MSNBC "The Rachel Maddow Show" - Transcript: Interview with Rep. Maxine Waters

Interview

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MADDOW:  California Congresswoman Maxine Waters is now the chair of the Financial Services Committee in the House.  Since 2017, she has been calling publicly for an investigation into the president`s business dealings, and specifically whether there could be any connection between his huge outstanding loans and his complicated business history with Deutsche Bank and Deutsch Bank`s involvement in a multimillion dollar Russian money laundering scheme. 
 
The president himself has called any investigation of his personal or business finances a red line that special counsel Robert Mueller should not and cannot cross, but Robert Mueller is not chairwoman Maxine Waters and Congress is a co-equal branch of government and she now has subpoena power as a committee chair, along with her counterpart on the House Intelligence Committee, Congressman Adam Schiff, Congresswoman Waters is now pursuing this financial investigation she has long called for. 
 
Joining us is Congresswoman Maxine Waters, Democrat from California, chair of the Financial Services Committee. 
 
Chairwoman Waters, thank you so much for being here tonight.  It`s really nice to have you here. 
 
REP. MAXINE WATERS (D-CA), CHAIR, FINANCIAL SERVICES COMMITTEE:  She is cutting out. 
 
MADDOW:  Oh, no. 
 
WATERS:  Yes. 
 
MADDOW:  Can you hear me, Madam Chair? 
 
WATERS:  Not that well. 
 
MADDOW:  Uh-oh.  Here is what we`re going to do.  We will take a quick break.  I will send a bunch of elves over to you to fix the audio and we will be back with you in just a moment.  We will fix this technical problem and be right back with Maxine Waters right after this. 
 
It`s live TV.  Sorry. 
 
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
 
MADDOW:  Let`s try one more time.  The elves have been dispatched. 
 
Democratic Congresswoman Maxine Waters, chair of the Financial Services Committee in the House.  We believe we have fixed our technical gremlins. 
 
Madam Chair, can you hear me? 
 
WATERS:  Barely. 
 
MADDOW:  Well, I will talk loud and hope we work it out. 
 
WATERS:  I don`t know what`s happening. 
 
MADDOW:  Oh, dear.  Let me try this. 
 
Madam Chair, you have been asking for documents and testimony from Deutsche Bank as it pertains to President Trump basically since he was sworn in.  What are you interested in here?  What is it that you are investigating there? 
 
WATERS:  Rachel, would you repeat that one more time? 
 
MADDOW:  Sure.  We`ll give it one more try. 
 
Why is it that you have been asking for documents and testimony from Deutsche Bank basically since president Trump was sworn in?  What do you want to investigate there? 
 
WATERS:  Well, as you know, we have -- we have tried to get information from Deutsche Bank.  We have tried to get Hensarling (ph) who was the chair of the committee to hold investigations.  We have tried to get information from Mnuchin. 
 
MADDOW:  I am going to call an audible here and say we should bring her back when we can fix this problem because it is unfair to her to have her unable to hear to me and obviously unable to hear herself as she is speaking. 
 
So, I apologize on behalf of our technical gremlins who are not able to aided in the way they should have been.  We will fix this and have Chairwoman Waters back as soon as we can get this sorted. 
 
I will tell you while I was waiting for her to try to get her audio fixed, CNN and "Reuters" both reported that Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein is going to leave the Justice Department in mid-March.  I have that bit of news for you, that has broken since we`ve been trying to sort this out. 
 
NBC has not confirmed this reporting at this point, but Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein had been expected to leave the department when the new attorney general, William Barr, was sworn in.  Now, CNN and "Reuters" reporting that is scheduled for about a month from now in mid-March. 
 
All right.  We`ll be right back.  Stay with us. 

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