The first open hearing in the impeachment inquiry is underway, with testimony expected from two career diplomats who Democrats see as key to building their case that President Trump acted inappropriately in his dealings with Ukraine.
William B. Taylor Jr., acting ambassador to Ukraine, and George Kent, deputy assistant secretary of state for European and Eurasian affairs, are appearing before the House Intelligence Committee in nationally televised proceedings.
Hours before the hearing, Trump lashed out at Democrats, contending the deck is stacked against him. Democrats are trying to show the public that Trump pressured Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to investigate former vice president Joe Biden and his son Hunter Biden at a time when U.S. military aid to Ukraine was being withheld.
●Historic impeachment hearings are set to begin, with GOP and Democrats pushing dueling messages on Trump’s conduct.
●Aides are counseling Trump not to fire Mick Mulvaney, as the acting White House chief of staff changes course again.
●At a donor dinner, an associate of Trump personal lawyer Rudolph W. Giuliani said he discussed Ukraine with the president, according to people familiar with his account.
●How the decline of public trust shaped Trump’s, Nixon’s and Clinton’s endgames.
November 13, 2019 at 10:15 AM EST
The facts ‘are not seriously contested,’ Schiff says in opening remarks
In his opening statement, House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam B. Schiff (D-Calif.) outlined the facts of the inquiry that have been established by the witnesses who have already testified behind closed doors — facts, he argued, that “are not seriously contested.”
The question is, do those facts mean that Trump invited Ukrainian interference in the 2020 election and conditioned official acts on Kyiv’s willingness to do so — and, if so, is Trump’s “abuse of his power” compatible with the office of the presidency?
“The matter is as simple, and as terrible, as that,” Schiff said.
“Our answer to these questions will affect not only the future of this presidency, but the future of the presidency itself, and what kind of conduct or misconduct the American people may come to expect from their commander in chief,” he said.
Felicia Sonmez
November 13, 2019 at 10:06 AM EST
Schiff opens the hearing
House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam B. Schiff (D-Calif.) has gaveled in the open hearing featuring two career diplomats expected to testify about the White House’s efforts to press Ukraine for investigations that could benefit Trump politically.
John Wagner
November 13, 2019 at 9:40 AM EST
Republicans hint at impeachment defense with signs
Three signs posted behind the GOP side of the dais suggest how Republicans plan to defend against the impeachment effort during Wednesday’s hearing.
One sign features a May quote from Rep. Al Green (D-Tex.), an early and vocal supporter of Trump’s impeachment, saying, “I’m concerned if we don’t impeach this president, he will get reelected.” Republicans say Green’s comment is proof the inquiry is politically motivated.
Another sign notes “93 Days Since Adam Schiff Learned the Identity of the Whistleblower.” That is a reference to an early encounter between the anonymous whistleblower who sought to alert Congress to Trump’s Ukraine dealings and staff of House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam B. Schiff (D-Calif.). That, Republicans say, shows proof of partisan collusion against Trump.
And also in support of that argument, a third sign shows a January 2017 tweet from lawyer Mark S. Zaid, who is representing the whistleblower, suggesting a “#coup has started ... #impeachment will follow ultimately” in the earliest days of the Trump administration.
Mike DeBonis
November 13, 2019 at 9:35 AM EST
Pelosi praises patriotism of witnesses
In a morning tweet, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) praised the patriotism of Taylor and Kent, two career diplomats who are testifying despite efforts by the White House to keep administration officials from participating.
“Patriotism means putting country ahead of politics and personal ambition, and speaking out when you see something wrong,” Pelosi tweeted. “The witnesses coming forward to testify today have shown that patriotism again and again.”
John Wagner
November 13, 2019 at 9:30 AM EST
Kent arrives for testimony
Kent has arrived at the Longworth House Office Building ahead of his testimony scheduled for 10 a.m.
John Wagner
November 13, 2019 at 9:15 AM EST
Taylor arrives for testimony
Taylor has arrived at the Longworth House Office Building ahead of his testimony scheduled for 10 a.m.
