CNN "CNN Newsroom" - Transcript: Interview with Bennie Thompson

Interview

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WHITFIELD: All right. Back to our top story.

A short time ago House Speaker Nancy Pelosi announcing that Republican Congressman Adam Kinzinger has accepted a position on the January 6th special committee. Now two Republicans Liz Cheney and Adam Kinzinger on this committee.

Joining me right now is the chairman of the U.S. House Select Committee on the insurrection, Democratic Congressman Bennie Thompson of Mississippi.

Congressman, hopefully our signal lasts here. Thanks so much for hanging in there. Appreciate it.

So, we just learned that Republican Adam Kinzinger has in fact accepted. The House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy has already responded saying that this is not going to be a serious investigation and that in his view this is now in step with what he calls the House Speaker's plan as a preconceived narrative, the selection of these two.

What's your response to that?

REP. BENNIE THOMPSON (D-MS): Well obviously, minority leader McCarthy had an opportunity to do another way. As you know, I negotiated a 5-5 no member of congress committee with subpoena power and everything. He turned it down.

Today is 200 days from January 6th. Congress has to do something. Speaker Pelosi is absolutely correct in doing what she's doing. If Republicans want to fix what occurred on January 6th, they'll join the Select Committee.

Congressman Kinzinger is a good person. He comes with excellent credentials. I look forward to working with him.

WHITFIELD: And McCarthy had selected five. House Speaker Pelosi, you know, cited two of them, Jordan and Banks, not being appropriate on the committee, particularly because they did not want to certify the election.

McCarthy baulked at that, saying that, you know, Pelosi wants to hand- pick people who are all trying to meet the same objective. What do you say to him in terms of what the objective is, is fairness about trying to find the truth, or is fairness about finding allegiance to the former president?

THOMPSON: Well, the charge for the Select Committee is to look at the scope and circumstances which January 6th occurred, plain and simple. That's what we plan to do this coming Tuesday by talking to the rank and file members of law enforcement who put their life on the line defending the United States Capitol and the people in it.

So we plan to start from there, go forward, wherever the facts lead us after that.

But first we want to make sure that we say "thank you" to the heroes who kept this government of ours where it is today. Had they failed, democracy in America as we know it would've also failed.

So we want to hear from them. We want to hear what it's like to go home to talk to their families, what kind of issues from a health, mental health standpoint they are having. Members of Congress and the public need to know what these men and women had to endure on January 6th.

WHITFIELD: And we're going to hear from at least four of them, right. Four who are to testify on Tuesday.

I wonder if you could recall for us, how fresh in your memory what that day was like for you.

THOMPSON: Well, Fredricka, to be honest with you, every day I'm involved. Every day I get a chance to see a new clear -- it concerns me greatly how close we came to losing everything we had as a country, our standing in the world, everything. This riot was absolutely devastating to the perception of democracy in this United States.

So for me and my family, we are concerned about it, concerned about it to the point that we are committed on this Select Committee to make sure that we get to the facts wherever they lead us and ultimately frame (ph) up solutions that will guarantee to the public that this will never happen again, those horrendous days.

[14:30:00]

THOMPSON: If you had told me before January 6th something like this would have occurred, I'd say, you'd have to be out of your mind. We're the greatest democracy in the world. People want to be like us. But now, when they see what occurred on January 6th, there's question in their mind as to whether or not we are still that beacon of democracy that we used to be.

WHITFIELD: Is it your plan to call the former president to testify or even his former chief of staff?

THOMPSON: Well, let me say nothing's off limits. We'll follow the facts. On the meetings we've had with the members of this committee, they have all said wherever the facts in our investigation lead us, that's where we'll go. So, nothing is sacred.

Again, this is our democracy at stake. Countries around the world pattern those democracies around the world, pattern themselves after the United States. Can you imagine after every election we'd have a riot? Then we're no better than third-world countries.

America is a better country, and that's why this Select Committee has an awesome responsibility to make sure that we can guarantee that acts that occurred on January 6th never happen again, not just in Congress or the capital but nowhere in this country.

So, all these other things that you hear, nothing is more at risk than the very fabric of our government if we don't get this Select Committee up and going and come back with actionable items for Congress to take up.

WHITFIELD: So, while you said you will go wherever the investigation takes you and while you will invite people to testify, will it boil down to having to subpoena people including the former president?

THOMPSON: Well, Fredricka, looking at our committee and its composition, we don't have any shrieking violets shrieking violets on there. Everybody is committed. They are great patriots. They love their country.

And if the issuance of a subpoena by me as chairman is what we have to do to get individuals to come and testify, we will do that. If we have to subpoena records, be they telephone logs or whatever, we have absolutely no problem in pursuing the truth.

WHITFIELD: The big lie clearly has been very pervasive. And we see a consequence of that as January 6th insurrection. And we also know the former president was still speaking in these tones last night in Arizona. But take a listen to how influential that messaging has been. We talked to some of the people at that rally. Listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What do you think about how the vote went down?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It was stolen. It was completely stolen. Trump won in a landslide.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What do you think happened in 2020?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It was broad. Broad is a good word.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What brings you here today? UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The election was stolen from us. So, we're here to support President Trump.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Do all of you agree you don't -- you're not certain about the election results?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: No.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Not at all.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Do you worry that this commission, that testimony that the findings from this investigation still will not win over people who are expressing sentiments like that?

THOMPSON: Well, let me say any recommendation or finding we come up with, we'll be able to prove Former President Trump is repeating a lie after lie after lie. And, you know, if you repeat that lie enough times, there's somebody out there who will begin to believe it. Obviously, there are people who believe it. But, as you know, there is no facts that goes with the lie up to this point.

The difference is our committee is tasked with coming up with the facts to prove whatever positions we take. And that's the commitment that I give the public as well as the other members of this committee will give also that nothing we present will be anything other than the truth.

WHITFIELD: Congressman Bennie Thompson, thank you so much for being with us, and thanks for working through the computer gremlins to get you on the air and back with us. Appreciate it. And of course, CNN will be having special live coverage of Tuesday's hearings beginning at 9:00 a.m. with Wolf Blitzer leading. We'll be right back.

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