CNN "The Situation Room" - Transcript: "Interview with Rep. Adam Schiff"

Interview

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BLITZER: All right, stand by. I want to get some more on all of this. Over the key drivers of the current impeachment inquiry is joining us, Congressman Adam Schiff of California. He is the Chairman of the House Intelligence Committee. Congressman, I notice this had been a crazy hectic day for you. Thank you so much for joining us.

SCHIFF: My pleasure.

BLITZER: All right, so as you know the whistleblower's complaint lays out a long list of alleged misconduct by the President and the White House staff. Which specific allegations are the most troubling to you?

SCHIFF: Well, look, I think a lot of what the whistleblower brought forward surrounds that telephone call, that telephone call is the centerpiece of his concern or her concern. But we need to know a lot more about what took place before that call, what took place after that call, what were the circumstances in which the President, which is still a mystery to apparently people of the National Security Council, Senator Mitch McConnell and others can figure out why, what explanation the President gave at the time for withholding vital military assistance to Ukraine. So the whole constellation issues around that, I think are really the central point of the complaint. Obviously, Rudy Giuliani plays a role in that, Bill Barr may have a role in that.

The other main allegation, I think, that comes out of this complaint is that of a cover-up, as you mentioned, that is why was this transcript or more accurately memorandum of the call, why was it put in a file that is reserve for the most highly classified intelligence, for example, that involve in covert action.

[17:25:18]

And what else may be in that file? And so, these I think are two of the most important allegations. And the whistleblower has given us a pretty good road map into trying to find out.

BLITZER: He suggests that wasn't necessarily the first time. Do you have any reason to believe there were other instances when the White House lawyers or whoever did that?

SCHIFF: You know, we certainly know that other -- at other times, the President has been deeply concerned about whether there would be a record of his conversation, what comes most to mind is his conversations with Vladimir Putin. If there was an effort to destroy an interpreter's notes or seize interpreter's notes of that communication, then you can imagine what might have happened to any more complete record of that communication between the President and Putin.

So the short answer is we don't know, but we do know that this President has a history, particularly when it involves Vladimir Putin as indeed these allegations of denial of military assistance to Ukraine to defend against Putin's Russia involve, that he is very secretive about his conversations. And so we're determined to employ every tool, we have to find out.

BLITZER: According to the whistleblower, several other names, an unnamed people inside the Trump administration were involved in or witnesses to the President's conduct on the alleged cover up. Are you panning to subpoena them as well?

SCHIFF: Well, I'm hoping that these witnesses will choose to cooperate, will volunteer. But I have to say, I am deeply worried, and now that the President on the eve of our hearing or during our hearing was threatening these witnesses. And I don't know how else to determine, you know, to interpret the President of United States saying that these individuals, well, you know, we used to have a way of dealing with them, that's how we dealt with traitors and spies. Well, we used to execute traitors and spies.

And, so, I think it's pretty clear what the President is trying to do. He is trying to deter people from following the courageous example of this whistleblower. BLITZER: Because witness intimidation obviously is a very serious allegation. What's your message to these potential witnesses who clearly are -- will clearly are concerned, I'm sure.

SCHIFF: Well, look, my message is, this is a fight for the heart and soul of our democracy. If a President of United States can trade away the power of his office or use the power of his office or to trade away our national security interests for the reason that he wants help in his political campaign, that is about as serious level of misconduct about this fundamental betrayal of his oath of office as one might imagine. And if there are people who witness that conduct, who are knowledgeable of the facts of that conduct, I would hope that they would muster the same courage that this whistleblower displayed and come forward. Because our democracy depends on it, and I understand how difficult that is, but I also understand how important that is.

BLITZER: The President's personal attorney, Rudy Giuliani, is clearly at the center of this complaint. Will you call Giuliani to appear before your committee?

SCHIFF: Well, I do want to get into specific witnesses at this point. But Mr. Giuliani is clearly at the center of a lot of this. The spade work for this phone call may very well have been done by Rudy Giuliani. It appears to me from reading the transcript that the Ukraine president had a pretty good idea of what might happen on this call. And so, why that's the case, and how that was communicated to him, we need to find out and I wouldn't be a bit surprise if Rudy Giuliani is a part of that answer.

BLITZER: What's your timeline for getting these witnesses to come before your committee?

SCHIFF: Well, we're going to move as expeditiously as possible. We're really focused on this issue, this constellation of issues as the most important, because it represents the most significant danger to our national security. So we're going to move quickly. I have no doubt the administration will continue to try to get in our way and did so in a fundamental way by implicitly threatening these witnesses. But we're going to move forward expeditiously. We feel a real sense of urgency here.

