HAD STOLEN AND WENT AROUND
SAYING, I LOVE WIKILEAKS.
>> MY GOD.
SO, JOYCE VANCE, THEN THERE’S
PAUL MANAFORT, WHO, NOW WE KNOW,
WAS JUST COMPLETELY DEALING.
AND TELL US ABOUT THAT ANGLE.
I MEAN, THIS WAS WAY BACK BEFORE
TRUMP EVEN BECAME PRESIDENT.
THIS MANAFORT, WHO’S ONE OF, YOU
KNOW, SEVERAL WHO WENT TO JAIL,
PAYING THE PRICE, BUT WE’RE
LEARNING SO MUCH MORE ABOUT
EXACTLY HOW DEEP INTO THIS HE
WAS.
>> IT’S JUST ANOTHER PIECE IN
THIS PUZZLE OF LIES THAT WE’VE
BEEN TALKING ABOUT THIS MORNING,
MIKA.
WE’VE ALWAYS KNOWN A LOT OF THE
INFORMATION AROUND PAUL
MANAFORT, THAT HE HAD DEBTS
WORTH MILLIONS OF DOLLARS TO
RUSSIAN OLIGARCHS, THAT HE WAS
WORKING WITH A MAN NAMED
KONSTANTIN KILIMNIK, WHO WAS
WIDELY BELIEVED TO BE AFFILIATED
WITH THE GRU.
THE SENATE SUBCOMMITTEE ACTUALLY
GOES A LITTLE BIT FURTHER AND
ACTUALLY I’VEDENTIFIES HIM AS
SOMEONE WHO WAS WORKING WITH
RUSSIAN INTELLIGENCE.
SO WHAT WE SEE HERE IS JUST THIS
PATINA OF LIE UPON LIE UPON LIE
BEING TOLD BY DESPERATE PEOPLE
CLOSE TO THE PRESIDENT.
AND FOLKS DON’T GO IN FRONT OF
THE SENATE SELECT COMMITTEE ON
INTELLIGENCE AND COMMIT LIES
UNDER OATH UNLESS THEY HAVE
SOMETHING TO HIDE UP.
THAT’S, I THINK, THE BIG
PICTURE, THE FOREST THAT WE NEED
TO TAKE AWAY AS WE READ THIS NEW
REPORT IN CONJUNCTION WITH THE
MUELLER REPORT.
THERE WERE SO MANY LIES THAT
WERE TOLD ON SO MANY DIFFERENT
SUBJECTS, AND PEOPLE DON’T
SUBJECT THEMSELVES TO THE RISK
OF PERJURY UNLESS THE TRUTH IS
SO BAD THAT IF THE TRUTH COMES
OUT, IT WILL DESTROY EVERYTHING.
THAT’S WHY PAUL MANAFORT MATTERS
HERE.
HE’S THAT FIRST PIECE OF
CONNECTION TO RUSSIA.
IT’S OUT OF HIS RELATIONSHIPS
THAT THIS UKRAINE STORY, THE
FAKE UKRAINE STORY, IS PUT INTO
CIRCULATION BY SOME OF THE FOLKS
THAT HE WAS INVOLVED WITH ON THE
RUSSIAN SIDE.
AND THAT’S DISINFORMATION
STRAIGHT FROM MOSCOW THAT THE
PRESIDENT, AMONG OTHER PEOPLE,
PICKS UP AND STARTS TO PUT INTO
PUBLIC CIRCULATION HERE.
SO, THE TRUMP FOLKS, THE TRUMP
CAMP HAS ALL TOO OFTEN CALLED
PERJURY A PROCESS CRIME.
OH, THESE OBSTRUCTION OF JUSTICE
CRIMES, THEY DON’T REALLY
MATTER, THEY’RE JUST PROCESS
CRIMES.
BUT WHAT THEY ARE HERE IS REALLY
THE MOST IMPORTANT PIECE THAT WE
NEED TO KEEP OUR EYE ON, BECAUSE
THE LINE IS HIDING UP SOMETHING.
THE SENATE, I THINK, HAS NOW
TOLD US VERY CLEARLY WHAT IT IS
THAT THEY WERE SO DESPERATE TO
HIDE UP.
AND OF COURSE, WE KNOW THAT THE
PRESIDENT HIMSELF LIED.
I REMEMBER WHEN WE WERE TOLD
THAT THE PRESIDENT WOULDN’T SIT
FOR AN IN-PERSON INTERVIEW WITH
BOB MUELLER BECAUSE EVERYBODY
KNEW HE COULDN’T SIT FOR THAT
INTERVIEW WITHOUT COMMITTING
PERJURY.
SO, HE SUBMITTED WRITTEN ANSWERS
THAT WERE VERY CAREFULLY CRAFTED
BY HIS LAWYERS.
NOW THE REPUBLICANS IN THE
SENATE HAVE TOLD US THAT EVEN IN
THAT CAREFULLY CONTROLLED
PROCESS, THIS PRESIDENT
COMMITTED PERJURY.
JOE, I’M FROM A LITTLE BIT NORTH
OF THE REDNECK RIVIERA WHERE
YOU’RE COME, BUT I KNOW PERJURY
WHEN I SEE IT, TOO.
>> WELL, YOU KNOW, AS I SAID --
>> CAN I COMMENT ON THAT?
>> SURE.
>> SO YOU KNOW, YOU AND SENATOR
McCASKILL, I THINK, IN HONOR OF
YOUR POINT EARLIER, WE SHOULD
ALL START CALLING THIS THE RUBIO
REPORT.
