MSNBC "All in with Chris Hayes" - Transcript: Interview with Rep. Ted Lieu
Interview
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HAYES: For more on what all this means 60 days out for the midterms I`m joined by Congressman Ted Lieu, Democrat from California, Member the House Judiciary Committee. I will ask you the same question I asked Congressman Costello. Is it an untenable state of affairs that there`s a consensus within the government and in the Republican Party that the President is unfit but we`re just going to go ahead anyway.
REP. TED LIEU (D), CALIFORNIA: Absolutely, Chris. And about this you know, White House official I think what he has done is really confirmed from the inside what we`ve all seen from the outside which is that Donald Trump is unfit for president. But he can`t then go around and try to resist the president anonymously.
He needs to be public, come forward and then try to convince the American people. And if he can`t do that he needs to resign. But as a staff member, he was not elected and he can`t be here trying to normalize the president because we as voters need to see how unhindered crazy Donald Trump really is and then have the voters make a decision.
HAYES: I want to ask you something that I asked Harry Litman two seconds ago or previously in this segment. Do you think -- is your understanding of DOJ regulations such that they would not be able to bring an indictment against Roger Stone if that`s what they were going to do within this now 60-day window we are doing within to the midterms?
LIEU: I think Special Council Mueller could certainly bring a diamond if he wanted to. I don`t think he will. I think he understands that you don`t want to be seen as messing around with elections or trying to influence elections in any manner. He could certainly bring in indictments afterwards I do note, however, that Rudy Giuliani said that this investigation was going to end on September 1st. Clearly, it`s not ending. They`re interviewing more and more witnesses. This investigation is going to continue and there`s no timeline for when it ends. It`s going to be based on the facts and the evidence.
HAYES: Should the President be subpoenaed?
LIEU: If he does not talk to Special Counsel Mueller he should and he has a right to plead the Fifth Amendment but he doesn`t have the right to simply ignore the request from the Special Counsel.
HAYES: Don`t you think we should -- don`t you think though if Mueller has enough to go ahead with an indictment or has more information, isn`t there some level which American voters should know when they go to pick which party will be in power in both these houses of Congress what is known or knowable about what the President did or didn`t do?
LIEU: Absolutely. So you have again this senior White House official trying to resist within the administration but ultimately you`ve got this complicit GOP Congress that is simply failing the constitutional duties to be an adequate check and balance on the presidency and the 60 days of voters across America have an ability to try to change that if they still want to.
HAYES: There`s a bunch of swing districts out in California, a lot of them are around you. There`s some new polling coming about out there. Do you think -- what do you see is the sort of drivers of voters out there in those swing districts that are close to your district in Southern California?
LIEU: Well, I clearly think that a Donald Trump is one driver but also the fact that Republicans have tried to sabotage health care, try to take away pre-existing conditions coverage from millions of Americans, that has also been weighing on people`s minds. And then the breathtaking corruption in the last year and half of the Trump administration, you have multiple people that have been indicted, convicted, or have pled guilty and more people that have are under investigation. So all these will be drivers in this election.
HAYES: Yes, your colleague in the California caucus Duncan Hunter suddenly appears to have himself a race which tends to happen after you get indicted. Congressman Ted Lieu, always good to have you.
LIEU: Thank you, Chris.
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