House Minority Whip Steve Scalise cast doubt Thursday on whether President Trump would actually accept foreign dirt on a political rival ahead of the 2020 election.
“It was a hypothetical first of all. Would he do it in reality? I’ve been in many situations with him where how he responded to a hypothetical question was treated very differently when he actually had to deal with a specific problem,” the Louisiana Republican told reporters on Capitol Hill. “When the problem is on your desk, how you decide and deal with it then is how you’re judged.”
Scalise added, “He used the example of Norway. Norway is an ally.”
The member of House Republican leadership wouldn’t speculate how he would react if he were to find himself in a similar situation, saying only that he had “never had any information from foreign governments presented to me like that.”
Trump told ABC News Wednesday that he would not necessarily tell the FBI if a foreign agent approached him with damaging information about a political opponent.
Scalise also downplayed the prospect of Trump’s remarks causing more congressional Republicans like Rep. Justin Amash, R-Mich., to call for the president’s impeachment.
“I’m focused on getting the majority back, and I want to make sure we are recruiting good people in the seats that we need to flip to get the majority back,” he said when asked whether he supported Amash’s reelection.
