PLUS: Giuliani Says Trump Tower Meeting “Originally for the Purpose of Getting Information about Clinton”
ALSO: Former CIA Director Brennan Tells Moderator Chuck Todd He’s “Been Contacted by a Number of Lawyers… About the Basis for a Complaint, an Injunction” Against President Trump
AUGUST 19, 2018 – “Truth isn’t truth,” Rudy Giuliani, lawyer for President Donald Trump, tells “Meet the Press” moderator Chuck Todd this morning in a discussion of the president possibly testifying to special counsel Robert Mueller.
“I am not going to be rushed into having him testify so that he gets trapped into perjury,” says Giuliani. “And when you tell me that, you know, he should testify because he’s going to tell the truth and he shouldn’t worry, well that’s so silly because it’s somebody’s version of the truth. Not the truth.” When Todd replies, “Truth is truth,” Giuliani responds, “No, it isn’t truth. Truth isn’t truth. … Donald Trump says I didn’t talk about Flynn with Comey. Comey says you did talk about it, so tell me what the truth is.”
Giuliani also shares the June 2016 Trump Tower meeting “was originally for the purpose of getting information about Clinton,” adding that Trump “didn’t know about that meeting. He found out about it after and by the time he found out about it, it was nothing.” Watch the full interview.
“I stand very much by” calling the president’s behavior treasonous, says former CIA Director John Brennan, also a senior national security and intelligence analyst for NBC News.
Brennan tells Todd he has “been contacted by a number of lawyers, and they have already given me their thoughts about the basis for a complaint, an injunction to try and prevent him from doing this in the future.” He also says, “I admire and respect Gina Haspel, and I want her to stay as C.I.A. Director because I think it’s important that the institution of the C.I.A. and the professionals be protected from this very, very abusive White House and Mr. Trump.” Watch the full interview.
PBS’ Yamiche Alcindor, radio show host Hugh Hewitt, NBC News’ Carol Lee and The Washington Post’s Eugene Robinson joined the broadcast this morning for insight and analysis, with Robinson reacting to Giuliani’s interview: “An extraordinary thing. Just throws more logs onto the fire of this administration’s truthfulness and candor. Or lack thereof. It’s just an amazing thing,” adding “it’s the new alternative facts.” Watch the discussion.
Read the full transcript of “Meet the Press” this morning, and follow the show on Twitter and on Facebook for the latest.
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