Sen. Lindsey Graham on why he doesn't support calling Obama to testify
Sen, Lindsey Grahams tells the 'Brian Kilmeade Show' about the plans he has for his investigation into Crossfire Hurricane
Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., stated Friday that he doesn't support calling former President Barack Obama to testify in his review of the Russia probe because of Obama's executive privilege.
In an interview on the "Brian Kilmeade Show" with host Brian Kilmeade, Graham said that he does not want to "wreak havoc on the institution" like House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff, D-Calif., did during the impeachment trial against the president earlier this year.
TRUMP CALLS FOR OBAMA TESTIMONY AMID UNMASKING; GRAHAM COOL TO IDEA
"So, if I find something that makes me suspicious of President Obama, if he may have been part of committing a crime against General Flynn or anyone else, I will turn that over to Mr. [John] Durham," he promised, referring to the U.S. attorney who is investigating the origins of the Trump-Russia probe.
On Thursday, Graham declared that his panel would hold hearings in early June as part of its investigation into the origins of the Trump-Russia investigation -- code-named "Crossfire Hurricane" -- and would focus on unmasking, abuses of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA), and the appointment of Robert Mueller as special counsel.
The announcement was made just hours following President Trump's tweet demanding that Graham call Obama to testify before his committee.
In response, Graham raised serious concerns about the implications of calling the former president to testify saying he is "greatly concerned about the precedent that would be set by calling a former president for oversight."
He added that while “both presidents are welcome to come before the committee and share their concerns about each other," he has "great doubts about whether it would be wise for the country."
That said, Graham has many questions for Obama-era officials and told Kilmeade where he planned to start.
"I'm going to call the Mueller people back in and ask them, what evidence did you have in 2017 when the investigation was started that Trump people were colluding with the Russians? There has to be a legal basis to empower the special counsel. I want to ask [Rod[ Rosenstein: 'What was the legal basis? What evidence did you have that Carter Page was working with the Russians?'" he remarked.
"I want to know, what were the reasons for these unmasking requests?" Graham asked. "And, here's what would be wrong. It would be wrong to take a national security tool and turn it into a political tool. Were they trying to set General Flynn up? They didn't like him. They wanted him to be fired. They recommended -- Obama -- not [to] hire him. Were they out to get him? Were they using the intelligence apparatus as a way to undermine General Flynn's credibility and viability?
"Those are the [types] of questions that we will be asking in the Judiciary Committee," he told Kilmeade.
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Lastly, in Graham's quest to "investigate the investigators" he wants to figure out why Attorney Gen. William Barr's Justice Department motioned to dismiss Flynn's case mere days ago. Plus, he wants to talk with former Obama-era Deputy Attorney General Sally Yates.
"I want to call Sally Yates to talk about the conversation that she had with President Obama on January the fifth. Why was she surprised that Obama knew more about the Flynn case than she did? And, just see where all that takes us," Graham concluded.
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