And to our audience, please feel free to join in this conversation by tweeting at us at @PostLive, and we will try to get some of your questions answered.
Mr. Chairman, I want to start with the big news of the day, and that is, well, what happened last night is the FBI search of Mar‑a‑Lago, President Donald Trump’s records that he has there. What is your response to this? Is this, like what the Republicans are saying, government overreach?
REP. MEEKS: No. I think that we’ve all said. I mean, the Republicans have done investigations. Remember Hillary Clinton for months and months and‑‑but nothing to show for it? But we know that no one politically was involved in this, that there had to be various approvals from a grand jury and from a judge. So we’ve always said no one is above the law, no matter the president of the United States. So, apparently, generally, the lawyers they would have to have probable cause for a judge to sign a warrant to do something of this nature. So I think that what has to be done is the judicial process or the process, criminal justice process, is just moving along. But there obviously had to be probable cause for a warrant to be granted.
MS. CALDWELL: Right. And I want to ask you about the reason we asked you on this show is about your trip to Taiwan with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi last week and the reaction that it’s gotten. So tell me first, when you were in Taiwan, what did you hear from the Taiwanese? Were they concerned about your visit, especially given China’s threats and escalation before and since then?
REP. MEEKS: Not at all. They were so happy for us to be there. They thanked us. You know, there was over 250,000 people in Taiwan that was tracking our flight into Taiwan. When we landed‑‑and the greetings were just fantastic‑‑the streets were lined with individuals as we left the airport going to our hotel. One of the largest buildings, skyscrapers were saying, “We love you, Nancy Pelosi. Thank you for being here.” Around our hotel, people in the streets with signs welcoming us. So they were‑‑the people of Taiwan was very appreciative that we were there. When we met with the president and members of their legislative body, they were all very thankful and said thank you for being here. It was a warm reception. No regrets. They were very happy that we were there.
So there is no question. I mean, we all know about China’s aggression, but the people of Taiwan wanted to know that their friends are with them, and they demonstrated just that by the reception that they gave us.
MS. CALDWELL: Some people have expressed concerns since then, including the Australian prime minister. Some diplomats have said that this perhaps could escalate tensions with China, increase the chances, perhaps of even war. What is your reaction to that? Is that your assessment of what could happen?
REP. MEEKS: Look, I’ve traveled to Taiwan previously. There’s been other members that have traveled to Taiwan. There’s nothing that we did was different. You know, it’s the status‑‑we, you know, wanted the status quo. Members have traveled, other Speakers have traveled to Taiwan. So there is nothing that was done on the United States’ part. The only one that wanted to change the status is Beijing. The only one that’s talking about aggression even before we arrived was Beijing. There was nothing that we did.
So the clear answer here is, you know, I think that China‑‑and can be predicted‑‑wanted to intimidate. This is something that they were planning and would continue to do off and on, but when our friends are…
Read More: Transcript: 117th Congress: Rep. Gregory W. Meeks (D-N.Y.)
