Subtitles section Play video Print subtitles MR. LEWANDOWSKI, YOU MAY BEGIN. >> CHAIRMAN NADLER, RANKING MEMBER COLLINS, AND MEMBERS OF THE COMMITTEE, GOOD AFTERNOON. I WOULD LIKE TO START OFF BY EXPRESSING MY HOPE THAT TODAY'S HEARING WILL BE PRODUCTIVE IN REVEALING THE TRUTH, BOTH TO THE COMMITTEE AND TO THE AMERICAN PEOPLE. FOR THE RECORD, AND AS YOU LIKELY KNOW, I HAVE ALREADY TESTIFIED BEFORE CONGRESS ON THREE SEPARATE OCCASIONS. I SAT AT LENGTH WITH THE STAFF OF THE SPECIAL COUNSEL'S OFFICE. THERE, TOO, MY TIME AND ANSWERS WERE GIVEN FREELY AND WITHOUT HESITATION. I THINK IN ONE FORM OR ANOTHER I'VE ALREADY ANSWERED QUESTIONS FOR WELL OVER 20 HOURS. SO NOW HERE I AM BEFORE THE HOUSE JUDICIARY COMMITTEE, TO ANSWER THE SAME QUESTIONS AGAIN. JUST LAST WEEK THIS COMMITTEE, OVER THE OBJECTIONS OF THE MINORITY, UNILATERALLY CHANGED THE RULES TO MAKE THIS AN IMPEACHMENT PROCEEDING, WHICH IS VERY UNFAIR. HOWEVER, IN THE SPIRIT OF COOPERATION, I AM PREPARED TO MOVE FORWARD TODAY. I WOULD LIKE TO START BY RECOUNTING THE EVENTS THAT BROUGHT US TO THIS POINT. MY STORY OF JOINING THE TRUMP CAMPAIGN, WORKING THROUGH HISTORIC ELECTION, AND CONTINUING TO HAVE THE PRIVILEGE TO BE PART OF THE GREATEST POLITICAL MOVEMENT IN OUR NATIONS HISTORY. I PRESENT THIS SUMMARY IN THE INTEREST OF TRUTH AND TRANSPARENCY TO THE AMERICAN PEOPLE, THE VERY SAME REASON AND RATIONALE THAT THIS COMMITTEE OFFERS AS A BASIS FOR TODAY'S HEARING. GROWING UP IN A BLUE-COLLAR, SINGLE-PARENT FAMILY IN LOWELL, MASSACHUSETTS, I LEARNED THE VALUE OF HARD WORK. THAT WORK ETHIC HELPED ME PUT MYSELF THROUGH BOTH COLLEGE AND GRADUATE SCHOOL. PRIOR TO BECOMING A CONGRESSIONAL STAFFER, AND ULTIMATELY A CERTIFIED PEACE OFFICER IN THE STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE. HOWEVER, THE WORLD OF POLITICS WAS ALWAYS OF PASSION. AND IN JANUARY OF 2015, DONALD J. TRUMP, THAN A PRIVATE CITIZEN, HIRED ME TO HELP THEM EXPLORE A POSSIBLE RUN FOR THE PRESIDENCY. IT WAS AN HONOR AND PRIVILEGE TO PLAY SMALL PART IN SUCH A HISTORIC CAMPAIGN. THE CAMPAIGN STARTED AS A SMALL GROUP OF INDIVIDUALS HELPING MR. TRUMP TO MAKE THE DECISION IN JUNE OF 2015 TO RIDE DOWN THE GOLDEN ESCALATOR AND SEEK THE REPUBLICAN NOMINATION FOR PRESIDENCY OF THE UNITED STATES. FOR MORE THAN A YEAR I SERVED AS CAMPAIGN MANAGER TO THEN-CANDIDATE TRUMP IN HIS HISTORIC CAMPAIGN, WHERE I LED A LEAN AND DEDICATED OPERATION THAT SUCCEEDED IN HELPING HIM CAPTURE THE REPUBLICAN NOMINATION. MY JOB WAS SIMPLE -- PROVIDE MR. TRUMP WITH MY BEST ADVICE, SPEND HIS MONEY LIKE IT WAS MY OWN, AND GIVE HIM THE SUPPORT HE NEEDED TO WIN. I ALSO SAID TO LONG-TERM OBJECTIVES AND MANAGED DAY-TO-DAY DECISIONS. I HAD THE PRIVILEGE, AND IT WAS A PRIVILEGE, OF HELPING TRANSFORM THE TRUMP CAMPAIGN FROM A DEDICATED BUT SMALL MAKESHIFT ORGANIZATION TO A HISTORICAL AND UNPRECEDENTED POLITICAL JUGGERNAUT. I AM PROUD TO SAY MR. TRUMP WON 38 PRIMARIES AND CAUCUSES AND RECEIVED MORE VOTES THAN ANY CANDIDATE IN THE HISTORY OF THE REPUBLICAN PARTY, ALL WHILE BEING OUTSPENT MOST OF THE WAY. THE HISTORIC CAMPAIGN HELPED MR. TRUMP SECURE THE REPUBLICAN NOMINATION, AND ULTIMATELY THE PRESIDENCY OF THE UNITED STATES. HOWEVER, SINCE ELECTION DAY, WHETHER IT WAS BAD ACTORS AT THE FBI AND THE INTELLIGENCE COMMUNITY OR LIES COMING FROM MEMBERS OF THE CURRENT HOUSE MAJORITY, THERE WAS EVIDENCE OF COLLUSION. THE