CNN "The Situation Room" - Transcript: Interview With Rep. Mike Quigley (D-IL)

Interview

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BLITZER: All right, Abby, thank you, Abby Phillip over at the White House.

Let's get some more on all of this.

Democratic Congressman Mike Quigley of Illinois is joining us. He's a member of the Intelligence Committee.

Congressman, thanks for joining us.

REP. MIKE QUIGLEY (D), ILLINOIS: Thank you.

BLITZER: And, as you know, the president says he never spoke to Roger Stone about WikiLeaks. But we know from the Mueller indictment that a senior Trump campaign official was directed to contact Stone.

So how important is Roger Stone to the collusion portion of the Russia investigation?

QUIGLEY: I think he's evidence of that collusion.

What's striking is the timing of all these matters. Let's remember that the indictment alleges that This senior adviser reached out to someone to contact Roger Stone, let's go see what WikiLeaks is up to And what else they have, at about the same time that candidate Trump was asking the Russians to go after Hillary Clinton's e-mails, right?

So it's -- the fact that Mr. Stone also seemed to know that Mr. Podesta was next in the barrel. He seemed to know all these things ahead of time, and then later denied it when it was obviously embarrassing to him and the president of the United States.

BLITZER: The Senate Intelligence Committee has seen records now showing that it was not President Trump who Donald Trump Jr. was talking to on a blocked number just before and after that controversial 2016 Trump Tower meeting in New York with the Russians.

Have you seen any evidence on this issue?

QUIGLEY: Well, look, this is just one answer that we have asked for, for an extraordinary long period of time. And we weren't able to subpoena anything.

So now we know of 100 contacts, around 28 meetings, and 18 Trump associates reaching out to the Russians. So this is just one element that has been answered.

Obviously, what we really need is all the phone records of these people reaching out to Russians or their contacts or all their social media contacts, whatever means that they possibly are.

So we're glad to see one of these questions finally answered. But the fact is, we have met with a pattern of lies and obstruction for over two years now. We're going to have the opportunity to subpoena these records and find out the answer to all those questions.

BLITZER: Do you think Donald Trump Jr. testified truthfully when he said that he never told his father about that meeting at Trump Tower with Russian officials?

QUIGLEY: I think the most likely answer, knowing the president and his son's relationship, is what Steve Bannon said in the book about the president and his son.

He said there was nearly zero chance that the son didn't tell his dad immediately after the Trump Tower meeting. A very strong personality occupies the White House. I understand that. And it seems that the president's son understands that.

No one in this Trump campaign or the administration is going to do something so important, so potentially influential without either advising the president or seeking his counsel.

BLITZER: In an interview with "The New York Times," President Trump said that his lawyers have now spoken to Rod Rosenstein, the deputy attorney general, and Rosenstein has told them that the president is not a target of the Mueller investigation.

Do you think that's accurate?

QUIGLEY: Well, first of all, I'm concerned about the contacts between the White House, his legal team and anyone handling this in the Justice Department.

We saw Mr. Whitaker this week talk about that, the fact that he had been fully briefed. It concerns me that these communications are taking place, perhaps tipping off the administration on things. That on both counts would be highly unethical.

[18:15:00]

There's absolutely no way of knowing exactly what's taking place. But I do think some of this could be a matter of the language that we use.

Understand, the special counsel is a man who follows the rules. And Justice Department rules say that a sitting president cannot be indicted. So, the fact that you can't be indicted probably means you're not the subject of a potential indictment. It doesn't mean that they're not uncovering criminal activity that leads into the Oval Office.

BLITZER: That is an important point, indeed.

Let's turn to the negotiations on border security, Congressman. President Trump says there's a good chance he will -- he will go ahead and declare a national emergency to go ahead and use other funds not appropriated specifically by Congress to go ahead and build a wall.

Do you think there's any deal Democrats can offer him that would avert that?

QUIGLEY: Let's try to get past this just one more time, because it seems the American public is being talked passed.

What the president says is that we want is border security. I guess what I equate it to now is, if we want security in our air, right, we don't build B-17 bombers from World War II. If we want border security, we don't build an old-fashioned technology, a $5 billion wall that can be walked around, gone under or gone over in a matter of minutes.

You give the border people what they need. And that is technology, sensors, heat-imaging cameras, roads that run parallel to the wall. And, by the way, if the president is so concerned about drug trafficking, 85 percent of those drugs that come through our border go right through our ports of entry.

Most of the cars and vehicles that go through aren't scanned. We have offered brand-new scanning equipment that actually works and a path to make sure that we're scanning all those vehicles.

Mr. President, you want border security, we will work with you. If you want outdated technology, you're talking to the wrong group.

BLITZER: Congressman Mike Quigley of Illinois, thanks so much for joining us.

QUIGLEY: Any time. Thank you.

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