.

My first job was at the SAC base, the Strategic Air Command. I cleaned up. I thought it was the biggest job any human being could get. I was 15 years old and, man, I was big time. I cleaned up the barracks for the SAC Command.

And then at school, we had to get under our desks for a drill for an attack from Russia. And we would hear the horn. All over town, schoolkids were getting under their desks. The truth is, we all would have been burned up. I am not sure that a wooden desk was going to protect us. But I was a kid and I didn't know any better, so all of us got under our desks.

But it allowed me to understand one thing, and I have never forgotten it: At that time, Russia, the Soviet Union, was not our friend. And over that period, a lot of things have changed. That has not changed.

And so let's fast forward to our last Presidential election. It is indisputable. Every single intelligence agency in the United States, as well as intelligence agencies with our allies in Europe, say that the Russians interfered with our election--not attempted to do so, but interfered.

Did they change the outcome of the election?

There is no evidence to support that. However, there is plenty of evidence to support that Russia remains the enemy of the United States of America. I necessarily am going to become increasingly concerned when the President of the United States refuses to say even one bad thing about Vladimir Putin, who is--and I don't like to call people names--I don't call my colleagues bad names; that is not who I am--this man is a bully and a danger to the entire world.

The most troubling moments I have are when I hear people say, as I did on TV the other night, they were interviewing a woman and she said: ``I don't care anything about Russian meddling. All I want them to do is just let Mr. Trump have his agenda approved.'' And I am thinking: What is happening to this Republic?

I have five grandchildren, the youngest of which just turned three last month. My work in Congress, my ministry in the United Methodist Church for 37 years, my time on the city council, my time as mayor, all was dedicated to what I wanted for my grandchildren. I want them to enjoy the same kind of freedoms that we enjoyed.

Mr. Speaker, anybody who is watching this and who has even a semblance of objectivity would have to say something is dramatically wrong when the President will, by Twitter, attack anybody and everybody--horses, children, little animals--anybody he will criticize and call them names, except Vladimir Putin. Vladimir Putin is the only person he will not criticize. This man orchestrated an attempt to damage our democracy.

What Putin did--and it was brilliant--I have to say he is a devilish man, but he created a beautiful way of doing it. He knew the weaknesses of the United States and so he tried to exploit it. And it is still going on.

For example, just a few weeks ago, one of those Russian bots had a deal on the internet advising White Americans not to go and see the movie Black Panther. Inside this message online is that African Americans are attacking white movie-goers.

Now, of course, that didn't happen, it is not even remotely the truth, but Russia understands how to get to us. They look at our weaknesses and they attack. We cannot help in that process.

Mr. Mueller needs to complete his investigation. I will never support doing anything legally in this body until Mr. Mueller completes his investigation.

I thank Mr. Perlmutter for getting us together. I think that we have got to make the American public conscious of what is going on and maybe, more importantly, what is not going on.

If we are able to do that, this Republic, the greatest Republic that God Almighty has ever blessed to exist, the greatest Republic in the history of this planet, is going to be in jeopardy.

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