Sen. Al Franken Friday called on pressure to be put on President-elect Donald Trump to release his income tax statements, especially considering the ongoing questions concerning his relationship with Russia and President Vladimir Putin.
"If you're a developer who has gone bankrupt several times and left your creditors holding the bag, you have to get money from somewhere," the Minnesota Democrat commented during an MSNBC "Morning Joe" interview.
"I want to know where he's getting that money, if he's getting it from foreign sources, and if those sources are Russian and if his campaign coordinated [it]. Those kind of questions, I think, are really important questions."
Trump has said he can't release his taxes because they're under audit, but Franken said Friday that tax returns can be released even if they're being audited, and Trump hasn't "produced any proof that he's under audit."
Franken told the program that it's "sort of an understatement" to say he's concerned about Trump's relationship with Russia, and he also found Secretary of State-nominee Rex Tillerson's past dealings with Russia and his confirmation comments worrisome.
"[His] not saying that there are war crimes in Aleppo, that's disturbing," said Franken of Tillerson. "There has to be an investigation into these charges that his campaign coordinated with Russia. "
On the release of Trump's tax returns, Franken said: "Right now, he's not going to release his taxes. But let's put pressure on him… I want to know where he's getting that money, if he's getting it from foreign sources, and if those sources are Russian, and if his campaign coordinated — those kind of questions, I think, are really important questions."
Franken also said Friday he will not be voting to confirm Alabama Sen. Jeff Sessions as attorney general, as he doesn't "feel comfortable that he would protect all Americans' rights."
Franken also spoke out against Republican efforts to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act, as he's seen no plans to keep insurance coverage available.
"Look, 2.3 million Minnesotans had limits on their policies before ACA," said Franken. "There are people who are alive today because of the Affordable Care Act. There are 2.3 million with preexisting conditions that benefit from this.
"This isn't just about the 20 million people who are newly covered, and the fact that we have — President Obama said, if you come up with a better plan, fine. They had not come up with a plan. And this idea that we're going to repeal and replace it simultaneously is ridiculous."
Republicans have said they have many plans for Obamacare, but Franken said that "a lot of plans is not a plan. It's like a quarterback going back in the huddle going like, 'OK, we're going to run four plays this down.'"