House Intelligence Committee Ranking Member Adam Schiff had a very different message for Russians in 2013 than he has for Americans today.
Then, he was advocating for more transparency when it came to the U.S. government spying on Americans and foreigners.
Today, not so much.
During a 2013 appearance on RT, which is controlled by the Russian government, Schiff said we wanted more transparency, which RT characterized as efforts to “inject more oversight into the NSA’s surveillance programs and the top secret FISA court.”
The RT anchor introduced Schiff as “one of those members of Congress leading the effort.”
In July 2013, Schiff told the Russians the reforms he was promoting “would have the cumulative effect of making the FISA court much more transparent so the American people can understand what’s being done in their name and in the name of national security, so we can have a more informed debate over the balance between privacy and security.”
He said the reforms he was supporting would mean more openness about the judges being appointed and their views on “Fourth Amendment issues.”
“It will also mean through the declassification of opinions of the constitutional principles involved and how courts are interpreting provisions of law,” Schiff told RT.
He said the intent of the reforms was to improve “public confidence” in the system.
But when it came to releasing Devin Nunes’ memo detailed alleged FISA abuses by the Obama administration, Schiff opposed such transparency, accusing President Trump of placing “his own interests ahead of the country.”
It comes as no surprise that @POTUS would place his own interests ahead of the country. But it is tragic that so many Republican Members of Congress would choose to help him do so. https://t.co/VFjwKGfVt6
— Adam Schiff (@RepAdamSchiff) January 27, 2018
He later tweeted that the memo’s apparent attempt at transparency was “a transparent attempt to discredit” the Department of Justice and FBI.
The President’s decision to publicly release a misleading memo attacking DOJ & FBI is a transparent attempt to discredit these institutions and undermine Mueller’s probe.
We'll fight to release our classified response. Until then here's a glimpse at what's wrong with their memo: pic.twitter.com/HX0J6UtDLY
— Adam Schiff (@RepAdamSchiff) February 2, 2018
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