Today, U.S. Congressman Scott Peters (CA-52) issued the following statement after the White House announced that President Trump is “evaluating the situation” regarding Michael Flynn reportedly discussing sanctions relief with the Russians after they were found to have interfered in the Presidential Election:

“If Michael Flynn discussed sanctions relief with Russia while he was still a civilian, America deserves to know why he was having these discussions and who he was representing, and he should be dismissed immediately.

“But firing Michael Flynn and using him as a scapegoat would not excuse President Trump’s decision to put Flynn in this position of power in the first place, and it must not distract us from the specter of Russian influence over this administration.

“All of us as public servants pledge loyalty to American interests ahead of our own. We need to make sure the President and his cabinet put service before self and don’t use their positions of trust to line their own pockets or advance their own agendas. And to do that, we have to know more about the administration’s relationship with Russia.

“While President Trump takes more time to evaluate whether to fire his National Security Advisor for making promises to the Russians and then lying about it, Congress needs to stand together as patriots and investigate the full extent of Russian interference in our election and influence over this White House so that we can find out just how deep this goes.”

Congressman Peters is an original co-sponsor of the Protecting our Democracy Act, which would create a National Commission on Foreign Interference in the 2016 Election to allow for a full Congressional investigation unimpeded by jurisdictional and partisan barriers.