HOUSE SPEAKER NANCY PELOSI

ANNOUNCING THE START OF AN

IMPEACHMENT INQUIRY INTO WHETHER

PRESIDENT TRUMP ABUSED HIS POWER

WHEN HE ASKED UKRAINE'S

PRESIDENT TO LOOK INTO A

POLITICAL RIVAL.

JOINING US NOW IS GEORGIA

CONGRESSMAN DOUG COLLINS,

RANKING MEMBER OF THE JUDICIARY

COMMITTEE IN THE HOUSE.

SIR, THANKS SO MUCH FOR JOINING

US.

>> HEY, MARIA.

IT'S ALWAYS GOOD TO BE WITH YOU

WITH.

MARIA: YOU JUST HEARD MY

CONVERSATION WITH RUDY GIULIANI,

I HOPE.

GIVE US YOUR REACTION TO THIS

INQUIRY INTO IMPEACHMENT.

>> WELL, FIRST OFF, RUDY IS A

PASSIONATE DEFENDER OF THIS

PRESIDENT.

HE'S WATCHED THIS PRESIDENT BE

ATTACKED FOR OVER THREE YEARS,

AND HE IS PRESENTING THAT.

THAT'S HIS JOB.

BUT LET ME GO BACK TO WHAT'S

GOING ON IN THE HOUSE AND WHERE

THIS IS AT RIGHT NOW.

THIS WEEK WE SAW A DARK DAY IN

THE HOUSE.

SPEAKER PELOSI ABUSED HER OATH

OF OFFICE, IF YOU WOULD, BY

SAYING AN IMPEACHMENT INQUIRY

HAD STARTED AND THEY WERE

SENDING IT TO THE INTELLIGENCE

COMMITTEE WHERE YOU HAVE A

GENTLEMAN WHO HAS A HABIT OF

LYING ABOUT THE FACTS,

MR. SCHIFF.

THEY'VE DECIDED TO WALK DOWN A

PATH IN WHICH THEY ARE CONTRARY

TO AMERICAN VALUES.

THEY'RE NOT GOING TO ALLOW THIS

PRESIDENT TO HAVE DUE PROCESS,

THEY'RE NOT GOING TO BE FAIR,

THEY'RE GOING TO RAMROD THIS

THING THROUGH BECAUSE -- AND I

HEARD A MEMBER OF HOUSE

LEADERSHIP SAY THIS MORNING ON

ANOTHER NETWORK THAT HE WANTED

TO HAVE AN INQUIRY, BUT HE

WASN'T READY TO VOTE FOR

IMPEEPMENT.

IF THEY WERE TRULY SERIOUS, THEY

WOULD BRING IT TO FLOOR, HAVE A

VOTE ARE, AND THEN THE AMERICAN

PEOPLE WOULD KNOW THIS WAS NOT

SIMPLY A DEMOCRAT RAMROD OF THIS

PRESIDENT.

MARIA: SO WHAT DOES THAT MEAN

FOR THIS IMPEACHMENT INQUIRY?

WHERE DOES THIS GO?

IS THE PRESIDENT IN JEOPARDY OF

BEING REMOVED FROM OFFICE?

>> NO, HE'S NOT IN JEOPARDY OF

BEING REMOVED FROM OFFICE.

HE'S IN JEOPARDY OF HAVING TO

CONTINUE THE ONSLAUGHT OF LIES

AND ATTACKS AND HALF-TRUTHS FROM

A ONE-SIDED INVESTIGATION IN THE

HOUSE.

THIS IS SOMETHING FROM MY

POSITION AS RANKING MEMBER OF

THE JEWISH -- JUDICIARY

COMMITTEE.

ANYTIME THEY'VE BEEN ALLOWED,

WE'VE ALLOWED TO HAVE

INVESTIGATIONS WHETHER IT BE THE

MUELLER REPORT OR THESE

RIDICULOUS HEARINGS THAT

CHAIRMAN NADLER'S HAD, IT'S

ALWAYS SHOWN THAT THE PRESIDENT

HAS DONE NOTHING WRONG.

THE COLLUSION WAS A FALSE

NARRATIVE, THE CONSPIRACIES, ALL

THESE THINGS WERE FALSE WHEN YOU

ACTUALLY INVESTIGATE.

SO NOW THEY DECIDED LET'S THROW

THAT OUT THE WINDOW BECAUSE

THAT'S NOT WORKING.

FAIRNESS IS NOT WORKING.

BEING ON THE RIGHT SIDE OF THE

AMERICAN PEOPLE IS NOT RIGHT, SO

WE'RE JUST GOING TO RAMROD IT

THROUGH.

THAT'S WHAT'S HAPPENING RIGHT

NOW.

MARIA: LOOK, I WANT TO ASK YOU

ABOUT THE RULES AROUND A

WHISTLEBLOWER.

WE KNOW THAT IN THE ACTUAL

TRANSCRIPT WE SEE THAT -- AND

THE ACTUAL COMPLAINT, RATHER,

THE WHISTLEBLOWER SAYS I DO NOT

HAVE DIRECT KNOWLEDGE OF THIS.

THAT IS IN THE COMPLAINT.

BUT I WAS TOLD THIS, AND I TRUST

THE PEOPLE WHO TOLD ME.

