WEBVTT 00:02.333 --> 00:05.633 align:left position:10%,start line:71% size:80% JUDY WOODRUFF: We get reaction from Lisa Monaco, who was the homeland security and counterterrorism 00:06.733 --> 00:08.733 align:left position:20%,start line:83% size:70% adviser to former President Barack Obama. 00:08.733 --> 00:13.700 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% She has also led the Justice Department's National Security Division, and served for 00:15.666 --> 00:18.800 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% three years as chief of staff and counsel to Robert Mueller when he was director of 00:19.266 --> 00:20.500 align:left position:40%,start line:89% size:50% the FBI. 00:20.500 --> 00:23.033 align:left position:20%,start line:83% size:70% Lisa Monaco, thank you for joining us. 00:23.033 --> 00:27.466 align:left position:10%,start line:71% size:80% Is there any doubt in your mind that President Trump and Attorney General Sessions were within 00:27.466 --> 00:31.433 align:left position:10%,start line:83% size:80% their rights to -- when they fired Andrew McCabe? 00:31.433 --> 00:36.100 align:left position:10%,start line:71% size:80% LISA MONACO, Former Chief White House Counterterrorism Adviser: The attorney general was within his 00:36.100 --> 00:41.100 align:left position:10%,start line:83% size:80% right to dismiss a member of the Justice Department. 00:43.100 --> 00:46.333 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% But we can't really judge the merits of that decision because we don't have the inspector 00:46.966 --> 00:49.100 align:left position:30%,start line:89% size:60% general report. 00:49.100 --> 00:53.233 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% I will tell you, based on my nearly 15 years of experience in the Justice Department and 00:55.200 --> 00:58.466 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% being part of literally dozens of and reviewing dozens of inspector general reports, it is 01:00.466 --> 01:04.000 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% really highly unusual to not have the report itself made public when such a public action 01:06.000 --> 01:09.000 align:left position:20%,start line:83% size:70% as happened late Friday night takes place. 01:09.000 --> 01:12.733 align:left position:10%,start line:83% size:80% And so we have to ask ourselves, why is that the case? 01:12.733 --> 01:17.733 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% Why was there a rush to take this action 26 hours before Andy McCabe was due to retire? 01:20.166 --> 01:25.100 align:left position:10%,start line:71% size:80% Why was the report and the investigation that was focused on Andy McCabe separated out from 01:27.666 --> 01:32.666 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% the broader investigation and accelerated from the broader investigation of the conduct 01:34.033 --> 01:35.866 align:left position:10%,start line:83% size:80% of the FBI on the Hillary Clinton e-mail case? 01:35.866 --> 01:39.266 align:left position:10%,start line:83% size:80% So, all of these are, I think, very significant questions. 01:39.266 --> 01:43.700 align:left position:20%,start line:71% size:70% JUDY WOODRUFF: Well, as I understand it, that's the attorney general's decision to make. 01:43.700 --> 01:48.700 align:left position:10%,start line:83% size:80% You worked with Andrew McCabe in your time at the FBI. 01:49.600 --> 01:51.166 align:left position:10%,start line:89% size:80% What was his reputation then? 01:51.166 --> 01:54.333 align:left position:10%,start line:83% size:80% LISA MONACO: McCabe had and has a very good reputation. 01:54.333 --> 01:58.333 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% I worked with him when I was at the Justice Department, when I was at the FBI and when 01:58.333 --> 01:59.866 align:left position:10%,start line:89% size:80% I was in the White House. 01:59.866 --> 02:03.533 align:left position:10%,start line:83% size:80% He, in my experience, is a man of very high integrity. 02:03.533 --> 02:06.766 align:left position:20%,start line:83% size:70% He has devoted his life to public service. 02:06.766 --> 02:11.533 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% And he was literally on the other end of the phone at all hours of the day and night when 02:11.533 --> 02:14.533 align:left position:10%,start line:83% size:80% it came to terrorist attacks, terrorist threats. 02:14.533 --> 02:17.833 align:left position:10%,start line:83% size:80% This is a man who has devoted his life to public service. 02:17.833 --> 02:20.800 align:left position:10%,start line:89% size:80% He is a career civil servant. 02:20.800 --> 02:25.800 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% And, you know, this is an issue that I think we really do have to wonder why was the timing 02:27.866 --> 02:29.933 align:left position:20%,start line:89% size:70% done in this way. 02:29.933 --> 02:32.400 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% JUDY WOODRUFF: I also want to, of course, ask you about the Mueller investigation. 02:32.400 --> 02:37.400 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% You worked very closely with Bob Mueller when he ran, was head of the FBI. 02:39.366 --> 02:42.233 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% When Andrew McCabe -- when this firing took place over the weekend, he put out a statement 02:42.233 --> 02:47.233 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% he thought the president had done this in connection with the Russia investigation. 