Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) broke with colleague Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) on Tuesday in saying he was “glad” that Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) released the Senate testimony of Fusion GPS co-founder Glenn Simpson.
“I think that’s a good idea,” Cornyn said. “I’m glad that it was done.”
“I respect Chairman Grassley, and I don’t really understand how this happened, but I do think more transparency is important,” Cornyn said.
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A spokesman for Grassley, the chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, issued a statement saying it was “confounding” that Feinstein would release a transcript of the panel’s interview with Simpson in the middle of an investigation.
“It’s totally confounding that Senator Feinstein would unilaterally release a transcript of a witness interview in the middle of an ongoing investigation — a witness that Feinstein herself subpoenaed last year for lack of cooperation,” Grassley’s press secretary said in a statement.
The committee interviewed Simpson in August as part of its wider investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election.
The chairman’s spokesman said that while Grassley advocates transparency during the investigation, the unilateral decision by the Democrats to release the transcript “jeopardizes” the committee’s ability to secure future voluntary witnesses in its investigation.
Cornyn said that he thinks Grassley “has a point” in not wanting to show the committee’s full hand before its investigation is through, but said, “I’m glad it’s out.”