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Interview
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BLITZER: And he is the new House speaker. Jessica Dean, thank you very, very much.
Let's discuss what's going on with Democratic Congressman Daniel Goldman of New York. He was lead counsel in former President Trump's first impeachment trial.
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He is also a former Federal Prosecutor. Congressman, thanks so much for joining us.
I want you to watch what your fellow New York Congressman Ritchie Torres, another outspoken Santos critic said today, actually said today, as he called for an FEC, a Federal Election Commission investigation. Listen to this.
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BLITZER: Do you agree, Congressman, that an FEC investigation is necessary and do you expect it would have -- it will yield any meaningful consequences?
REP. DANIEL GOLDMAN (D-NY): Look, I think every investigation from every entity that oversees campaign finances is warranted in this case. The warning signs from his financial disclosures, his own admissions, his campaign finances are beyond anything I think anyone has seen in recent times.
And, yes, of course, he should be investigated. I think my understanding is that the U.S. attorney's office in the Eastern District of New York is also investigating these finances as part of a criminal investigation. And I'm sure they're looking at many of the things that my colleague, Congressman Torres, said.
But one thing I'll add, Wolf, this is not just narrow to George Santos and his web of lies. What we learned over the weekend is that George Santos' lies were known to Speaker Kevin McCarthy, to Conference Chair Elise Stefanik, who were helpful into his campaign. And the big question that I have is whether -- what did they know and when did they know it, as the famous saying goes. How much did they know about George Santos? And how much did they try to cover up his lies from the voters in the third district of New York?
BLITZER: The new Democratic House leader, Hakeem Jeffries, Congressman, he joined me here in THE SITUATION ROOM last night. He said Democrats will also need to look at how to tighten up their own opposition research process. Does your party share at least some of the blame for allowing George Santos to get elected?
GOLDMAN: I think all of these things are important to examine, the, you know, ability of local media to uncover this and the lack of funding for local media and opposition research. But let's not avoid the reality here. One person lied. That's George Santos. He is at fault for his web of lies that deceived the voters. We can talk about other efforts to try to fix our system but George Santos is at fault here.
BLITZER: So, you want him to resign, is that right?
GOLDMAN: I don't think there's any question he should resign. Eight of his Republican colleagues also believe he should resign. He completely defrauded his voters in order to get the seat in Congress and does not deserve to be there.
BLITZER: Congressman Daniel Goldman, thank you so much for joining us.
GOLDMAN: Thank you.
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