Schiff Spars with Stefanik Over Whistleblower Contact with House Intel Chair’s Office

Today’s public impeachment hearings were more of the same, at least according to Republicans who for weeks have bristled at the work being conducted by House Intel Committee Chair Adam Schiff.

Previously, Schiff had been operating in near-secrecy, likely for the purpose of giving the Democratic argument a head-start within the mainstream media.  Now that he and his cronies have been forced out into the light, one would think that Schiff’s behavior would improve, and that he would be amenable to the concept of transparency – especially in such a significant proceeding.

Instead, were were reminded of the collusion between the whistleblower who set the entire investigation into motion and Schiff’s office, thanks to Republican Representative Elise Stefanik.

Raising a point of order in the beginning of the hearing, Stefanik asked Schiff, “Mr. Chairman, will you be prohibiting witnesses from answering members’ questions as you have in the closed-door depositions?”

Schiff responded to Stefanik, one of Congress’s youngest members at 35, with a condescending tone, “As the gentlewoman should know, if she was present for the depositions — .”

“Which I was,” she retorted.

“For some of them, yes,” he responded.

“Correct,” she said.

Schiff proceeded to defend his blocking of Republican members’ questions to the witnesses.

“The only time I prevented witnesses from answering questions, along with our counsel, was when it was apparent that members were seeking to out the whistleblower,” he said.

The young Republican would go on to blast Schiff’s connection to the whistleblower.

“Mr. Chairman, only one member and their staff on this committee has direct knowledge of the identity of the whistleblower,” she said.

Schiff then pounded his gavel to cut her off.

Schiff’s squirrelly and secretive behavior looks to be continuing during these public hearings, and that is an alarming development for our nation.