AND I JUST WANT TO FOOT STOMP A
POINT THAT JOYCE MADE ABOUT THE
RUBIO REPORT, WHICH IS, YOU
KNOW, ONE OF THE CENTRAL ISSUES
THAT IT IDENTIFIES IS THAT THE
PRESIDENT’S CAMPAIGN CHAIRMAN
HAD A LONG-TERM BUSINESS
RELATIONSHIP THROUGHOUT THE --
INCLUDING THROUGHOUT THE
CAMPAIGN -- IN WHICH HE IS
FEEDING HIM INTERNAL CAMPAIGN
POLLING AND INFORMATION, WHO IS
A RUSSIAN INTELLIGENCE OFFICER.
THAT IS THE FUNDAMENTAL CLAIM OF
THE FIRST SECTION OF THIS
REPORT.
AND KONSTANTIN KILIMNIK, YES, HE
SHOWS UP IN A SIGNIFICANT WAY IN
THE MUELLER REPORT.
BUT AS JOYCE NOTES, MUELLER
STOPS JUST SHORT OF SAYING HE IS
ACTUALLY A GRU INTELLIGENCE
OFFICER, SORT OF DESCRIBES HIM
AS HAVING BEEN SOMEBODY THE FBI
ASSESSES AS HAVING INTELLIGENCE
TIES IN RUSSIA.
THE RUBIO REPORT IDENTIFIES HIM
AS A RUSSIAN INTELLIGENCE
OFFICER AND DESCRIBES A LONG
PATTERN OF BUSINESS DEALINGS
THAT MANAFORT HAS WITH HIM,
INCLUDING CONFIDENTIAL CAMPAIGN
INFORMATION, RUNNING RIGHT
THROUGH THE PERIOD OF THE
CAMPAIGN.
AND SO, YOU KNOW, RATHER THAN
GETTING FOCUSED ON THE QUESTION
OF, YOU KNOW, COLLUSION, NO
COLLUSION, JUST ASK YOURSELF THE
QUESTION THAT THE RUBIO REPORT
ASKS, WHICH IS, IS THAT SAFE
FROM A COUNTERINTELLIGENCE
PERSPECTIVE?
IS IT AN OKAY THING FOR A
CANDIDATE FOR PRESIDENT TO HAVE
AS A CAMPAIGN MANAGER SOMEBODY
WITH AN ONGOING BUSINESS
RELATIONSHIP WITH AN OFFICER OF
RUSSIAN INTELLIGENCE?
>> AND FEEDING THAT OFFICER OF
RUSSIAN INTELLIGENCE, POLLING
INFORMATION FROM U.S. STATES AND
OTHER INFORMATION THAT THE
RUSSIANS COULD USE IN TARGETING
THEIR MISINFORMATION CAMPAIGNS
TO HELP DONALD TRUMP GET ELECTED
PRESIDENT.
YOU KNOW, WHAT’S INTERESTING
HERE -- AND THERE’S SO MUCH
INTERESTING HERE -- YOU COULD
TALK ABOUT -- WE COULD TALK
ABOUT THE MEETING AT TRUMP TOWER
WHERE LINKS BETWEEN THE KREMLIN
AND ONE OF THE LAWYERS WERE,
QUOTE, FAR MORE EXTENSIVE AND
CONCERNING THAN HAD BEEN
PUBLICLY KNOWN.
THAT WAS WITH DON JUNIOR AND
JARED KUSHNER AND MANAFORT ALL
MEETING IN THE OFFICE TO GET,
QUOTE, DIRT ON HILLARY CLINTON.
I FORGET THE EXACT WORDS THAT
DON JUNIOR SAID.
"THAT’S AWESOME, DUDE!"
OR SOMETHING ALONG THOSE LINES.
IF WHAT YOU SAY IS TRUE, I LOVE
IT!
>> GOD.
>> SOUNDS LIKE AN ARBY’S
COMMERCIAL.
BUT WHAT I FIND SO INTERESTING,
CLAIRE McCASKILL, IS THAT THE
RUBIO/COTTON REPORT CAME TO THE
SAME CONCLUSION AS THE MUELLER
REPORT, AND YOU CAN READ THE
REPORTS.
I’M NOT BEING UGLY WHEN I SAY
THIS.
THEY COME TO THE SAME
CONCLUSION, THAT THE ONLY REASON
THERE WASN’T A GREAT CONSPIRACY
WAS BECAUSE TRUMP’S CAMPAIGN
TEAM WAS TOO STUPID TO PULL IT
OFF.
LET ME FIND -- LET ME SEE IF I
CAN FIND THE EXACT LANGUAGE
HERE.
WELL, HERE WE GO.
"THE TWO SIDES SHARED THE SAME
OBJECTIVE" -- THIS IS THE
"WASHINGTON POST" REPORTING ON
THE REPORT -- "THE DEFEAT OF THE
DEMOCRATIC NOMINEE, HILLARY
CLINTON, AND BASKED IN ONE
ANOTHER’S ADMIRATION, BUT MORE
BECAUSE OF INEPTITUDE THAN ANY
PRINCIPLED COMMITMENT TO THE
SANCTITY OF AMERICAN DEMOCRACY,
THE PARTNERSHIP WAS NEVER
CONSUMMATED, THE COMMITTEE
DETERMINED," WHICH IS WHAT
ROBERT MUELLER ALSO CONCLUDED,
THAT THE TRUMP TEAM WAS JUST TOO