In an exclusive wide-ranging interview on ABC’s “This Week,” Cheney also discussed the FBI investigation into the former president’s Mar-a-Lago estate — calling the investigation a very serious development and saying she was “ashamed” of some of her fellow Republicans. colleagues who attacked the Justice Department and the FBI. Cheney, who serves as vice chair of the Jan. 6 Select Committee to investigate the Capitol attack — and speaking with Karl in the committee hearing room — also said she still hopes former Vice President Mike Pence will testify of the committee in the near future. adding that talks with his legal team are ongoing. Rep. Liz Cheney speaks with ABC News Washington Chief Correspondent Jon Karl August 19, 2022 in Washington, DC Quinn Scanlan/ABC News
Cheney ’embarrassed’ by Republican colleagues’ reaction to Mar-a-Lago investigation
During her interview with ABC’s Karl, Cheney discussed the FBI search of Trump’s Mar-a-Lago residence earlier this month and said she was embarrassed that congressional Republicans had defended Trump and accused the Ministry of Justice for politics. wickedness. “This is a very serious thing. I think when you think about the fact that we were in a position where the FBI, the Department of Justice, felt the need to execute a search warrant at the home of a former president — that’s a very serious thing to nation,” he said. Rep. Liz Cheney speaks with ABC News Washington Chief Correspondent Jon Karl August 19, 2022 in Washington, DC ABC News The redacted copy of the search warrant released sent shockwaves through Washington as it revealed that the Justice Department was investigating the possible violation of at least three different criminal statutes in the Mar a Lago investigation, including obstruction of justice and a crime under the Espionage Act. A proof of ownership attached to the warrant shows agents seized multiple boxes of documents of various categories, including a set referred to as “classified/TS/SCI documents” (the acronym stands for top secret/sensitive compartmentalized information that not everyone even has top secret clearance can see) and four other sets of top secret documents. Trump’s team has yet to take legal action, despite publicly trying to pressure the Justice Department to release the full affidavit underlying the warrant. In recent days, Trump has called for the “immediate release” of the affidavit, while launching various attacks on the FBI and the Justice Department, while also demanding on his social media page that the documents be returned to him. After the raid, a growing list of Republicans took to Twitter, with some attacking the Justice Department and the FBI, including House Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy. He tweeted a statement that read, in part, “The Department of Justice has reached an intolerable state of weaponized politicization.” “I was embarrassed to hear Republicans immediately and reflexively attack the FBI agents who executed the search warrant,” Cheney said. Rep. Liz Cheney speaks with ABC News Washington Chief Correspondent Jon Karl August 19, 2022 in Washington, DC Quinn Scanlan/ABC News Cheney also accused Trump of releasing the unredacted search warrant to media organizations, which then published its contents without removing the names of the agents involved. Law enforcement agencies across the country are actively monitoring the growing barrage of angry online rhetoric and threats that have appeared in the wake of the raid. “I was disgusted to learn that President Trump had released the names of these agents when the unredacted search warrant was released and that has now sparked violence,” Cheney said. ABC News did not confirm Cheney’s claim. “We saw threats of violence, the judge himself, his synagogue had to cancel services because of threats of violence. saying, “We need to get the facts. We need to get the facts that we need to get the information about what happened… I think the American people see what hypocrisy this is, and it’s a dangerous hypocrisy,” Cheney said. “I have seen no evidence that there was a political motive,” Cheney added, responding to some of her Republican colleagues who blamed the Justice Department for it. A judge in Florida said Thursday, despite the Justice Department’s objections, he may seek to unseal portions of the affidavit. After hearing arguments in person on a media coalition’s request to release the affidavit, the judge said he might rule that at least part of the affidavit could be unsealed by government formalities. The Justice Department had urged the judge, Bruce Reinhart, to keep the affidavit fully sealed, arguing that if released it could “cause significant and irreparable harm” to an ongoing criminal investigation involving highly classified material related to national security. . “I think that will give us additional information,” Cheney said. “It sounds to me from monitoring. The news is that they are acting responsibly in terms of determining what should be deleted and what can be released. But it also seems that there were clearly ongoing efforts to go back wherever that information was and that it was not presented, you know, that the former president was not willing to give those materials back. Now, we’ll see, we’ll learn more,” Cheney said. “It’s a very serious thing, and I just think for us as a party to be in a position where we’re reflexively attacking law enforcement professionals to defend a former president who behaved the way he did, it’s a really sad day for the party,” Cheney said. . “Could the handling of government records, classified information — could that be what brings Donald Trump down after all this?” Carl asked. “I mean, look, well, we’ll see. Everybody has an obligation and a responsibility. And, you know, clearly, handling classified information is a very serious thing, so I don’t know all the aspects of why the search warrant was executed, for sure. But , you know, we’ll see as additional information comes out.” Representative Liz Cheney, Vice Chair of the House Select Committee to Investigate the January 6 Attack on the U.S. Capitol, delivers remarks during the fifth hearing, June 23, 2022, in Washington, DC Win McNamee/Getty Images
Cheney hopes Pence will testify before committee Jan. 6, Trump may be questioned
Cheney told Karl that she hopes former Vice President Mike Pence will testify before the January 6 Select Committee in the near future. Pence had said this week that he would consider testifying before the committee if called upon to do so. “We are in discussions with his attorney,” Cheney said. “Look, he played a critical role on January 6, if he had caved to the pressure that Donald Trump put on him, we would have had a much worse constitutional crisis. And I think he clearly has, as he expressed, concerns about executive privilege, which, you know, I have tremendous respect for. I think it’s, you know, a hugely important constitutional issue in terms of the separation of powers,” he said. “I believe in executive privilege. I think it matters. But I also believe that when the country has gone through something, no matter how serious it was, anybody who has information has an obligation to step forward. So I hope he will,” said Cheney. “So do you think we’ll see him here in September in this room before the committee?” Carl asked. “I hope he understands how important it is for the American people to know every aspect of the truth about what happened that day,” Cheney said. Cheney was asked if Trump would be asked to testify and said it remained a possibility. “I don’t want to make any announcement about it this morning. So let me leave it there,” he said. “But is it possible that you were asking him, before you finished, to testify?” Carl pressed. “Yes. I mean, I don’t — again, I don’t want to get in front of the committee’s deliberations on this. I think it’s very important, as I said in the first or second hearing, you know, his interactions with our committee will be under swear,” Cheney replied. Former Vice President Mike Pence speaks at “Politics & Eggs” at the New Hampshire Institute Politics in St. Anselm College on August 17, 2022 in Manchester, NH Scott Eisen/Getty Images
Cheney is not interested in Republican retaliation
Cheney told Karl that she expects transcripts, records and other material gathered by the commission during its investigation to be released. “Yes, it’s all public record. It will be publicly available as our investigation is over and done with,” Cheney said. He said he would willingly appear if ever subpoenaed in the future, if a Republican-led House chooses to investigate members of the Jan. 6 Select Committee, which some Republicans have called for. “If Kevin McCarthy or Jim Jordan, or any of the other people who are trying to investigate the commission, follow through on that threat and issue a subpoena for me to appear, I will honor that subpoena and welcome the opportunity for you to come and explain to them what we also found the threat that Donald Trump poses to the country,” Cheney said. “And I would say, you know, they should do the same. Everyone completely avoids their obligations and responsibilities…
