Sen. Mark Warner Talks Russia Probe: ‘More of This Picture is Coming Into View’
When you think of the Russia probe, you picture its most iconic figure, Special Counsel Robert Mueller. The Senate Intelligence Committee, however, has been conducting their own probe into Russia’s meddling in the 2016 election, led by the bipartisan duo of Sen. Mark Warner and Sen. Richard Burr.
Warner recently sat down with CNBC’s John Harwood to speak candidly about the possible connections between President Donald Trump’s campaign and Russia, noting that there is broad bipartisan consensus that Vladimir Putin interfered with the 2016 election, in favor of Trump and against Hillary Clinton.
“We have absolute consensus that was already reached by all of the leaders of the intelligence community, that Russia massively intervened in our elections in a way to try to help Trump and hurt Clinton,” he said. “We have complete agreement that Russia tried to intervene in 21 of our states’ electoral systems.”
As for whether or not the Trump campaign knew they were being helped by a foreign power, Warner is still reserving judgment, though did say that “more and more of this picture’s coming into view.”
“There’s never been a campaign in modern American history that has had this much contact with a foreign power both before the election and in the immediate aftermath,” he said. “We do know the Russians were proffering, you know, dirt on Clinton.”
Warner, who is still hoping to interview many of the key players in Trump’s campaign, has been taken aback by the sheer amount of evidence his committee has managed to uncover.
“I’ve been absolutely amazed at the number and extent of the contacts and the fact that it feels like almost every week or two, we find a new line of inquiry,” he said.
He also said that Trump’s consistent dismissal of Mueller and the FBI has not helped the president’s case, suggesting he “ought to be much more collaborative on trying to get this investigation behind him.”
“So the whole leadership of the FBI and this investigation are all people with impeccable Republican credentials,” he said. “Yet, this president is still disdainful of all of them.”
“And I think any American, and even somebody like myself who wants to give him the benefit of the doubt says, you know, ‘This seems a little weird. This is a little screwy.'”
[image via screenshot]
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