MSNBC "Hardball" - Transcript: Interview with Rep. Mike Quigley

Interview

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MATTHEWS:  I want to thank -- bring in, by the way, Democratic Congressman Mike Quigley of Illinois, who sits on the House Intelligence Committee. 
 
Congressman, you have been with us a lot of times on this conversation about Russia, all the criminality involved that the special counsel is looking at, the House Judiciary Committee is ultimately going to judge on in terms of impeachment. 
 
What happens when you see that the criminal courts give this guy this break, one in five years?
 
REP. MIKE QUIGLEY (D), ILLINOIS:  You know, my ears are still ringing with the "lock her up, lock her up," my Republican colleagues shouting in Cleveland a little over two years ago.  And now we`re at this point in time. 
 
Look, the system is going to frustrate us.  But we can`t give up.  We remember there`s still next week.  And I do want to take the word collusion out of our vocabulary for a while. 
 
This isn`t collusion.  This is a conspiracy.  It was a conspiracy to attack the democratic process of the United States.  And those people closest to the president of the United States were involved.
 
And, fundamental -- I think it`s a point your guests were getting to -- is, it goes well beyond the criminal activities of those surrounding the president.  It goes to whether the president was involved in those criminal activities and whether those activities influenced the policy of the United States, between Flynn and the Saudis, Mr. Cohen and Trump Tower with the Russians, and clearly now with Ukraine and Mr. Manafort.
 
Is the United States less safe because of this conspiracy?
 
MATTHEWS:  You know, I look at this thing, it`s just like a criminal -- or a mystery story.  But it`s not so mysterious, because, in Cleveland, which you just mentioned, at the Republican National Convention, the -- magically
* magically, the Republican platform that most people don`t pay much attention to was rewritten by mysterious forces to advance the causes of Vladimir Putin, against the legitimate government of Ukraine. 
 
Why would something like that happen under the good offices of Paul Manafort, who works for the pro-Russian forces against Ukraine`s forces?  I mean Ukraine`s interests.  Doesn`t -- don`t we get fingerprints?  I mean, it seems to me there`s -- follow the signature.
 
Who changed that?  And there was Manafort taking credit for all this.  I`m sure he took credit to his -- to his clients.  They know what he did.  Are we going to find out?
 
(CROSSTALK)
 
QUIGLEY:  We are going to find that.
 
We have the gavels.  And there`s nothing to block us from the truth.  At this point in time, it`s important that we reflect on just what you`re talking about here.
 
The fact of the matter is, from day one, it was about this extraordinary connection with Russia and Ukraine, an area that they were attempting and have been attempting to dominate.  And the fact the matter, it just -- it was changing the new world order in presidents` policies from -- designed after World War II.
 
The new world order is under attack by its -- its primary architect.  And we have to address that.
 
Remember, Mr. Mueller and the Southern District of New York have different responsibilities than the House Intel Committee and Judiciary and Oversight.  Mr. Mueller and others` job is to decide who to bring to justice. 
 
Our job is to find out who attacked the democratic process, who conspired with them, and to educate and inform the American public. 
 
MATTHEWS:  Let`s talk about obstruction of justice right now today.  It`s a good time to do it, after this light sentencing of Paul Manafort, the president`s campaign chair and his -- and his convention chair.  He ran the convention for the president.
 
It seems to me that Donald Trump has made it clear from the beginning he doesn`t want justice.  He basically goes to the head of the FBI and says, lay off my friend Michael Flynn because of these meetings he`s had with the Russians. 
 
He had his picture taken over there with Putin.  Lay off the guy.  He`s a good guy.  Lay off of those meetings he had with Kislyak.  Lay off him.  And when the -- when the FBI director didn`t play ball with Trump, he fired him.
 
And then he goes and fires his attorney general because he dared to recuse himself.  Under Justice Department rules, he can`t be involved in adjudicating a -- or prosecuting a matter that he was personally involved in, running Trump for president.
 
All along the line, he`s obstructed.  What more do you guys need to impeach? 
 
QUIGLEY:  Look…
 
(CROSSTALK)
 
MATTHEWS:  It seems to me we have got this broad daylight robbery of our Constitution right in front of our faces and all the other stuff with Russia, working for the other side.  And they are the other side, the Russians.
 
All this stuff`s been going on in plain daylight.  It`s all there.  What more do you guys want? 
 
QUIGLEY:  You forgot the dangling of pardons. 
 
It was interesting to me when they were referencing whether or not someone was seeking a pardon.  I don`t think anyone needed to seek.  I think the president of the United States foretold, the pardons he gave the sheriff in Arizona, in the same way he foretold and offered these promises of pardons and dangling of pardons to people for some time now. 
 
So, look, we take that very seriously.  But if we had listened to those who wanted to move forward with impeachment when they initially started, we wouldn`t have had any of this information about Mr. Cohen, Mr. Manafort and Mr. Flynn.
 
I do believe we are getting close to a point where we have enough information.  But, again, as a criminal defense attorney for 10 years, I can`t say strongly enough, you don`t stop an investigation when you think you have enough.  You stop an investigation when you have found out exactly what took place. 
 
Just this last week, we learned a considerable amount from Mr. Cohen.  And I believe there will be key witnesses that follow that will give us an extraordinary amount of information. 
 
This isn`t just about deciding whether we have enough as well.  It`s also the court of public opinion, which I believe will drive our -- any opportunity we have toward this end in the United States Senate. 
 
MATTHEWS:  Well, nothing`s going to crack the Republican phalanx.  Don`t wait for that to happen, Congressman, because they`re at 88 percent, and climbing.  The more guilty Trump looks, the more they`re with him. 
 
Anyway, thank you, U.S. Congressman Michael Quigley of Illinois.
 
QUIGLEY:  Thank you.
 
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