One thing that was notable to me about the hearing today is the director took no issue with the urgency here, took no issue with the credibility of the witness here. And, indeed, the -- as you were discussing earlier, it was remarkable to me that so many of my GOP colleagues were saying, well, this whistleblower wasn't even a party to the call. That makes it all the more credible because the whistleblower was all the more right. And if the whistleblower's allegations as to other misconduct, other evidence of misconduct by the President are borne out as well as this record of call bears out, his information on what was exchanged between the President of the United States and the President of Ukraine. Then it says that these other allegations are equally serious and subject to proof.

BLITZER: When do you hope the -- the whistleblower will come before your committee?

SCHIFF: As soon as possible. And I was very pleased that the Director gave his personal assurance that that whistleblower would not only be protected but when that whistleblower comes before our committee -- and all that is remaining is to get the security clearances for his or her counsel.

That when that whistleblower comes before our committee, there won't be any Department of Justice minder, no White House minder, no one to sit next to that whistleblower and try to circumscribe, redact anything that whistleblower has to say as it pertains to misconduct by the President or anyone around him.

BLITZER: I assume the whistleblower will appear behind closed doors. Are you concerned, though, Chairman, about the possibility that the whistleblower's identity could be revealed?

SCHIFF: I'm deeply concerned about it. I'm deeply concerned about it. And obviously, we're going to do everything we can to take whatever steps are necessary to protect the whistleblower's identity.

But given, you know, those real repugnant threats coming from the President, I have a real concern about this. And so, we're going to, to obviously, have to deal with this in a way that we don't with most witnesses where security is not such a vital issue.

BLITZER: And we heard today, by the way, that the Speaker is really -- in terms of the current impeachment inquiry process, you're in charge now for all practical purposes. Explain what's going on.

SCHIFF: Well, you know, that may be an overstatement of the matter. But I think, as far as this constellation of issues, those around the President's misconduct vis-a-vis Ukraine, those involving the President's effort to badger another -- badger another leader to provide dirt on his opponent, the locust will be the Intelligence Committee where this whistleblower has brought forward this evidence.

So I also think it's the case that the caucus recognizes that, of all the misconduct of this President, this is probably the most serious because it goes so to the heart of his oath of office, so to the heart of his commitment or lack thereof to defend the constitution and jeopardize our national security.

This is why so many veterans who are serving in the Congress have come forward to denounce the President's conduct and demand a full investigation and impeachment inquiry. So I think we understand the centrality of this issue and that's why we're giving it such urgent priority.

BLITZER: As you know, Mr. Chairman, you're being severely criticized by a lot of Republicans for mocking the President during your opening remarks today at the committee. Was it a mistake to make light of the situation?

SCHIFF: Oh, I don't think it's making light of the situation. And I certainly wouldn't want to suggest that there is anything comical about this, but I do think it's all too accurate that this President, in his conversations with the President of Ukraine, was speaking like an organized crime boss.

And the fact that these words are so suggestive, that the President used, of what we have seen of organized crime harkens back to me of what, for example, James Comey said when he was asked by the President if he could let this matter involving Flynn go, when Michael Cohen testified about how the President speaks in a certain code where you understand exactly what's required here.

The point is that the President was using exactly that kind of language and the President of Ukraine fully understood what he was talking about.

BLITZER: Well, do you regret, what you called the parody, the use of those phrases during the course of your opening statement?

SCHIFF: No. I think everyone understood, and my GOP colleagues may feign otherwise, that when I said -- suggested that it was as if the President said listen carefully because I'm only going to tell you seven more times, that I was mocking the President's conduct.

But make no mistake about this. What the President did is of the utmost gravity and -- and the utmost seriousness because it involves such a fundamental betrayal of his oath.

BLITZER: I know you got to run and I appreciate your time and the time you spent with us, but getting back to Rudy Giuliani, the President's personal lawyer in all of this, do you think, potentially, he is criminally liable for some of his actions?

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SCHIFF: Well, look, if Mr. Giuliani was involved in a scheme to coerce a foreign government into giving dirt, manufacturing dirt on President Trump's political opponent, then, yes, that certainly can violate the law, violate the criminal laws.

Do I have any confidence, hope or whatnot, that the Justice Department would be willing to investigate? No. They've made it clear they're not going to investigate this. And they don't want anyone else to.

The fact that they would so cavalierly dismiss this credible evidence and say it is not even worthy of us looking into is yet another affirmation that Attorney General Bill Barr believes that he exists to serve the will and the interest of the President, not the presidency. And that's exactly what he's doing.

BLITZER: Congressman Adam Schiff, the Chairman of the Intelligence Committee. Thanks so much for joining us.

SCHIFF: Thanks, Wolf.

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