Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), the Senate Judiciary Committee chairman, predicted Sunday that the whistleblower who filed the complaint against President Donald Trump that triggered the impeachment inquiry is from the "deep state" and connected to House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff (D-Calif.).



Speaking with Fox News host Maria Bartiromo on "Sunday Morning Futures," Graham said "this thing's going to stink to high heaven" once the whistleblower's identity, and his connections to the Obama administration and Schiff, are revealed.

"Well, because what's going to happen, when you find out who the whistleblower is, I'm confident you're going to find out it's somebody from the deep state," Graham said. "You're going to find out that they had interactions with Schiff. And this thing's going to stink to high heaven."

Graham explained that it would be "stunning" if the "whistleblower comes from the Brennan world," referring to John Brennan, the CIA director in the Obama administration, or if the whistleblower has "a connection to a Democratic candidate."

‘Stink to high heaven’: Graham warns the whistleblower is likely a ‘deep state’ friend of Schiff www.youtube.com

Later, Graham said identifying the whistleblower will be necessary if the impeachment case against the president moves forward.



[I]t's impossible to bring this case forward, in my view, fairly without us knowing who the whistle-blower is, and having a chance to cross-examine them about any biases that they may have," Graham explained. "It is impossible to conduct an impeachment inquiry when the chief complaining witness is unknown to the president, not subject to cross-examination."

The whistleblower is purported to be a career CIA analyst who worked on the National Security Council during the Obama administration and the initial months of the Trump administration; he now purportedly works on the National Intelligence Council.

If the House does not call the whistleblower forward as a witness in the impeachment probe, then Graham said impeachment is "dead on arrival" in the Senate.