The release of House Intelligence Committee transcripts of all the witnesses interviewed for its Russia investigation would “facilitate” the work of special counsel Robert Mueller, according to Rep. Adam Schiff, the top Democrat on the panel.
In a statement Sunday, the Schiff, D-Calif., seized on the revelation by Chairman Devin Nunes on Fox News earlier in the day that his committee will release the transcripts from the 73 people who were interviewed for the now-concluded probe.
Public release of the transcripts will “facilitate the work of the Special Counsel, who will have access to the evidence contained in the testimony and may consider who may have committed perjury before Congress,” Schiff said.
Unlike the House Intelligence Committee’s Russia investigation, Mueller’s has yet to conclude. While the work by Mueller’s team has led to indictments or guilty pleas of 32 people and three companies, there has yet to be any charges related to alleged collusion between the Trump campaign and the Kremlin.
Schiff has previously raised concerns that Erik Prince, the founder of the private security company Blackwater, may have lied to the committee. He also pushed the GOP majority to subpoena former Trump campaign manager Corey Lewandowski after he refused to answer some questions about his knowledge of President Trump’s discussions.
The House intelligence panel released their final 250-page report on Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election in April, concluding that there was no “collusion, coordination, or conspiracy between the Trump campaign and the Russian government.” But Democrats on the panel accused the majority of conducting an incomplete and misleading investigation, with Schiff calling out his GOP colleagues for backing away from a pledge to release the transcripts.
He renewed those complaints Sunday. “During the Russia investigation, Republicans on the House Intelligence Committee repeatedly promised to release all the transcripts when their work was completed, and then reneged when it became clear the transcripts would show how often they acted as defense lawyers for Donald Trump rather than objective fact finders. Months ago we sought to release the transcripts; they refused,” he said.
“Now, the Chairman is again promising to release the transcripts. We hope this time he will follow through on his commitment by scheduling a business meeting immediately and allowing a new vote to release all the transcripts. A few will need classification review by the Intelligence Community, but most will not,” Schiff continued. “The American people deserve to see what we uncovered, the questions witnesses refused to answer, the Majority’s unwillingness to demand a response, and the work the Majority left undone, even as the Minority continues the investigation.”
During his interview on “Sunday Morning Futures,” Nunes, R-Calif., said all of the documents related to witness interviews should be released to the public before the 2018 midterm elections, emphasizing that “full transparency is in order.”