AMERICAN PEOPLE CONTINUE TO BE SOLD A FALSE NARRATIVE WITH THE PURPOSE OF UNDERMINING THE LEGITIMACY OF THE 2016 RESULTS. BUT NO MATTER THE SIZE, CAMPAIGNS ARE NOT ALWAYS THE MOST EFFICIENT ORGANIZATIONS. WHILE YOU RUN IN SINGLE CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICTS, JUST IMAGINE WHAT IT'S LIKE TO LEAD A NATIONAL CAMPAIGN THAT SPANS ALL 50 STATES OF THE UNION. DURING MY TIME AS CAMPAIGN MANAGER, THERE WERE COMPETING INTERESTS FOR THE CANDIDATES' TIME. AND A SEA OF IDEAS. SOME LAUDABLE, SOME SOUND. A FEW, NOT SO MUCH. MANY OF WHICH WERE DISMISSED OUT OF HAND. OTRS WERE PASSED ON TO STAFFERS TO BE HANDLED. I ALSO RECEIVED HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS OF EMAILS, SOME DAYS WITH AS MANY AS A THOUSAND EMAILS. UNLIKE OTHER CLINTON, I DON'T THINK I'VE EVER DELETED ANY OF THOSE MANY OF THEM WILL RESPOND TO DO WITH EITHER ONE WORD ANSWERS OR FORWARDED TO OTHER STAFF FOR ADDITIONAL FOLLOW-UP. THROUGHOUT IT ALL, INTO THE BEST OF MY RECOLLECTION, I DON'T RECALL HAVING ANY CONVERSATIONS FOREIGN ENTITIES, LET ALONE ANY WHO ARE OFFERING TO HELP MANY PLAY THE OUTCOME OF AN ELECTION. AS I SAID PUBLICLY MANY TIMES, ANYONE WHO ATTEMPTED TO ILLEGALLY IMPACT THE OUTCOME OF AN ELECTION SHOULD SPEND THE REST OF THEIR TIME IN JAIL. LET ME STRESS THIS FACT. DURING THE 2016 ELECTION CYCLE, MR. TRUMP HELD NO ELECTED POSITION. HE WAS NOT A GOVERNMENT OFFICIAL. RATHER, THE OBAMA BIDEN INFORMATION IN THE INTELLIGENCE COMMUNITY OVERSEEN BY JAMES CLAPPER, JIM COMEY, AND JOHN BRENNAN, HAVE THE RESPONSIBILITY OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE TO ENSURE THE INTEGRITY OF THE 2016 ELECTION. I BELIEVE IT TO THIS COMMITTEE AND THE MARKET PUBLIC TO DECIDE HOW SUCCESSFUL OR NOT THEY WERE IN DOING THEIR JOBS. REGARDLESS, AS A SPECIAL COUNSEL DETERMINED, IT WAS NO CONSPIRACY OR COLLUSION BETWEEN THE TRUMP CAMPAIGN, AND ANY FOREIGN GOVERNMENTS, EITHER ON M FOREIGN GOVERNMENTS, EITHER ON Y WATCH OR AFTERWARDS. NOT SURPRISINGLY, AFTER THE MUELLER REPORT WAS MADE PUBLIC, INTEREST IN THE FAKE RUSSIA COLLUSION NARRATIVE HAS FALLEN APART. IN CONCLUSION, AND IT'S SAD TO SAY, THIS COUNTRY HAS SPENT OVER THREE YEARS AND 40 MILLION TAXPAYER DOLLARS ON THESE INVESTIGATIONS, AND IT IS NOW CLEAR THAT THE INVESTIGATION WAS POPULATED BY MANY TRUMP HATERS WHO HAD THEIR OWN AGENDA -- TO TAKE DOWN A DULY-ELECTED PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES. AS FOR ACTUAL COLLUSION OR CONSPIRACY, THERE WAS THE DOG NONE. THERE HAS BEEN HARASSMENT OF THIS PRESENT FROM THE DATE HE WON THE ELECTION. WE AS A NATION WOULD BE BETTER SERVED IF ELECTED OFFICIALS LIKE YOURSELF CONCENTRATED HER EFFORTS TO COMBAT THE TRUE CRISES FACING OUR COUNTRY, AS OPPOSED TO GOING DOWN RABBIT HOLES LIKE THIS HEARING. INSTEAD OF FOCUSING ON PETTY AND PERSONAL POLITICS, THE COMMITTEE FOCUSED ON SOLVING THE CHALLENGES OF THIS GENERATION, IMAGINE HAVING PEOPLE WE COULD HELP OR HOW MANY LIVES YOU COULD SAVE. AS I STATED EARLIER, I HAVE VOLUNTARILY APPEARED IN FRONT OF CONGRESS ON THREE SEPARATE OCCASIONS AND SPOKEN TO MEMBERS OF THE SPECIAL COUNSEL'S OFFICE FOR MULTIPLE HOURS. I WILL CONTINUE TO BE FORTHRIGHT
B1 FoxNews campaign trump committee election collusion Lewandowski becomes first witness to testify in impeachment probe 2 0 林宜悉 posted on 2019/10/18 More Share Save Report Video vocabulary