CNN "The Situation Room" - Transcript: Interview with Rep. Mike Quigley

Interview

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BLITZER: All right, Sunlen, thank you, Sunlen Serfaty up on Capitol Hill.

Joining us now, Congressman Mike Quigley, a Democrat who serves on the House Intelligence Committee.

Congressman, thanks so much for joining us.

And, as you heard, the president says Democrats -- and you're a Democrat -- Democrats are obstructing the country right now by not working with him on legislation. How do you respond?

REP. MIKE QUIGLEY (D-IL): Well, there's a lot of bills coming your way, Mr. President.

We're passing a couple bills a week of significant note. Today, we dealt with how to help Americans in retirement. So we're willing to sit down and talk about these things. And rather than being petulant and somewhat impulsive, let's sit down and talk about infrastructure. Let's talk about trade, and recognize that we can do more than one thing at a time.

BLITZER: The president is adamant that he was, in his words, extremely calm when he walked out on those Democratic leaders at the White House yesterday.

But is the House speaker trying to goad the president?

QUIGLEY: I don't think the speaker has to goad the president. I think he's a self-winding toy that shoots off occasionally. It's unfortunate.

Look, I think he's somewhat spurred by the court decisions that you just referenced. Those were important, significant decisions by the court, recognizing what the president's starting to understand, that we do have broad authority to do these investigations. And he reminds me something of my defense attorney career. When the

law is not with you, you pound the facts. If the facts aren't with you, you pound the table. He's pounding the table. And part of that's walking out of important meetings.

BLITZER: The speaker is trying to sway her fellow Democrats away from impeachment proceedings, at least right now, by saying that's exactly what the president wants.

She says the president wants, in her words, to be impeached. Do you buy that argument?

QUIGLEY: Oh, I think there's something to that.

But the speaker can also recognize that the real battle here is the battle in front of the public, the court of public opinion. And I do there's some real value to that. For almost three years now that I have watched this unfold, I have recognized that there's a lot of Americans who either weren't paying attention or were undecided.

And our message to them is, we believe in the rule of law. We're following the legal process through the courts. And we're giving the president every opportunity to comply. And it is he who is acting against the rule of law and making this all the more difficult.

So I think the speaker is onto this.

BLITZER: More than 30 of your House colleagues are not want to formally open an impeachment inquiry. Where do you fall, Congressman, on this?

QUIGLEY: You know, I understand that patience is wearing thin. It certainly is for me.

A part of what I'm watching is to see what happens with the ongoing court battles. What we're starting to hear is that -- look, if these issues get bogged down in the courts, it's important to recognize that the special counsel wanted Congress to make the decision whether or not there were crimes committed, whether or not there was obstruction.

But if the president refuses to allow his people to testify, refuses lawful subpoenas, doesn't allow us to see the unredacted report, it is conceivable that, at that point that I think the speaker is referencing, then an inquiry may be the only legal remedy to get those documents and decide whether or not impeachment is warranted.

BLITZER: But you're not there yet, right?

QUIGLEY: I'm not there yet.

Obviously, the patience is wearing thin. And I understand.

I believe the speaker was right. The president obstructed, as the special counsel referenced before the -- he issued a report. And he has clearly obstructed after the fact. But we all can count votes in the Senate and recognize we still have a job ahead of us. We need to move forward.

But, again, if the court system bogs down in this process, through the -- through the president's efforts, and then the only way to get these documents to find the truth, to see if a crime is committed, is to open an inquiry, then that's going to have to be it.

BLITZER: But you just said he obstructed. Isn't that a crime?

QUIGLEY: Oh, I believe the president obstructed. I believe he's unfit for office.

But I also want to get the complete, unredacted report. And, again, we're going to follow the rules, the rule of law, to get this information that we need through the courts.

BLITZER: But if he committed a crime, isn't that a high crime and misdemeanor? Isn't that enough to begin at least the impeachment inquiry?

QUIGLEY: Sure.

But I also learned that, when you're doing a criminal investigation, you don't stop when you have got what you think is enough. You get all that information. And I don't think that we can go in there with half a loaf.

We need the full body of information. And, again, I have watched this investigation from its first day. I was part of the investigation from its first day. I saw my Republican colleagues join the president in obstructing it.

There's no one who wants to get to the truth more. But I will tell you, there is more out there. There's more involving counterintelligence, in my mind, and the belief that the president of the United States was compromised.

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The American public deserves all that information. I will be a little more patient in following the rule of law to get to the truth.

BLITZER: Last night here in THE SITUATION ROOM, Congressman, I had a chance to speak to the chairman of your Intelligence Committee, Adam Schiff.

He told me very clearly that he thinks the Mueller report shows that President Trump committed a crime. But here's why he said that doesn't lead him to an impeachment inquiry, at least not yet.

Listen to this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. ADAM SCHIFF (D-CA): I think if we had a Republican Party that was willing to undertake that process in good faith and follow the facts, it would be one thing. We don't have that. We have a cult of personality around the

president.

We can't ignore the facts that, apart from now one House Republican, none of the Republicans are willing to question anything this president is doing.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLITZER: So, is this purely a political calculation, at least right now?

QUIGLEY: It's unfortunate.

What led Richard Nixon to finally resign, a lot would argue it's Senator Barry Goldwater finally told him that he was on the other side.

You can count the profiles and courage on the Republican side on one hand since this president took office. That's something we have to counter, recognize, and you simply don't have the votes in the Senate.

So, at some point in time, all you have done with an inquiry, moving forward on attachment, is to appease your base and antagonize the other base. At some point, what are the other values in going forward with the inquiry?

And it's my point, if the courts bombing down, how do we get the rest of this information?

BLITZER: Congressman Mike Quigley, thanks so much for joining us.

QUIGLEY: Any time. Thank you.

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