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Day 1020: Orchestrated efforts.


Tuesday, November 5, 2019

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1/ A key witness in the impeachment inquiry acknowledged that there was a quid pro quo linking U.S. aid to Ukraine with an investigation into Trump's political rival. In revised testimony, Gordon Sondland, the U.S. ambassador to the European Union, said he told Andriy Yermak, a Ukrainian national security adviser, that Ukraine "would likely not" receive military aid until it publicly committed to investigating the 2016 election and Joe Biden. Sondland told Congress that his memory was "refreshed" after reviewing the opening statements by Bill Taylor, the acting ambassador to Ukraine, and Tim Morrison, a former adviser to Trump on Russian and European affairs. Sondland's addendum also recounted a Sept. 1 meeting in Warsaw where Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky raised his concerns to Mike Pence about the suspension of military aid. Sondland said he believed that withholding the $391 million in security assistance was "ill-advised," but claimed he didn't know "when, why or by whom the aid was suspended." The revelation comes after House committees leading the impeachment inquiry released transcripts of witness testimony by Sondland and Kurt Volker, the former special envoy to Ukraine. (Politico / NBC News / New York Times / CNN / Washington Post)

  • Analysis: Five takeaways from the Gordon Sondland and Kurt Volker testimonies. (Washington Post)

  • Excerpts: Sondland's and Volker's testimonies. (New York Times)

  • READ: U.S. Ambassador to the European Union House testimony on Ukraine investigation. (CNN)

  • READ: Former U.S. special envoy to Ukraine Kurt Volker's House testimony on Ukraine investigations. (CNN)

2/ House Democrats requested that Trump's acting White House chief of staff appear for a deposition in the impeachment probe. Mick Mulvaney is unlikely to comply with the request, however, as the White House has directed senior officials to not participate in the impeachment investigation. Lawmakers leading the inquiry believe Mulvaney "may have been directly involved in an effort orchestrated" by Trump and Rudy Giuliani to withhold a "White House meeting and nearly $400 million in security assistance" in order to pressure Ukraine to pursue investigations that would benefit "Trump's personal political interests, and jeopardized our national security." (CNBC / Politico / ABC News /


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 November 6, 2019  4m