House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerry Nadler defended a hearing about the Mueller report Monday that features Watergate figure John Dean, a convicted felon who served as President Richard Nixon’s White House counsel.
Nadler, in his opening statement, said Mueller’s 448-page report outlined “10 separate incidents in which the president attempted to change the scope of the investigation, or to end it altogether.”
The New York Democrat said the committee plans to investigate foreign influence on elections, namely how Russia managed to meddle in the 2016 presidential election.
But Trump should also be scrutinized, he said, over the incidents Robert Mueller describes in his report.
“There could be no question that this committee must investigate this behavior as well,” Nadler said.
The top Republican on the panel, Rep. Doug Collins of Georgia, said the committee had mixed-up priorities and should be focused on foreign interference, not the president.
The Mueller report found no proof Trump or his campaign colluded with the Russians in their meddling effort.
“Democrats are abandoning their duty to confront foreign interference in our elections in favor of drawing out their slanderous campaign against the president,” Collins said.
