Dem rep: Trump ‘doesn’t understand how the government works’

Rep. Jim Himes (D-Conn.) took aim at President Trump on Thursday, saying that the president “doesn’t understand how the government works.”

Himes’s comments followed after a Wednesday press conference in which Trump warned Democrats that he would adopt a “warlike posture” if the party decides to investigate him.

{mosads}“They can play that game, but we can play it better, because we have a thing called the United States Senate,” Trump added, suggesting the Republican majority could launch counterinvestigations against Democrats.

“Not a surprising point of view from this president who doesn’t understand how the government works,” Himes told CNN.

“We’ve got the right and, in fact, we’ve got the constitutional duty to provide a check and a balance on the president of the United States,” Himes said. “And no, this is not a hockey game where he gets to mobilize his A Team against our A Team. That is not how this works.”

Himes pushed back against the president’s assertion that the GOP can counterinvestigate Democrats, adding that Democrats would win any fight.

“Yes, he has an investigative apparatus, he has the FBI. The FBI of course is constrained by law. Despite what this president thinks, the FBI is not his, you know — not his group of political stormtroopers that is designed to get [House Democratic Leader] Nancy Pelosi [(Calif.)] or whoever it might be back for launching an investigation.”  

Himes added that the Democrats would not engage in a “tit-for-tat world,” but said Democrats would stand up to any GOP investigations.

“So even though we’re not going to go to a tit-for-tat world, if that’s where we wound up, bring it on,” he said. “Because the investigations of the last 12 years from the Republicans have all, and without exception, proven to be complete political shams.”