CNN "The Lead With Jake Tapper" - Transcript: Interview with Democratic Senator Cory Booker of New Jersey

Interview

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TAPPER: We're back with the breaking news.

Revisionist in chief. President Trump now suggesting that he simply misspoke when he said there was no reason why it wouldn't be Russia. It's a cleanup attempt some Democrats say comes 24 hours too late.

Joining me now is Democratic Senator Cory Booker of New Jersey. He serves on the Senate Foreign Relations and Judiciary Committee.

Senator, what's your response to what happened in Helsinki? And what's your response to President Trump's attempt to clean it up today?

SEN. CORY BOOKER (D-NJ), SENATE FOREIGN RELATIONS COMMITTEE: Well, I mean, I think the response of Helsinki, I mean, you have heard this across the political spectrum, it was offensive. It was a showing a level of submission before a dictator, before Vladimir Putin. And it put our nation at greater risk.

And this comes at the tail end of him undermining NATO, undermining or attacking our allies in their own countries like what he did to Theresa May. So, this is a country who's really -- this is a leader, Trump, who's really betrayed his role as commander-in-chief to protect the United States of America and to support those people who spend every single day trying to protect the United States of America like our intelligence community.

TAPPER: Something that was so interesting today, President Trump obviously given statements to say, to back the intelligence community, to assert that he agreed that Russia was responsible for the cyber attack. But even in that statement, he ad libbed an aside that suggested and you can -- we just put up on the screen that he had written on the statement, there was no collusion.

But even in the statement that he gave, he made an aside that undermined the assertion that it was Russia 100 percent. I want you to take a listen.

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TAPPER: When he says, could be other people also, a lot of people out there, is that not just completely contradicting the intelligence community saying that it was Russia?

BOOKER: It is absolutely contradicting the intelligence community again. He basically threw them under the bus yet again. There's been a conclusion, a consensus of the intelligence community, a consensus of the Senate Intelligence Committee in a bipartisan fashion of the Russians attacking us.

And so, for him to try to say this either -- could be this person, could be that person is undermining us, but -- undermining our safety.

But there's something interesting about this. This is a president never loathe to heap insults and attacks on people across the board.

[16:25:07] I mean, he attacked the Canadians using tariffs, using a national security waiver saying that the Canadians and what they're doing to us in trade is a national security issue. He's attacked the allies, calling people in the E.U. foes. He has had these kind of harsh words across the board for so many people.

But when it comes to Vladimir Putin, when it comes to someone who has attacked the United States in cyber attacks, this ongoing attack on the United States, who's killed our -- two individuals on British soil, who's annexed Crimea, whose ongoing hostilities in Ukraine right now, this is a person who's a bad actor and a threat to us. He cannot bring himself to criticize him even to the extent he's willing to insult, undermine and degrade U.S. intelligence in order to institute -- protect his pal Vladimir Putin.

That's unacceptable for all Americans. This isn't about partisanship. This is a moment of patriotism and I'm glad to hear so many of my colleagues condemning what this president said.

TAPPER: Do you think there needs to be any resignation? Do you think for instance, Director of National Intelligence Dan Coats or national security adviser, Ambassador John Bolton, do you think their resigning is needed? Or, do you -- would you rather have them in there serving as a check on President Trump's impulses?

BOOKER: Well, I'm hoping people are going to look at this in the long shadow of history. I guarantee you that there will be generations to come that will be talking about this moment in history, the first time -- you can go back to World War II, World War I, where a president on the national stage and took the side of the attacker of the United States, as opposed to the side of the American people.

And so, where do you want to stand with that? I know where I was. If I was standing next to the United States president when he talked about the Nazis in Charlottesville, I would have resigned. I know when the president insulted our allies and undermined our very difficultly knit together alliances and coalitions like NATO, I would have resigned and I most certainly would resign.

But that's my moral compass. I think you in many ways can be complicit in someone's behavior unless you make a courageous stand. But the folks around him are going to have to decide because there's going to be a time in history where people ask where did you choose to stand when the president of the United States undermined the ideals of this country? Where did you stand when the president was engaged in moral vandalism against our collective values and where were you standing when the president of the United States decided to stand with Vladimir Putin as opposed to the American people and the American intelligence community?

TAPPER: New Jersey Senator Cory Booker, thank you so much for your time, sir. Appreciate it.

BOOKER: Thank you very much.

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