02:49.200 --> 02:52.433 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% As all of us know, the president's been very critical of the Mueller investigation. 02:52.433 --> 02:57.366 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% Based on everything you know, is the president - - does the president have a point when he 02:57.366 --> 03:02.366 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% says this is an investigation that should have never gotten under way in the first place? 03:04.300 --> 03:07.533 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% LISA MONACO: Well, I don't think there's any merit to that contention. 03:09.466 --> 03:13.033 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% This is an investigation that was begun after the president fired James Comey. 03:15.233 --> 03:20.233 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% This was an investigation that -- and the special counsel, of course, was appointed 03:22.100 --> 03:25.566 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% by Rod Rosenstein, President Trump's deputy attorney general, and a career prosecutor 03:26.933 --> 03:28.200 align:left position:40%,start line:89% size:50% himself. 03:28.200 --> 03:30.933 align:left position:20%,start line:83% size:70% So, you know, none of that really stands up. 03:30.933 --> 03:35.933 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% And I think, Judy, what this shows is really a pattern of an effort to distract from the 03:37.900 --> 03:41.733 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% special counsel's investigation and the results that he and his team are putting forward. 03:44.066 --> 03:47.633 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% And it also shows something else, which I think is very damaging to the institutions 03:47.633 --> 03:52.633 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% of the Department of Justice and FBI, which is the president not observing the longtime 03:54.733 --> 03:59.300 align:left position:20%,start line:71% size:70% norm of having a wall between law enforcement and Justice Department decisions both on cases 04:01.366 --> 04:05.866 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% and in personnel matters, as was the case with the action against Andy McCabe on Friday 04:05.866 --> 04:10.566 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% night, not observing that wall between the White House and the Justice Department. 04:10.566 --> 04:15.566 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% And the reason you want to observe that wall is so there is no question, no taint or cloud 04:16.733 --> 04:20.000 align:left position:20%,start line:83% size:70% over decisions made at the Justice Department. 04:20.000 --> 04:22.266 align:left position:20%,start line:83% size:70% And, unfortunately, that's now what we have. 04:22.266 --> 04:27.266 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% The minute the president started tweeting and publicly calling for Andy McCabe's ouster, 04:29.266 --> 04:32.766 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% there's now a taint over any Justice Department decision that follows from that. 04:32.766 --> 04:34.766 align:left position:10%,start line:89% size:80% JUDY WOODRUFF: One other thing. 04:34.766 --> 04:38.866 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% The original intent of this investigation, as we understand it, was to look into whether 04:38.866 --> 04:43.866 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% there was a connection between the Trump campaign and Russian officials, the 2016 campaign. 04:46.033 --> 04:50.933 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% How far can Robert Mueller stray from that original purpose in this investigation? 04:50.933 --> 04:55.933 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% LISA MONACO: Well, I think, if you look at the charge given to the special counsel, as 04:57.933 --> 05:01.466 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% laid down by Rod Rosenstein, the deputy attorney general and the acting attorney general for 05:03.366 --> 05:06.000 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% purposes of this matter, because Attorney General Sessions is, of course, recused, the 05:06.000 --> 05:11.000 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% charge, the original charge to special counsel Mueller and his team is to investigate the 05:13.033 --> 05:17.633 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% matters as you set forth, but also matters and issues that arise from that investigation. 05:20.166 --> 05:25.166 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% So, we also have the statement of Rod Rosenstein of just a few weeks ago recently where he 05:27.133 --> 05:32.033 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% said he doesn't find any fault, or words to that effect, with how special counsel Mueller 05:33.300 --> 05:35.400 align:left position:20%,start line:89% size:70% is conducting himself. 05:35.400 --> 05:39.300 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% And, of course, any expansion of the probe would have to be approved by Rod Rosenstein, 05:40.166 --> 05:41.900 align:left position:10%,start line:89% size:80% the deputy attorney general. 05:41.900 --> 05:44.000 align:left position:20%,start line:77% size:70% JUDY WOODRUFF: Well, Lisa Monaco, so much to talk about here. 05:44.000 --> 05:46.633 align:left position:20%,start line:83% size:70% We thank you very much for joining us today. 05:46.633 --> 05:48.000 align:left position:20%,start line:83% size:70% LISA MONACO: Thanks for having me.