CNN "The Situation Room" - Transcript: Interview With California Congressman John Garamendi

Interview

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BLITZER: Yes. That would be a significant, significant development.

Jeff Zeleny at the White House, thanks very much.

Joining us now, Congressman John Garamendi. He's a Democrat. He serves on the Armed Services Committee.

Congressman, thanks so much for joining us.

REP. JOHN GARAMENDI (D), CALIFORNIA: Certainly.

BLITZER: Lots to go through.

Bruce Ohr, this career Justice Department official, we're now told he testified behind closed doors that, back in July of 2016, the author of that so-called Russian dossier told him that Russian intelligence believed they had then candidate Donald Trump -- quote -- "over a barrel."

Over a barrel. How concerning is that to you?

GARAMENDI: Well, this has been a concern for more than two years now.

Throughout the election and then after the election, the first year of the president, and now into this year, we have always been concerned. Why is the president so kowtowing to Putin? Why is he always saying Putin is the best or saying something positive and refusing to say anything negative?

The only conclusion that most everybody has come to is that there's something there, that the Russians have the president over a barrel. And maybe it has to do with money. Maybe it has to do with other things. We don't know.

That's what the investigation will help us understand. And in understanding it, we may be able to get some insight into how this country deals with both the president and with Putin.

BLITZER: Congressman, I want you to stand by. We're going to continue this conversation, but I want to go to Detroit right now.

GARAMENDI: Sure.

BLITZER: The Aretha Franklin funeral is continuing.

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[18:46:15] WOLF BLITZER, CNN HOST: Breaking news. We're learning more about the sworn testimony by Justice Department official Bruce Ohr that he was told by a British spy, Christopher Steele, back in July of 2016 that the Russians believed they had then-candidate Donald Trump, quote, over a barrel.

Let's resume our conversation with Democratic Congressman John Garamendi. He serves on the Armed Services Committee.

Congressman, do you think American intelligence agencies have been able to figure out if, in fact, Russia does have indeed something on President Trump, or is that something that Robert Mueller will have to reach a conclusion on?

REP. JOHN GARAMENDI (D), CALIFORNIA: I think Robert Mueller's going to ultimately figure it out, and he'll make his report to the nation, and we'll see where it's going. At the end of the day, Wolf, thank you very much for turning that over to the Aretha Franklin funeral. Those three things, Gladys Knight thing about walking through the storm, a bridge over troubled waters, and then Stevie Wonder's "Make Love Great Again," the American people are going to be patiently waiting for an answer to this question that is perplexing this nation.

Mueller will help us. But at the end of the day, I really believe the American people are going to find the truth, and they will act appropriately on it. And those of us in Congress will follow or lead as the case might be.

But we're good people. We're fair. We're respectful, and we want to see this resolved because we know that right now this nation is in a world of hurt. And I just can't get over that performance. The message that gave to me and I hope to the rest of the folks that saw that that, yes, we're in a storm. Yes, we will be a bridge over these troubled waters. And at the end of the day, love will be great again.

BLITZER: Yes, we will -- let us all hope. We have no idea what Robert Mueller and his team have come up to.

GARAMENDI: Exactly.

BLITZER: But just two days ago the president tweeted this. I'll put it up on the screen. He tweeted, how the hell is Bruce Ohr still employed at the Justice Department? Disgraceful. Bruce Ohr, the career official of the Justice Department, the president going after him as you know.

Does this new reporting on Bruce Ohr's testimony before the House behind closed doors help explain why the president is now pretty aggressively going after Ohr?

GARAMENDI: Well, he's gone after everybody that has provided any testimony, any evidence, or taken a turn against him. He's done that repeatedly throughout his entire presidency beginning with Comey way back more than a year and a half ago now. So, yes, it follows on a pattern. But I really think that we need to let Mueller do his job. I know -- and we've got to protect Mueller from the president, from what appears to be a very vengeful effort to try to basically shut down the investigation.

When you take all of his comments and you begin to stack them one upon the other, it really leads to the inevitable conclusion that the president is trying to use his power of the podium, his power of the tweet, and his power of terminating people in their office and in their work to try to shut down the investigation. I think that's going to be a very, very serious problem for him.

The American people want to see this through. They know that the bridge over these troubled waters is patience. It's persistence to find the truth. And the truth will determine how this thing turns out and we'll judge that.

At the end of this process, we don't know. But clearly we do know this, and that is it is a very troublesome time for America, and we've got to push through and at the end of the day, remember this is America.

[18:50:07] We're good people. We're patient. We're respectful of each other, and we want at the end of the day to have fairness all the way through this process. That may mean that the we'll see where it leads.

BLITZER: What do you make of Rudy Giuliani's latest efforts to discredit Robert Mueller and come up with his own report?

GARAMENDI: I've given up on Giuliani some time ago. I try not to pay attention to him. He's constantly changing.

It's kind of like saying, throw it on the wall and see if it sticks. So, he's constantly throwing something up. Does it stick? Well, nothing has thus far, in part because he's constantly changing his direction, his message and his attack.

At the end of this process, I don't think Rudy Giuliani is going to count for much, although in some ways he's placing the president in greater jeopardy.

BLITZER: Counselor Garamendi, thanks so much for joining us.

GARAMENDI: It's a pleasure to be with you, Wolf.

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