House minority leader Kevin McCarthy is calling upon House Intelligence Committee chairman Adam Schiff to recuse himself from the investigation into the Trump’s campaign’s alleged collusion with Russia, saying Schiff met his own standard of recusal that he set forth when Republican Devin Nunes was chairman of the committee.
House GOP Leader Kevin McCarthy told me on @ThisWeekABC that Intel Chair Adam Schiff "has now met Schiff's own standard" of why Rep. Devin Nunes had to recuse himself and now Schiff "needs to recuse himself from any new investigation" https://t.co/MIoJjTBqJr pic.twitter.com/RQg0weA1Px
— GeorgeStephanopoulos (@GStephanopoulos) March 3, 2019
McCarthy says by his own standard, Schiff’s extra contact with Michael Cohen impairs his ability to properly oversee the investigation.
Here’s how Schiff responded.
.@RepAdamSchiff responds to @GOPLeader’s call for Schiff to recuse himself from the House investigation into Pres. Trump's finances. Schiff says he only contacted Cohen to invite him to testify. “Mr. McCarthy…can be forgiven for not knowing how to run a credible investigation.” pic.twitter.com/dIVqhZHebz
— Face The Nation (@FaceTheNation) March 3, 2019
When pressed by CBS’ Margaret Brennan as to whether the extent of his contact with Cohen was limited to just inviting him to the committee, Schiff says:
“The extent of my contact was just inviting him to testify and also trying to allay his concerns about the president’s threats against him and his family, but our staff certainly sat down to interview him.”
Here is exactly what Schiff said about Devid Nunes in 2017 (via Politico):
“After much consideration, and in light of the chairman’s admission that he met with his source of information at the White House, I believe that the chairman should recuse himself from any further involvement in the Russia investigation, as well as any involvement in oversight of matters pertaining to any incidental collection of the Trump transition, as he was also a key member of the transition team,” Schiff said in a statement. “This is not a recommendation I make lightly, as the chairman and I have worked together well for several years.”
And here is exactly what Michael Cohen, who Democrats hail as one of the most credible people on earth, told the House Oversight Committee about his contact with Schiff.
"What did you talk to Mr. Schiff about?"
Cohen: "I spoke to Mr. Schiff about topics that were going to be raised at the upcoming hearing."
"Woah. Not just what time to show up? Actually what you're going to talk about?" pic.twitter.com/c07dRqbQ8A
— Rep. Jim Jordan (@Jim_Jordan) February 27, 2019
Schiff in 2017: Devin Nunes should recuse himself from all Trump matters at once because he met with his source.
Schiff in 2019 after meeting with his witness, Michael Cohen: No big deal, meetings are just part of the process.
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