The Rachel Maddow Show has obtained exclusive, secret audio of Rep. Devin Nunes speaking candidly to donors at a private fundraiser for Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers.

NBC News: Secret recording shows GOP’s Nunes saying Rosenstein impeachment would delay Supreme Court pick

Below are the transcripts of the portions aired on the August 8, 2018 episode of The Rachel Maddow Show:

Clip #1:

Close video TRMS Exclusive: Devin Nunes at fundraiser audio clip 1 In secretly recorded audio from a fundraiser for Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers obtained exclusively by The Rachel Maddow Show, Devin Nunes is heard telling donors that only a Republican majority can protect Donald Trump from Robert Mueller’s Russia In secretly recorded audio from a fundraiser for Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers obtained exclusively by The Rachel Maddow Show, Devin Nunes is heard telling donors that only a Republican majority can protect Donald Trump from Robert Mueller’s Russia share tweet email Embed “So therein lies, so it’s like your classic Catch-22 situation where we were at a – this puts us in such a tough spot. If Sessions won’t unrecuse and Mueller won’t clear the president, we’re the only ones. Which is really the danger. That’s why I keep, and thank you for saying it by the way, I mean we have to keep all these seats. We have to keep the majority. If we do not keep the majority, all of this goes away.”

Clip #2:

Close video TRMS Exclusive: Devin Nunes at fundraiser audio clip 2 In secretly recorded audio from a fundraiser for Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers obtained exclusively by The Rachel Maddow Show, Devin Nunes is heard speaking candidly about Donald Trump’s tweeting sometimes making him cringe. In secretly recorded audio from a fundraiser for Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers obtained exclusively by The Rachel Maddow Show, Devin Nunes is heard speaking candidly about Donald Trump’s tweeting sometimes making him cringe. share tweet email Embed “They know it’s ridiculous to go after the president for obstruction of justice. But if they tell a lie often enough and they put it out there and they say, ‘Oh, we’re looking at the tweets,’ cause you know you’ve got a mixed bag on the tweets, right? Like sometimes you love the president’s tweets, sometimes we cringe on the president’s tweets. But they’re trying to make a political, this is all political as to why that story ran in the New York Times on the tweets.”

Clip #3:

Close video TRMS Exclusive: Devin Nunes at fundraiser audio clip 3 In secretly recorded audio from a fundraiser for Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers obtained exclusively by The Rachel Maddow Show, Devin Nunes is heard explaining that working with a foreign country to release, for example, e-mails, would be criminal. In secretly recorded audio from a fundraiser for Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers obtained exclusively by The Rachel Maddow Show, Devin Nunes is heard explaining that working with a foreign country to release, for example, e-mails, would be criminal. share tweet email Embed “Now if somebody thinks that my campaign or Cathy’s campaign is colluding with the Chinese, or you name the country, hey, could happen, it would be a very bad thing if Cathy was getting secrets from the Portuguese, let’s say, just because I’m Portuguese, my family was. So Cathy was getting secret information from the Portuguese. You know, may or may not be unusual. But ultimately let’s say the Portuguese came and brought her some stolen emails. And she decided to release those. Okay, now we have a problem, right? Because somebody stole the emails, gave ‘em to Cathy, Cathy released ‘em. Well, if that’s the case, then that’s criminal.”



Clip #4:

Close video TRMS Exclusive: Devin Nunes at fundraiser audio clip 4 In secretly recorded audio from a fundraiser for Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers obtained exclusively by The Rachel Maddow Show, Devin Nunes is heard explaining that the impeachment of Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein has to wait so it doesn’t interfere In secretly recorded audio from a fundraiser for Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers obtained exclusively by The Rachel Maddow Show, Devin Nunes is heard explaining that the impeachment of Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein has to wait so it doesn’t interfere share tweet email Embed “But also, on things that came up in the House on Rosenstein impeachment thing. And it appears from an outsider that the Republicans were not supported.”

REP. NUNES (R-CA): “Yeah, well, so it’s a bit complicated, right? And I say that because you have to, so we only have so many months left, right? So if we actually vote to impeach, okay, what that does is that triggers the Senate then has to take it up. Well, and you have to decide what you want right now because the Senate only has so much time. Do you want them to drop everything and not confirm the Supreme Court justice, the new Supreme Court justice? So that’s part of why, I don’t think you have, you’re not getting from, and I’ve said publicly Rosenstein deserves to be impeached. I mean, so, I don’t think you’re gonna get any argument from most of our colleagues. The question is the timing of it right before the election.”

REP. MCMORRIS RODGERS (R-WA): “Also, the Senate has to start –”

REP. NUNES (R-CA): “The Senate would have to start, the Senate would have to drop everything they’re doing and start to, and start with impeachment on Rosenstein. And then take the risk of not getting Kavanaugh confirmed. So it’s not a matter that any of us like Rosenstein. It’s a matter of, it’s a matter of timing.”