Now that Special Counsel Robert Mueller has charged Michael Cohen with committing perjury by lying to Congress, the chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee says he will be referring more cases of lying under oath to the special counsel for prosecution.
Senator Richard Burr (R-NC) said Friday:
“We have made referrals from our committee to the special counsel for prosecution. In a lot of those cases, those might be tied to lying to us.”
Burr went on to add that if anyone thinks they can come before the intelligence committee and lie with impunity, they’re sadly mistaken:
“We’re certainly not scared to refer something that we believe is criminal, and lying to Congress is right at the top of that. My message . . . was if you lie to us, we’re going to catch you and we’re going to prosecute you, period, end of sentence.”
Burr’s comments were echoed by the incoming chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, Rep. Adam Schiff (D-CA), who said he too believes “other witnesses were untruthful before our committee.” Schiff specifically mentioned Roger Stone, a longtime friend and adviser to President Donald Trump who is believed to be at the center of the Russian conspiracy and allegedly had multiple contacts with WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange in regard to the release of emails hacked from a computer server at the Democratic National Committee.
The warnings from Burr and Schiff could also be very bad news for the president’s son, Donald Trump Jr., who testified before the House Senate Intelligence Committees in December of 2017 about his role in the June 2016 meeting at Trump Tower with a Russian attorney and former Russian intelligence officer who promised to bring “dirt” on Hillary Clinton.
Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), who also serves on the intelligence committee, said Friday that he has doubts about the veracity of testimony Don Jr. gave:
“His testimony was evasive and potentially misleading or deceptive. In my view, his interview with our committee raises very serious issues of fact and credibility, These contradictions with the facts are deeply disturbing and he should be called back before the committee.”
Featured Image Via NBC News
