Ex-prosecutor calls for James Comer and Jim Jordan to be investigated criminally
With the star witness in the GOP-led impeachment inquiry wearing a GPS ankle bracelet and facing charges for lying to the FBI about a multimillion-dollar bribery scheme implicating President Joe Biden and his son Hunter, at least one legal expert thinks there should be severe ramifications for GOP lawmakers who pushed his story.
Former federal prosecutor Glenn Kirschner, while appearing on MSNBC's "The Last Word" with Lawrence O'Donnell, stated that any of the lawmakers who knowingly perpetuate the lies told by the ex informant Alexander Smirnov that are purported to be Russian disinformation should be investigated criminally.
"The big question now is what will the Republican members of Congress do now they know that these are lies that they have been peddling as ably assisted by Fox News," he asked. "Will they continue to peddle those lies?"
He then expressed agreement with Rep. Daniel Goldman (D-NY) who earlier called out his Republican colleagues for being played by the Russians as we near another critical election.
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"It is now coming out in 2024 and Republican members of Congress are once again witting or unwitting agents of Russian intelligence, peddling a false narrative that is Russian disinformation in an effort to interfere in the election and boost Donald Trump," Goldman told Alex Wagner. "It is shocking that 8 years later we are still dealing with Russian interference and the party is still welcoming it and facilitating it."
Echoing Goldman, Kirschner said that any member of Congress who pushes essentially a Russian propaganda relying on Smirnov "should be investigated for being part and parcel of a conspiracy to defraud the United States and to interfere in our elections."
Any such prosecution would be very likely to run into First Amendment problems, as simply making false statements or even parroting false claims from a foreign power is not in any way a crime.
Prosecutors in Las Vegas accused Smirnov of lying to his FBI intermediary about having direct proof that Biden received multimillion-dollar bribes from Ukrainian energy company Burisma.
Both House Judiciary Chair Jim Jordan (R-OH) and House Oversight Chair James Comer (R-KY) have backtracked on their reliance on the 43-year-old Smirnov to serve as the crux of their case.
Comer claimed the impeachment inquiry "is not reliant" on the documentation the FBI provided and then turned around to claim was false.
And Jordan said that it "doesn't change the facts."