CNN "The Situation Room" - Transcript: Rep. Kathleen Rice (D-NY) Is Interviewed About Donald Trump, William Barr, And Four Prosecutors

Interview

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Let's get some more with Democratic Congresswoman Kathleen Rice, a member of the House Homeland Security Committee.

Congresswoman, thanks so much for joining us. And you just heard President Trump, he praised on the Justice Department for intervening to help his long time friend and political adviser Roger Stone. What are the implications if the President could tip the scales at the Justice Department on a high profile case like this?

REP. KATHLEEN RICE (D-NY): The implications, Wolf, are enormous. If the President can send a tweet out and change the behavior of the attorney general, then what that means is the attorney general works for the President, he doesn't work for the American people. He is not about the rule of law, upholding the rule of law, he's not about putting -- keeping the politics at bay when it comes to things like this.

I mean, think about the message, Wolf, this is sending to the regular public, if you are Joe blow regular citizen, you're going to prison. If you're a friend of Donald Trump, you're not. And that -- it is that stark. But I don't know why anyone should be shocked. If we should be shocked about anything, it's about how quickly since his acquittal which was ridiculous exercise by the Senate led by Mitch McConnell, why we should be surprised. The thing that should surprise us is why it was so quick?

I mean, maybe you'd think the President would have given a week or two before he, you know, hatched up all the people that were testifying pursuant to his subpoenas, obeying the law. I mean this is just outrageous behavior. And I hope that every single one of us, as Americans, not Republicans or Democrats or Independents, but Americans, ask yourself the question, what kind of country do you want to live in? Do you want a country where the president has guardrails and respects the separation of powers? Or do you want a president who's going to act like a dictator? Right now that's what we have now.

BLITZER: You went step further in a tweet, and let me put it up on the screen and read it, congresswoman, "As a former prosecutor of 20 plus years, I continue to be appalled at the conduct of Attorney General Barr. As I said months ago, he is unfit for his job. This is why I joined" Representative "Ted Lieu in asking him to be investigated for possible disbarment."

[17:10:18]

What questions does the attorney general need to answer when he comes before your colleagues on the House Judiciary Committee?

RICE: Well, what conversations he's had with the President directly. What facts and evidence he has based his decisions on? And not just the Roger Stone case but in others. I mean, look, I'll come out and say it.

I think Bill Barr is probably the most unfit attorney general we have ever had in this country. And I hope people are paying attention to what he is doing and what he's saying. But at the very least he's going to be put in a hot seat, he's going to have to take an oath, not that I think it matters to him. But he's going to have to answer questions about the conversations he's had with the President and others in the administration. And why would this -- there was a sudden turnaround about Roger Stone when you're asking for him to go to prison for lying to Congress.

This was not -- he wasn't jaywalking, he was lying to Congress and obstructing justice, trying to witness tamper. I mean, this is what a jury, an independent jury found him guilty of. He deserves to go to prison.

Now, as a former federal prosecutor, Wolf, as you know I have been involved in cases involving prosecutions of political people, and you have to get approval at the highest levels of the Department of Justice. And the reason for that is to ensure that you are not taking steps that can be influenced by any political considerations. But what we're seeing here in the terms of a presidential tweet is that's exactly what happened. And Bill Barr is going to have to answer to that.

BLITZER: The improvise (ph) version after these four federal prosecutors stepped away from the case in protest, the Justice Department still said that Roger Stone deserves prison time, but not the seven to nine years that originally had been recommended. Is that okay with you?

RICE: Well, look, I mean, anyone can quibble about do you think seven to nine years is fair? I mean that is a very stiff sentence. But ultimately, it is the responsibility of DOJ who prosecuted this case to make a recommendation that is consistent with the evidence against this individual, his past behavior and what is the likelihood is of him going to, you know, be recidivist in the future. I mean there are all these standards that you have to take into consideration when you make a recommendation.

But you don't just prosecute the case and then say, hey judge, give this person whatever you want. You have to take a position about what you think an appropriate punishment is. You can't just say, judge, go ahead and do it, because at this point now what we have is a president now tweeting against the judge saying how unfair the judge is. I mean this is just outrageous behavior on the part of Bill Barr and of course by our President.

But, again, why we should be shocked when it's just day after day? And my fear, Wolf, is that Donald Trump is going to succeed at numbing the American public to his transgressions. We cannot let that happen. He has to be held accountable, and that's why I am going to be as vocal as I can when these outrageous abuses of power are perpetrated against the American people. BLITZER: It will now be up to the federal judge, Amy Berman Jackson, to decide how much prison sentence Roger Stone should get. He was convicted by a jury on these seven felony, seven counts. Thanks so much for joining us Congresswoman Kathleen Rice.

RICE: Thank you, Wolf.

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