House Dem: ‘We’ve seen a lot of contact’ between Trump campaign and Russians

Rep. Jim Himes (D-Conn.) said Sunday that the House Intelligence Committee has “seen a lot of contact” between President Trump’s campaign and Russia during the course of its investigation.

“You know, we’ve seen a lot of contact. We’ve seen a desire to get dirt, a desire to work with the Russians, a desire to contact the Russians,” Himes told NBC’s “Meet the Press.”

{mosads}“The question is — was there some form — and it is a question, I don’t want to prejudice the outcome — was there cooperation?”

Himes, who sits on the panel, said it matters if there was “follow up” between Donald Trump Jr. and the Russian lawyer he met with after he had been promised harmful information about Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton.

“So the question before us now is what happened afterward. Was there follow up?” Himes said.

Himes said Trump Jr., who met with the House Intelligence Committee last week as part of its investigation into Russia’s election meddling and any potential ties between Trump campaign staff and the Kremlin, was “forthcoming” in the meeting.

Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.), the ranking member of the committee, said Trump Jr. refused to answer questions about his conversation with the president about the meeting with the Russian lawyer. Trump Jr. invoked attorney-client privilege, claiming there was a lawyer present, Schiff said.