Both Taylor and Kent will be appearing under subpoena, according to an official working on the impeachment inquiry. The House Intelligence Committee issued the subpoenas Wednesday morning, said the official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss part of the proceedings that had not been publicly announced.
John Wagner
November 13, 2019 at 8:30 AM EST
Trump returns to Twitter, shares disparaging quote about Pelosi
Trump returned to Twitter to share an extended quote from Charles Hurt, the opinion editor of the Washington Times, disparaging House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and the Democratic-led impeachment inquiry.
Hurt, according to Trump’s tweet, said Pelosi “cares more about power than she does about principle” and accused Democrats of turning impeachment into “a political cudgel.”
In subsequent tweets, Trump wrote “NEVER TRUMPERS!” and “READ THE TRANSCRIPT!”
In recent days, Trump has contended that the witnesses being called by Democrats are “Never Trumpers,” a term that refers to Republicans who were against his presidency from the start. He has not provided any evidence.
Trump has also argued that the transcript of a July call with Zelensky shows he did nothing wrong because he did not explicitly condition the resumption of military aid on investigating the Bidens.
John Wagner
November 13, 2019 at 7:15 AM EST
Trump lashes out at Democrats ahead of hearing
Trump lashed out at Democrats and House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam B. Schiff (D-Calif.) hours before Schiff was scheduled to gavel in the first open hearing in the impeachment proceedings against the president.
In tweets, Trump quoted conservative talk show host Rush Limbaugh calling the inquiry a “partisan sham” and shared the assertion of Fox News host Steve Doocy that the Democrats “have stacked the deck against President Trump and the Republicans.”
In one tweet, Trump seemed to suggest that Daniel S. Goldman, the lawyer Democrats have tapped to question witnesses, had a conflict because he had worked for Trump.
“Also, why is corrupt politician Schiff allowed to hand over cross examination to a high priced outside lawyer,” Trump tweeted. “Did that lawyer ever work for me, which would be a conflict?”
It was not clear what Trump was referencing, and a White House spokesman did not immediately respond to a request for elaboration.
Goldman previously spent a decade as an assistant U.S. attorney in Manhattan, a jurisdiction known for its tough, high-profile cases. He left that job in 2017, shortly after Trump became president, to become a television legal analyst.
John Wagner and Devlin Barrett
November 13, 2019 at 7:00 AM EST
First public hearing will feature testimony from Taylor and Kent
The first open impeachment hearing before the House Intelligence Committee is set to begin at 10 a.m. with testimony from Taylor and Kent, two diplomats who previously told lawmakers in closed-door depositions that the White House improperly sought to leverage U.S. military assistance and an Oval Office meeting to pressure Ukraine to open investigations into Democrats.
Taylor previously testified that he learned through conversations with White House aides, national security officials and Trump’s point people in Ukraine that there was a concerted effort to force Ukraine into a quid pro quo. However, he couldn’t conclusively say Trump directed all of this.
Kent previously testified that Trump wanted Zelensky to publicly and explicitly announce he would be investigating matters involving Democrats, and he wanted him to use the words “Biden” and “Clinton.” Kent said he didn’t hear this directly from Trump, but rather from other officials who talked to people who talked to Trump.
After opening statements, lawyers for the Democrats and Republicans will be given 45 minutes to question witnesses before committee members proceed with traditional five-minute rounds of questioning.
John Wagner and Amber Phillips
November 13, 2019 at 7:00 AM EST
Trump allies take to Twitter early Wednesday to defend him
Trump’s allies went on Twitter to defend him hours before Wednesday’s hearing was set to begin.
“Facts matter,” House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) tweeted. “And the facts prove this entire sham has been a premeditated plot to take down the president.”
Republican National Committee Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel characterized the upcoming proceeds as a “kangaroo court” and asked her followers to remember that neither Taylor nor Kent were “present for any key meetings/calls that would allow them to corroborate Dems’ bogus allegations.”
