The ranking Democrat on the House Select Committee on Benghazi, Elijah Cummings, told MSNBC’s Andrea Mitchell after Thursday's morning session of hearings that Republicans on the panel aren’t investigating to find the truth but are out to “destroy the campaign of Hillary Clinton.”
Immediately after a verbal tussle with Committee Chairman Trey Gowdy over releasing the full transcript of Clinton friend Sidney Blumenthal, Cummings lashed out at Republicans on the panel and said “they are not about getting to the truth.”
He added that it took him a long time to get to the realization that the panel isn’t looking to find out what happened but to destroy the Democratic frontrunner.
“I wanted to believe that conclusions were not made before we started (this investigation),” Cummings said. “I think this is all to disrupt, destroy the campaign of Hillary Clinton. It was a painful conclusion. It took me a long time to get there.”
Clinton testified today during a marathon session with the committee, the only time she is expected to answer more questions about what happened the night of Sept. 11, 2011 at the diplomatic compound in Libya.
Cummings said he favored releasing the full transcript – as much as eight hours’ worth – of Blumenthal’s testimony before the panel which took place earlier this year.
Cummings said he was part of the panel to “get to the truth” but Republicans, he said, aren’t interested in the truth.
Blumenthal, a friend of the Clintons, sent numerous emails to Clinton while she was secretary of state. His emails on Libya and intelligence there reached Clinton, her emails show. Gowdy was attempting to show that Clinton relied on those emails rather than State Department staff on security matters. Clinton dismissed that notion.
During the hearing, Cummings renewed his call for Gowdy to release the full transcript of the nine-hour deposition of longtime Clinton confidant Sidney Blumenthal, as well as the transcripts of all interviews the Benghazi committee have so far conducted.
Cummings originally
made the request to Gowdy in a letter on Tuesday, arguing that the transcript will "correct the public record" about statements he has made about the Benghazi committee's mission.