Russian Election Interference

Floor Speech

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Mr. SCHUMER. Now, why did every Republican vote for this? That is because there is no good reason that the special counsel's report should not be made public. The American people are overwhelmingly for making the report public. They have a right to see it. No one should stand in the way of that. In fact, in the House, no one did. The only reason to not make this report public would be to cover up what is in it. What a shame that would be.

The Senate should pass this resolution with the same unanimity that the House did. The special counsel has been investigating one of the greatest affronts to our democracy--the deliberate interference by a foreign power in our elections. The American people have an undeniable right to see the results of that investigation for themselves, and so this resolution should pass.

Con. Res. 24, expressing the sense of Congress that the report of Special Counsel Robert Mueller be made available to the public and to Congress, which is at the desk; further, that the concurrent resolution be agreed to, the preamble be agreed to, and the motions to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table with no intervening action or debate.

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Mr. SCHUMER. This amendment appears to be a pretext for blocking this very simple, noncontroversial resolution. Four hundred-twenty Members of the House voted for it. Congressman Jim Jordan, a friend of the President's, voted for it. Congressman Devin Nunes, a friend of the President's, voted for it.

This resolution should pass the Senate in the blink of an eye. I have absolutely no idea why a Member of this body would object to this basic level of transparency, whatever their concern on other issues.

My friend from South Carolina says the report ought to be made public. Let's not stand in the way for other issues. He is chairman of the Judiciary Committee. He can deal with that separately but not block this resolution.

So let the American people know that the Republican majority in the Senate--at least for now--is blocking a resolution that the Mueller report should be made public. I hope my friend from South Carolina and all of my Republican colleagues take time over the recess to thinks about this. We are going to be back here asking for consent again when the Senate is back in session, and my Republican colleagues ought to think long and hard before they block this resolution again.

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