Fox News "Fox News Sunday" - Transcript: Interview with Senator Chris Coons

Interview

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HEMMER: Senator, thank you for your time, especially on a holiday. Roy Blunt from Missouri, thank you, sir.

With me now from Wilmington, Delaware, Senator Chris Coons, a Democrat on the Foreign Relations Committee.

And just to continue on Iran for a moment -- Senator, thank you for your time.

You've said the nuclear deal is not a perfect deal. But do you see what Iran has been doing? And you her what the senator just listed off here, what's wrong with putting pressure on Berlin and Brussels and Paris?

SEN. CHRIS COONS, D-DEL., SENATE FOREIGN RELATIONS COMMITTEE: Well, Bill, I agree with Secretary Pompeo and Senator Blunt that a lot of Iran's behavior outside the nuclear deal in recent years has been alarming and compels us to take action.

What I had wished the president had done is to recognize the benefits we've gotten from the Iran nuclear deal in constraining their nuclear program and getting us searching inspections of Iran's nuclear activities and work more closely with our European allies, with the Germans, the French, the British to reach a second deal, a bigger deal that would rein in their ballistic missile program, their human rights violation in their support for terrorism.

I completely agree that Iran is a bad regime that threatens our allies and conducts itself in ways that are unacceptable. I just disagree about whether causing greater distance with our European allies by sanctioning them and some of their biggest companies is the right path forward.

HEMMER: But perhaps you could change minds, yes or no, Senator, on that?

COONS: Well, I hope that we will see President Trump end up proving himself to be a dealmaker and not a deal breaker. But in this instance, I've heard from the ambassadors from our key European allies that they are concerned that "America First" is turning into America alone and whether it's in the path towards the Singapore summit with North Korea where our South Korean close ally was not consulted before the announcement was made, or it's in the path forward towards trying to ask restrain Iran's behavior and Russia's behavior that the close relationship we use to enjoy with Germany and France and the United Kingdom is fraying a bit.

HEMMER: Well, all these stories intersect as you just indicated there, too.

On North Korea now. Mike Pompeo said this on Thursday.

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HEMMER: Well, you know, it's not easy stuff and Kim has since taken a different tune of sorts. Do you think this summit can be put back together, Senator?

COONS: I think it's possible to have a constructive and positive summit, and I certainly prefer President Trump's choice now of diplomacy over threatening fire and fury, and I commend him and Secretary Pompeo for gaining the release of three Americans held in North Korea and recently another American released from Venezuela, and I certainly hope that he is successful.

But I would caution that if we go ahead without using every ounce of leverage we have over China, we're making a mistake. I was really struck that President Trump this past week was tweeting that he was going to work with Xi Jinping to release some of the pressure on ZTE.

Let me explain how these two connect. North Korea critically relies on China. If we don't have China putting maximum pressure on North Korea, I don't think the summit will succeed. ZTE is one of China's biggest telecom companies. They have repeatedly and intentionally violated our sanctions against North Korea and Iran, and the Department of Commerce just imposed a powerful sanctions against ZTE blocking them from getting U.S. material for six years. This is a moment where President Trump has China's attention and should use it to extract concessions both on North Korea and on China's ongoing theft of our inventions and innovations.

HEMMER: But you will agree --

COONS: I hope President Trump will show himself able to do that.

HEMMER: Yes.

You would agree, though, with -- with the Chinese cooperation thus far, with James Mattis' pressure and the pressure from this president, we would not even be talking about a summit had all three of those things not even come together, correct?

COONS: That's correct. It is a significant concession to North Korea to offer a summit. They've never had an opportunity to meet with an American president. It's something they've long wanted to elevate them to an equal to the United States.

And it's important that North Korea has given up a number of American prisoners as a confidence building measure.

HEMMER: Understood. Yes.

COONS: But -- but let's be clear, twice before North Korea under Kim Jong-un's father, committed to full denuclearization in six party talks in 2005 in 2007, as Senator Blunt just referenced, only to then change their tune. So we're going to have to be very focused, very engaged. I am hopeful that Secretary Pompeo will brief and engage Congress. And I'm hopeful that we'll work together to make sure that this summit is a success.

HEMMER: Two more questions quickly.

If the president's correct, should the FBI have an informant connected with any national campaign, Democrat, Republican or otherwise, senator?

COONS: A critical role that the FBI provides its counterintelligence. And when they began getting evidence that the Russians were engaged in a broad campaign to try and influence the 2016 election, I think it was appropriate for them to use a confidential informant to investigate with the Russians were up to.

I'm struck that Rudy Giuliani continues to talk about 13 Democrats, 13 Democrats in a rigged election -- in a rigged investigation, as he just did on this show. Let me remind you, Robert Mueller, Rod Rosenstein, Chris Wray, this is the special counsel, the FBI director, the deputy attorney general, all lifelong Republicans, Robert Mueller, the special counsel, a decorated Marine combat veteran, someone who's been unanimously confirmed by the Senate for senior law enforcement positions under both Republican and Democratic positions. To continue to undermine the credibility of the FBI and the Department of Justice in this way does not serve (ph) the interest of law enforcement or the rule of law.

HEMMER: But his point was that President Trump -- yes, I apologize for the interruption, I'm trying to squeeze in one more question.

His point is that President Trump should have been told about it. What's wrong with that?

COONS: Because President Trump and his actions in the campaign are potentially the focus of an investigation into obstruction of justice and collusion. I don't think it would have been appropriate for there to be the revelation of investigatory information to President Trump or his personal lawyers, particularly classified information about a human intelligence source in advance of there being any decision about whether to move forward with any final conclusion by the Mueller investigation.

HEMMER: Well, final point here.

In a week where Jared Kushner was given his permanent security clearance returned to him, you were calling for Donald Trump Junior to come back to your committee and testify. You believe he's lying. That is a strong charge.

COONS: Well, I'm --

HEMMER: About what, senator?

COONS: I'm concerned that in reviewing the transcript of Donald Trump Junior's questioning by a staff of the Senate Judiciary Committee, that there's a clear tension between his firm answers that there was no efforts by a foreign power to provide assistance to the Trump campaign at recent reporting that there were meetings that he participated in where representatives of gulf states were offering some assistance to the Trump campaign. I do think that's worth our questioning Donald Trump Junior again in front of the judiciary committee and it's my hope that on a bipartisan basis we'll continue these investigations.

HEMMER: OK.

COONS: As Senator Blunt just said, it is in everyone's interest for these investigations to continue without interference.

HEMMER: Senator Coons, thank you for being here today, especially on this Memorial Day weekend.

COONS: Thank you.

HEMMER: Thank you.

COONS: Thanks, Bill.

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