WHAT ARE THE RULES AROUND THE

WHISTLEBLOWER IN TERMS OF WHAT

THAT PERSON CAN CHARGE?

>> WELL, THAT'S WHAT'S REALLY

BEEN INTERESTING BECAUSE WE'VE

BEEN FINDING OUT THAT THE

WHISTLEBLOWER, ESPECIALLY IN THE

INTELLIGENCE COMMUNITY, RULES

SEEM TO HAVE BEEN CHANGED FROM

DEMANDING A FIRSTHAND ACCOUNT OR

ACTUAL KNOWLEDGE, FIRSTHAND

KNOWLEDGE OF THE ABUSE OR THE

MISUSE OF ISSUES IN THE

INTELLIGENCE COMMUNITY, TO NOW

WHERE THEY CAN HAVE SECONDHAND

INFORMATION.

IF YOU LOOK AT THE WHISTLEBLOWER

REPORT EVEN BESIDES THE

TRANSCRIPT AND EVERYTHING ELSE,

COMPARING THE TWO IS REALLY

INTERESTING BECAUSE IT SEEM TO

BE A VERY WELL WRITTEN DOCUMENT,

MULTISOURCED.

IF THIS WERE A PIECE IN "THE NEW

YORK TIMES"ES OR WASHINGTON

POST, THAT MIGHT BE WHAT YOU

WOULD EXPECT.

BUT YOU DON'T EXPECT IT IN A

LEGAL DOCUMENT ACCUSING A

PRESIDENT OF DOING SOMETHING IN

AN ILLEGAL FASHION AND DOING SO

FROM SECONDHAND INFORMATION.

NOW, AS WE GO FORWARD HERE, IS

THAT GOING TO BE THE FACT THAT'S

BEEN CHANGED IN THE INTELLIGENCE

COMMUNITY TO WHERE BASICALLY

ANYBODY CAN TAKE ANY REPORT THEY

WANT TO AND DECIDE TO FILE A

COMPLAINT?

THIS IS MORE SERIOUS THAN THIS.

THIS PRESIDENT AND OUR COUNTRY

DESERVES BETTER THAN WHAT WE'RE

SEEING --

MARIA: THEY MAY DESERVE BETTER

BUT, CONGRESSMAN, THAT'S NOT

WHAT'S HAPPENING.

THE DEMOCRATS ARE IN CHARGE, AND

THEY ARE GOING TO BE

INVESTIGATING THIS, AND THEY

WANT THE PRESIDENT OUT OF

OFFICE.

WHAT ARE YOU GOING TO DO ABOUT

ABOUT IT AS THE RANKING MEMBER

OF JUDICIARY?

>> WELL, IT'S BEEN A REALLY

INTERESTING WEEK BECAUSE IT

SEEMS LIKE THE JUDICIARY

COMMITTEE IS, AGAIN, IN THIS

RAMROD OF SPEAKER PELOSI AND,

YOU KNOW, FRANKLY, DEGRADATION

OF THE HOUSE RULES.

THEY'RE SAYING NOW, WELL, WE'RE

GOING TO DO AN INQUIRY, WE'RE

GOING TO KEEP FOLLOWING THE

RULES, BUT WE'RE ALSO GOING TO

SAY THIS, IN JUST THE NEXT FEW

WEEKS I THINK WE'RE DOING TO SEE

THE INSPECTOR GENERAL REPORT

COME OUT, WE'RE GOING TO

CONCENTRATE ON 40 HOW THIS

ACTUALLY GOT STARTED, HOPEFULLY

THE SENATE WILL BE, AND I KNOW

LINDSAY GRAHAM WILL BE DOING

THAT.

THEY'RE RUSHING TO JUDGMENT,

MARIA.

KEEP THIS CLEARLY IN MIND, THEY

KNOW TIME IS RUNNING OUT, AND

THEY'RE DESPERATE FOR THIS

PRESIDENT NOT TO WIN NEXT YEAR.

MARIA: ARE WE GOING TO SEE

INDICTMENTS, PROSECUTIONS OF THE

PEOPLE WHO DID THE WRONGDOING

COMING OUT OF THE FISA ABUSE

STORY AND AFTER THE I.G. REPORT?

WHERE IS THE, WHERE IS THE

ACCOUNTABILITY?

>> WELL, THE ACCOUNTABILITY, I

THINK, IS COMING.

YOU SEE ALL OF THE MAJOR PLAYERS

ARE CONTINUING TO SCRAMBLE,

MAKING UP STORIES ON HOW THEY

WERE REALLY JUST DOING THEIR

JOB.

IT SOUNDS SIMILAR TO, OH, I

DIDN'T DO ANYTHING, DON'T LOOK

OVER HERE.

I THINK BILL BARR, THE INSPECTOR

GENERAL ARE LOOKING INTO THIS,

AND THIS ACCOUNTABILITY -- WE'VE

BEEN TALKING ABOUT IT A LOCK

TIME.

IT'S TIME TO STOP THE HARASSMENT

OF THIS PRESIDENT, IT'S TIME FOR

THE HOUSE TO BE DOING WHAT THEY

NEED TO BE DOING AND THAT IS GET

BACK TO PEOPLE'S BUSINESS.

MARIA: CONGRESSMAN, THANK YOU SO