CNN "Anderson Cooper 360 Degrees" Transcript: Interview with Congressman Jim Himes of Connecticut

Interview

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Joining us right now is Democratic Intelligence Committee member, Congressman Jim Himes of Connecticut.

So, Congressman Himes, when you look at these criticisms from the president, do you think he's laying the groundwork to fire Mueller?

REP. JIM HIMES (D-CT), INTELLIGENCE COMMITTEE: You know, I very much worry about this. We've seen this pattern over and over and over again, which is you get the denial right up until the moment it happens. It might be the firing of Jim Comey or any of the other, you know, firing of Tillerson. They're always prefaced by tweets primarily.

And, you know, as much as I appreciate the staff members at the White House saying that there are no plans to fire Mueller, I think it's well-established at this point that the staff doesn't know what the president is going to do during executive time in the morning when he's watching TV and has his fingers on a tweet. If the White House stories are to be believed, Tillerson got fired by Twitter without much consideration.

So I don't put a lot of stock in the notion that there aren't conversations at this point. COOPER: You know, last news when it was reported that the president

was thinking about hiring another attorney, I think he tweeted out it was fake news. Now we know he's hiring this lawyer, Joseph diGenova, who is being added to the president's legal team. What do you think his hiring signals, given the kind of conspiracy theories he's peddled in the past about the Mueller investigation?

HIMES: Yes. Well, when you listen to this attorney, diGenova, you know, conspiracy theories is exactly right. And all I can surmise -- and this again is part of a pattern with this president -- is that he is looking to surround himself not with people who would tell him what Trey Gowdy suggested, my friend Trey Gowdy, Republican on the Intelligence Committee, when he said, if you're innocent, act it.

I think he's looking for people who will buttress his pre-existing ideas. And I'm not sure that's a healthy thing, particularly on your legal team.

COOPER: Senator Lindsey Graham over the weekend, as you know, said that if the president were to fire Mueller, it would be, quote, the beginning of the end of his presidency. I mean, is there any real appetite you're hearing from your Republican colleagues to actually take legislative measures to protect the special counsel?

HIMES: No, there isn't, and I really worry about this, Anderson. You know, the dynamics are very clear.

All of my -- not all, but almost all of my Republican colleagues recognize that if somebody were to do the courageous thing and come out and say this is completely unacceptable. We're a rule of law country. As a Republican, as much as I admire, the president, I will support the special counsel's office, that's a tweet the next morning that guarantees that that Republican probably loses a primary.

And, of course, we're in primary season. So the politics right now are such -- and I'm not usually a pessimist, but the politics are such that if this president were to do what you need to do to fire the special counsel, I'm not sure you would see a reaction from the Republican Congress.

COOPER: I mean, lastly, what is the status of the final House Intelligence Committee report on Russian meddling and will the Democratic findings be a part of that report or a separate Democratic document?

[20:10:005] HIMES: Well, it's fluid still, Anderson. But we are supposed to meet this week to vote on the release of this report. I understand that may happen Thursday. I imagine that will be a party line vote.

I have read the report almost in its entirety, and it was not something we participated in. I think it's not a fair document. I think it's full of factual errors. So, I think it will be a partisan vote.

And then, of course, there is a process of declassification. That could take weeks if not months to convert this report into something that can be issued publicly.

COOPER: Congressman Himes, appreciate your time.

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