California’s newly elected Senator, Adam Schiff, has recently revisited his controversial claims about Trump-Russia collusion. This comes years after the initial allegations took the political world by storm.
During an interview with CNN’s “State of the Union,” Jake Tapper asked Schiff about President-elect Donald Trump’s latest cabinet choices, including Florida’s Matt Gaetz and Robert F. Kennedy Jr., a past presidential hopeful.
Tapper referenced Schiff’s censure by the House last year. According to them, Schiff misused his position during Trump’s presidency by suggesting there was evidence of collusion between Trump’s campaign and Russia.
Tapper inquired, “Are you at all reflective about what was labeled an overstatement by both the Mueller report and your Republican colleagues? Do you consider this as part of the reason for the current political climate?”
Schiff confidently replied, “It wasn’t an overstatement. There’s undeniable evidence of collusion. For instance, the Trump campaign manager was in contact with Russian intelligence, providing them with internal polling data. The Mueller report details this thoroughly.”
Tapper responded, “However, the report also mentions, ‘The investigation did not establish that members of the Trump campaign conspired or coordinated with the Russian government in its election interference activities.’ This suggests there weren’t concrete findings of conspiracy.”
Schiff countered, “Mueller also acknowledged the absence of proof beyond reasonable doubt doesn’t negate the presence of evidence of conspiracy or coordination.”
In 2023, Schiff faced censure from the House for his steadfast accusations against Trump’s 2016 campaign, alleging secret dealings with Russia. Simultaneously, he was removed from the House Intelligence Committee.
His allegations largely stemmed from the infamous Steele dossier, which claimed that the Kremlin held compromising information on Trump, who, in turn, collaborated with Russia.
The Mueller report of 2019 eventually concluded there was no proof of such collusion.
Further discrediting the dossier, Russian analyst Ivan Danchenko, perceived as a key source, was accused of lying by Special Counsel John Durham in 2021.