House

Cummings on ‘Adam Schitt’: ‘Mr. President, please do not do that’

by Emily Birnbaum - 11/19/18 1:59 PM ET

Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-Md.) on Monday denounced President Trump for referring to Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) as “Adam Schitt.”

“I would say to the president directly: Mr. President, please do not do that,” Cummings said on MSNBC’s “Andrea Mitchell Reports.” “That is beneath you and it is beneath this office.”

{mosads}Cummings defended Schiff as “one of the most brilliant members of our Congress” and a “phenomenal human being.” He said there is “no need” to call anybody names.

Trump attacked Schiff as “little Adam Schitt” in a tweet on Sunday after the congressman suggested the appointment of acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker was unconstitutional.

Schiff, a frequent Trump critic, will likely be the next chairman of the House Intelligence Committee. Cummings is likely to be the next chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform panel.

“So funny to see little Adam Schitt (D-CA) talking about the fact that Acting Attorney General Matt Whitaker was not approved by the Senate, but not mentioning the fact that Bob Mueller (who is highly conflicted) was not approved by the Senate!” Trump wrote in a tweet on Sunday.

“Wow, Mr. President, that’s a good one,” Schiff replied.

Schiff and other Democrats have been arguing that Whitaker, who was appointed by Trump following the departure of Attorney General Jeff Sessions, should be subject to Senate approval.

They have also raised concerns over Whitaker’s public comments denouncing the Mueller probe, claiming that they amount to a conflict of interest.

Whitaker once declared there was “no collusion” between Trump and Moscow and said the special counsel’s investigation was a waste of time that could be undercut by denying it funding.

“At the very least there should be a recusal on his part so that there’s not even an appearance — and I emphasize that — of a conflict,” Cummings said during the interview.

Senate Democrats on Monday filed a lawsuit challenging Trump’s appointment of Whitaker, claiming it is illegitimate because he was not confirmed by the Senate.

Tags Adam Schiff Donald Trump Elijah Cummings Jeff Sessions Matt Whitaker Special Counsel investigation Trump tweets