Meanwhile, Tim Murtaugh, a Trump campaign spokesman, dismissed the hearing as “a new act in the Democrat sham impeachment.”
“Democrat-selected ‘witnesses’ will just offer their opinions of a phone call, the transcript of which we can all read ourselves.”
John Wagner
November 13, 2019 at 6:45 AM EST
Turkish leader to visit the White House as hearing plays out on Capitol Hill
As witnesses testify in the impeachment proceedings on Capitol Hill, Trump plans to welcome Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to the White House on Wednesday.
The visit comes just weeks after Turkey invaded Syria and attacked U.S.-allied Kurdish forces.
In a letter last week, more than a dozen members of Congress, including House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Eliot L. Engel (D-N.Y.) called on Trump to rescind his invitation, arguing that “now is a particularly inappropriate time for President Erdogan to visit the United States.”
Erdogan is scheduled to arrive at noon, two hours after the House hearing begins. His visit includes a meeting with a group of Republican senators.
Trump and Erdogan have a joint news conference scheduled at 3:10 p.m.
It is unclear whether the House proceedings will still be going on at that point. An official working on the impeachment inquiry has estimated that the hearing will wrap up sometime between 2:30 p.m. and 4:30 p.m.
John Wagner
November 13, 2019 at 6:30 AM EST
In late-night tweets, Trump quotes Hannity calling hearings a ‘phony showtrial’
Trump went on Twitter late Tuesday night to share a lengthy quote from Fox News host Sean Hannity disparaging the upcoming impeachment hearings, which he called a “phony showtrial.”
“Everything you’re going to see in the next two weeks is rigged,” Trump quoted Hannity as saying. “There is zero due process, none. It is yet another fraudulent hoax conspiracy theory. It is another Witch Hunt. This is what the Socialist Doemocrat Party has become.” (Democrat was misspelled in the tweet.)
Trump closed out his tweets by offering praise for Hannity: “Sean the amazing warrior!”
John Wagner
November 13, 2019 at 6:15 AM EST
Democrats announce witnesses for next week’s hearings
Eight witnesses will testify over three days next week, the House Intelligence Committee announced Tuesday night.
On Nov. 19, lawmakers will hear from Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman, the National Security Council director for European affairs; Kurt Volker, the former special envoy to Ukraine; Jennifer Williams, a special adviser to Vice President Pence on Europe and Russia; and Tim Morrison, a former White House national security aide.
Witnesses on Nov. 20 will be Gordon Sondland, the U.S. ambassador to the European Union; Laura Cooper, the Pentagon official who oversees Ukraine policy; and David Hale, the State Department’s third-ranking official.
And on Nov. 21, Fiona Hill, former top Russia adviser to the White House, will testify.
Of the numerous witnesses Republicans had requested, only three — Morrison, Volker and Hale — were greenlighted by Democrats, who control the majority on the panel.
“The Majority has accepted all of the Minority requests that are within the scope of the impeachment inquiry,” Democrats on the Intelligence Committee said in a statement.
Felicia Sonmez
November 13, 2019 at 6:00 AM EST
Giuliani writes Wall Street Journal op-ed defending Trump
The Wall Street Journal published an op-ed Tuesday night in which Trump’s personal lawyer Rudolph W. Giuliani argued that the president’s July 25 conversation with Zelensky was “innocent” and denounced the House impeachment inquiry as “a travesty.”
Trump “requested that Ukraine root out corruption; he didn’t demand it,” Giuliani wrote, adding that “out of a five-page transcript Mr. Trump spent only six lines on Joe Biden.”
“His words were cordial, agreeable and free of any element of threat or coercion,” he wrote. “Mr. Trump offered nothing in return to Ukraine for cleaning up corruption. If you doubt me, read the transcript.”
The Washington Post’s Fact Checker has released a guide that debunks many of the claims that have been made by Giuliani and other Trump allies.
Felicia Sonmez