House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff, D-Calif., is the wrong person to lead House Democrats’ impeachment inquiry against President Trump, former White House Deputy Chief of Staff Karl Rove said Saturday.
Appearing on “Fox & Friends: Weekend” with hosts Ed Henry, Jedidiah Bila, and Griff Jenkins, Rove recalled that in both the Nixon impeachment hearings and the Clinton impeachment hearings “not only did the minority have equal rights with the majority when it came to calling witnesses and issuing subpoenas, but they also had immediate access to all the documents and materials.”
DEVIN NUNES: DEMOCRATS’ IMPEACHMENT INQUIRY IS A PARTISAN ‘ADVENTURE’
He added that the president’s lawyer sat in on staff meetings, closed hearings, and depositions and was able to ask questions, suggest witnesses, and state the president’s position.
“None of that is happening in this instance, and our democracy is ill-served by this hyperpartisan effort led by Adam Schiff,” he told the “Friends” hosts.
On Friday all nine Republicans on the House Intelligence Committee penned a scathing letter to Schiff, accusing him and other Democrats of not providing physical copies or uploading digital versions of documents related to the inquiry to the minority staff.
“We are concerned that the Majority is knowingly withholding Committee documents related to your so-called ‘impeachment inquiry’ from the Minority…We see no reason for your withholding of these documents except as a deliberate attempt to hinder the Minority’s participation,” they wrote.
Ranking member of the Intelligence Committee Rep. Devin Nunes, R-Calif., and fellow Republican members cited several documents, including letters from Democrats on the committee, sent to White House counsel Pat Cipollone, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, Vice President Mike Pence, Trump personal attorney Rudy Giuliani, Secretary of Defense Mark Esper, and others. The Republicans also cited letters requesting depositions for several key officials.
In addition, a motion to censure Schiff for his “parody” reading of President Trump’s July phone call with Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelensky during a hearing last month has garnered support from 173 co-sponsors.
“This is a serious matter and it ought to be treated seriously, and the way that Adam Schiff is doing it is highly partisan and not conducive to creating a credible record for the American people to look at,” Rove said, noting that while there is a role for private depositions or private interviews, those conducted in this inquiry are “not fair and honest.”
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“The country is in a critical moment. This requires statesmanship. This requires somebody who is going to rise above hyperpartisanship. That person ain’t Adam Schiff,” the Fox News contributor concluded. “And, he is ill-serving our country and ultimately ill-serving his political party by being so partisan and being so fundamentally unfair.”
Fox News’ Brooke Singman contributed to this report.
