Sen. John McCain said that he has “more hope than belief” that a Republican-controlled Congress can adequately investigate the administration’s ties to Russia.
McCain, R-Ariz., was asked if he was confident the GOP majority in Congress was able to thoroughly look into the relationship between members of the White House and Russia.
“I hope so. And I have to believe so,” he said in an interview with NBC’s “Meet the Press” that aired on Sunday. “More hope than belief.”
Former national security adviser Mike Flynn’s resignation kicked off calls in Congress for an independent investigation into his relationship with Russia, after he allegedly made calls to the Russian ambassador to discuss sanctions ahead of President Trump’s inauguration. While Democrats are pushing for an independent select committee to look into the issue, many Republicans believe it is appropriate to let the intelligence committees handle it and fold the issue into the broader look at Russian involvement in the election.
McCain, speaking from the Munich Security Conference, said allies are “puzzled” and “concerned” by the mismatch in rhetoric coming from the president and his national security team. For example, Trump has wavered on his commitment to NATO, saying the U.S. would weaken its support if other allies don’t contribute more, but Defense Secretary Jim Mattis in Munich staunchly defended the alliance as critical in today’s world.
“I worry about the president’s understanding of some of these issues and his contradictory articulations. And I think the rollout of the, quote, ‘immigration reform’ was an example of a need for an orderly decision-making process in the White House. And that, I think, is probably what’s plaguing them more than anything else right now,” McCain said.
