Schiff on Trump abusing power to go after his enemies: “This is a broad societal effort to silence, intimidate the opposition. It’s what dictators do.”
Washington, D.C. — U.S. Senator Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) joined MS NOW’s Lawrence O’Donnell to discuss the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests that he submitted alongside Senators Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.) and Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) to the Department of Justice seeking records of potential executive branch misconduct or corruption, including on information related to White House Border Czar Tom Homan reportedly accepting $50,000 in cash from undercover FBI agents as a bribe for government contracts.
Schiff also blasted the Trump administration’s investigation into his colleagues, Senators Mark Kelly and Elissa Slotkin, highlighting that Trump is once again abusing the power of his office to go after his critics and to silence and intimidate them.
View the full interview here.
Key excerpts:
On Trump admin refusal to answer questions on Tom Homan investigation, the need to submit FOIA requests for answers:
[…] Here where the Justice Department dismissed the case for reasons it’s never made clear, the question is, did they ever get the money back, or did he just get this $50,000 bribe gift from the FBI? And we should be able to get answers from the Attorney General on that or the Director of the FBI, but that requires that Republicans join us in doing serious oversight. That requires the Judiciary Committee demand, on a bipartisan basis, answers to those very basic questions. They haven’t been willing to do that. So, Senator Whitehouse, Senator Blumenthal myself, have now made these FOIA requests. My experience in the first Trump administration, when they likewise stonewalled oversight is sometimes FOIA is a quicker process to get answers, because you can go to court to enforce them — than even congressional oversight — particularly here where Republicans aren’t willing to do it.
On Trump admin investigation and intimidation tactics into members of Congress for simply reciting the law:
[…] This is plainly intended to try to intimidate them. We have the astonishing situation where the president, the Pentagon are saying that if you state the law, if you state what the Constitution provides, that that’s how somehow going to subject you to investigation, prosecution for sedition, court martialing. It’s absurd, but the whole point of it is also a dangerous effort to try to silence and intimidate. And I can tell you knowing all of these six who made that video, they are not about to be silenced or intimidated. They have faced far greater in their careers than these idle threats from the president or the Pentagon. But nevertheless, it’s part of the abuse of the Justice Department to go after the president’s enemies. He’s now abusing the Pentagon to go after his enemies. He’s abusing the FCC to go after his critics in late night comedy. He’s using the Department of Education to go after his critics at universities. This is a broad societal effort to silence, intimidate the opposition. It’s what dictators do. And I’m just so proud of the patriotism of my colleagues, Mark Kelly, Elissa Slotkin, two of our most respected colleagues, I think all of us in the Democratic caucus are feeling enormous sense of pride in them and support for them.
[…] It’s not a serious investigation. There’s no court or court martial in the world that would find fault, I think, with my colleagues restating the obvious restating of the law. But you know, it’s designed to set a chilling effect. It’s designed not only to chill these particular members, but to send a message to other members of Congress, House or Senate, that you got to watch what you say, because you will be investigated. You can be threatened with prosecution. You might have to retain counsel. We will essentially put you through the ringer if you dare stand up to this President. But you know, I can tell you, my colleagues and I feel this only stiffens our resolve to stand prouder, stand stronger, push back harder against this lawless administration.
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