CNN "The Situation Room" - Transcript: Interview with Rep. Steve Cohen

Interview

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KEILAR: All right, Jessica Schneider, thank you so much.

Let's get more on all this with Democratic Congressman Steve Cohen of Tennessee. He is a member of the Judiciary Committee.

And I do want to ask you about this upcoming Mueller testimony.

First, though, Iran has now seized a British tanker. This is an important American ally. What does the U.S. need to do?

REP. STEVE COHEN (D-TN): Well, what we need to do is get back in the Iran nuclear agreement.

We never should have left it, and now we're talking about getting back in it in the same basis that we were in it, which is Trump saying, I want to get out of what Obama did, but now I want to get in to do what Obama did.

Trump has been very inconsistent in his policies. I'm sure the Iranians aren't quite sure what he's doing either. The British and the Iranians are at it. It's a difficult situation that could result in some unfortunate activities, including war.

But we don't have a president we can trust. We don't have a president that we know, when he tells us something, that it's the truth. So, it's difficult for me to make a statement without having some confidential hearings from some people in intelligence that I respect and trust.

KEILAR: I want to talk about this preparation for the Mueller testimony.

Your committee is focused on the obstruction portion of the Mueller report. Intel is focused on the Russian meddling. There are five incidents of alleged obstruction, potential obstruction you that want to highlight.

Why zero in on this? What is the strategy?

COHEN: There are about 10 instances of obstruction that are cited in the Mueller report. I think five are the ones that counsel think are the most likely to be locked down, where Mueller will say, yes, all the elements were met and, yes, they are there. There might be others. And when you read the report, the other five

are also good cases. There was just a smorgasbord of obstruction by Trump, whether asking staff to lie for him, whether asking staff to do deeds that were obstructive, and asking Mueller to resign, or asking Sessions to unrecuse himself, dangling pardons before Manafort, dangling a pardon before Michael Cohen at one time.

He tried to obstruct justice. Why was he obstructing justice is a good question for the American people to ponder. If he didn't do anything wrong with the Russians, if he didn't do anything wrong in the election, if the meeting in Trump Tower was all innocent and about adoptions, why would he and all of his people lie about activities with Russia?

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Flynn lied about activities with Russia. So you have got obstruction.

And you have got issues that Intelligence is going to get into, the Intel Committee, concerning Russia. And I think maybe one of our members will too, because she has a particular expertise there.

But the Mueller report is a strong condemnation of the actions of the president of the United States and strong report on what Russia did to interfere with the election in 2016 and turn it towards Donald Trump.

And Donald Trump went on television and said, "Russia, if you're listening," and said, "I love WikiLeaks." Donald Trump encouraged and accepted and did not report Russian activity.

KEILAR: You each only have a few minutes really to ask questions.

And because of that, the committee is trying to build between each of the Democratic members of Congress, so that this isn't just the same questions asked over and over. I understand you're planning to ask a few of your own questions, though.

What do you say to Democrats who are concerned about members going off-script and not using that time effectively to build on the previous member?

COHEN: I'm going to use my time to effectively build on the previous member and to effectively set up the next member.

KEILAR: So you don't have any questions? You're sort of playing just on the team, or do you have some specific questions personally you that think are important for you to ask?

COHEN: We're all on the team. I have been on the team for 13 years. I have asked and will ask pertinent, important and appropriate questions that will help the team.

KEILAR: It is odd actually to see this kind of strategy. We don't see this every day. We don't see this with every hearing. Why has the committee decided this is so important?

COHEN: Is that kind of a Passover riff? Why is this hearing different from all other hearings?

Well, we did prepare...

KEILAR: Well, there have been a number -- I mean, not to say that this hearing isn't more important than others, but there are many important hearings, and yet we don't see this strategy.

COHEN: That's just a Jewish joke. It's just -- it's a Jewish joke. It went over. I'm sorry.

KEILAR: It did.

COHEN: But, yes, there's -- but, anyway, neither here nor there.

We did prepare for a previous hearing in a similar manner, and we stayed on our method and our course, and we were successful. And it wasn't covered as well by the networks. But we did that.

KEILAR: Does Robert Mueller, does he need to go beyond the scope of his report?

COHEN: He says he won't. He probably won't. There might be a few places where he will. I don't know.

There's a few places where I think he should. But we will find out. That's why we're going to have...

KEILAR: Is it necessary, do you think, for him to go beyond the scope of the report to make more Americans take notice of what's in the report?

COHEN: Not to make people more notice of what's in the report.

The people don't know what is in the report. They heard a month of stonewalling and lying by Barr and Trump and trying to say no obstruction, no collusion, when, in fact, he specifically said he couldn't clear him of obstruction and if he could say didn't commit a crime, they would have said it.

And there are elements of obstruction in those -- at least those five cases, if not more. And Mueller will talk about that. And that's important, because the American public only heard Barr's four -- three-and-a-half-page summary that he came up with and used his own perverted and contorted legal theory on obstruction, a very, very minority theory.

And he applied it. And he jumped into the breach and decided at the last minute a man who hadn't been involved in the special counsel's investigation and probably hadn't completely read it and understood it to jump in and give the summary and the analysis.

And then Trump did it. And every time he had a chance to go before the reporters, the reporters got him every chance he can, and he went no collusion, no obstruction, that's what it says.

And then, even when he released the report, Barr gave a press conference two or three hours before the report was released and said the same hocum.

So this was set up, staged to deceive and mislead the American public. And Robert Mueller needs to set the course straight. And, hopefully, it will be an important day that people will listen to, get the news, and understand that the Mueller report is an indictment, truly an indictment of our president, even though, legally, he cannot be indicted.

KEILAR: Congressman Steve Cohen, thank you for joining us.

COHEN: You're welcome.

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