CNN "Erin Burnett Outfront" - Transcript: Interview with Rep. Sylvia Garcia

Interview

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SCIUTTO: OUTFRONT now, Democratic Congresswoman Sylvia Garcia of Texas. She sits on the House Judiciary Committee.

Congresswoman, we appreciate you take the time tonight.

REP. SYLVIA GARCIA (D-TX): Well, thank you for having me, Jim.

SCIUTTO: Let me ask you, first, what are you hoping to find out from these documents involving the President Trump and his advisers Steven Miller? What would you say to your constituents as to what you're after here?

GARCIA: Well, you know, it's all about trying to get to the bottom of what really did happen, getting the facts, and just see exactly where that leads us. So, I think it's important that he appear. And it's important that he respond to the subpoena.

You know, he's got a -- a legal obligation to do that. It's a constitutional obligation. You know, ethically, he should appear. I just -- it's hard for me to imagine anyone receiving a subpoena from Congress and not appearing.

SCIUTTO: And, listen, it's part of your job, of course, to execute oversight of the executive branch. But I do want to ask you, are you -- are your fellow committee members ready to put someone behind bars to force them to testify?

GARCIA: Well, we hope it doesn't get to that. The first question everyone should ask themselves is what is it that they're trying to hide? Because if there wasn't anything to hide then they would cooperate.

But the very idea that the attorney general might order someone not to appear on questions about the citizenship requirement for the census, to appear at any of our hearings in the judiciary, for anyone to be ordered to not appear just doesn't make any sense to me as a lawyer, as an American. It just goes against everything that is a basis of our democracy.

So, we have to ask ourselves first, you know, what are they trying to hide? And secondly, you know, do -- what do we do to enforce our subpoena?

[19:35:05] Do we keep trying to work through this as we've been trying to just by asking them to appear? We issue the subpoena. Do we go to court to enforce that? Do we hold them in contempt?

And I can tell you this, that this is just not good behavior. It's not a good example for the rest of the country. It's not a good example for our children that are watching, because no one should be allowed to just totally ignore a subpoena.

SCIUTTO: Right.

GARCIA: The rule of law means something in this country.

SCIUTTO: Sure.

GARCIA: And it begin was the White House.

SCIUTTO: Gets to the functioning of government. But I have to ask you this. I speak to Democratic and Republican

lawmakers. They tell me when out on the trail, they are speaking to constituents this is not at the top of the constituent's mind. It's not even halfway down the list, that they're not asked about the investigations.

And I just wonder, do you find the political appetite for in, as you speak to your constituents or are Democrats as risk of going somewhere where their supporters don't want them to go?

GARCIA: Well, I think if you look at -- you know, this is not so much about the polls or the politics, it's about the president and what he can do and not do. It's about the separation of powers. It's about the Constitution.

So this isn't about the party or the president. It really is about, you know, the public trust. And I think once we lay it out, do were we do the hearings that are planned and we get to the facts, I think the public will become more engaged and will understand exactly what we're doing. I think there is a lot of support.

I'm asked the question as I've been traveling around this last couple of weeks, of course we don't forget that we're working on health care. We're working on lower prescription drug prices. We're working on equal pay for equal work.

SCIUTTO: I get that but that --

GARCIA: We're working on a number of other agendas.

(CROSSTALK)

SCIUTTO: That part of agenda which is part of the agenda that won you midterms.

GARCIA: We don't forget that.

SCIUTTO: It's not --

GARCIA: But we don't forget that.

SCIUTTO: OK. I know you don't. But it's not what folks are hearing most of the time. It's not what they're seeing most of the time on the Hill. They're seeing a lot of hearing not seeing legislation, not seeing legislation on prescription drug prices for instance.

So, I wonder if you're concerned that the party risks a political price by being seen as a party of investigations?

GARCIA: Well, we'll have to -- you know, we'll have to wait and see. But which is why we have to lay the predicate for it. I think just taking the report and immediately trying to go -- move forward on impeachment and doing some of the other things may put us in that dilemma.

But I think if we lay it out, people will understand -- and they will be with us. Because I think when you talk about obstruction, you talk about corruption, you talk about abuse of power, and how that may affect whether or not legislation is passed, whether or not there is side deals and self-dealing and favoritism, whether it's on the relationships with foreign countries having to do with the tariffs?

I mean, those things impact the bread and butter issues that people care about. So, we as Democrats have to make that connection so that the public can understand why we're doing it.

SCIUTTO: Congresswoman, I appreciate you taking the questions tonight.

GARCIA: Thank you.

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