US Intelligence boss Joseph Maguire to testify to Congress on Ukraine

Acting Director of National Intelligence Joseph Maguire is set to speak publicly for first time about a secret whistleblower complaint involving President Donald Trump as House Democrats who have re document say it is “deeply disturbing.” House Democrats who are w mulling Trump’s impeachment are hoping that Maguire will explain why he withheld intelligence community whistleblower’s complaint from Congress for weeks.

Maguire will n go behind closed doors to speak to Senate intelligence panel. Lawmakers have been given a redacted, declassified version of complaint that can be me public. A person familiar with matter said that version is expected to be released September 26 morning.

Complaint me public

person spoke on condition of anymity because y were t authorized to publicly discuss it ahe of release. New York Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, a member of Democratic leership, said Wednesday evening that he expects complaint would be me public “sooner rar than later.”

document was me available to members of House and Senate intelligence committees Wednesday after Maguire h initially determined y couldn’t see it. complaint is at least in part related to a July phone call between Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy in which Trump prodded Zelenskiy to investigate Democratic political rival Joe Biden. White House released a rough transcript of that call Wednesday morning.

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Disturbing document

House Democrats emerging from a secure room would t divulge details of classified document but described it as disturbing and urgent. House Intelligence Committee Chairman am Schiff, D-Calif., said it “exposed serious wrongdoing” and “certainly provides information for committee to follow up with ors.” California Rep. Eric Swalwell told CNN that whistleblower “laid out a lot of or documents and witnesses who were subjects in this matter.”

complaint showed whistleblower learned details of call from White House officials, according to one person familiar with complaint who was granted anymity to discuss it. Ar such person said lawmakers did t learn identity of whistleblower. A Democratic member of panel, Illiis Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi, said whistleblower “lays out situation very logically” and “is both ackwledging things that he or she kws and doesn’t kw, which is a hallmark of a credible document.”

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Impeachment inquiry

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi — who on Tuesday fully endorsed an impeachment investigation in light of Ukraine revelations — and Senate Democratic Leer Chuck Schumer also viewed complaint. Schumer said he is even “more worried” w than he was before reing it and “re are huge numbers of facts crying out for investigation.” Most Republicans were quiet or defended president as y left secure rooms. But at least one Republican said he was concerned by what he h re.

“Republicans ought t to be rushing to circle wagons and say ‘re’s re’ when re’s obviously a lot that’s very troubling re,” said Nebraska Sen. Ben Sasse, a GOP member of Senate intelligence panel who has been an occasional critic of Trump. He ded that “Democrats ought t be using words like ‘impeach’ before y knew anything about actual substance.”

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Trump, whose ministration h earlier balked at turning over complaint, said Wednesday afteron that “I fully support transparency on so-called whistleblower information” and that he h communicated that position to House Mirity Leer Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif.

rough transcript released by White House on Wednesday showed that Trump prodded Zelenskiy to work with U.S. attorney general and Trump’s personal lawyer Rudy Giuliani to investigate Biden. Zelenskiy said his comments in conversation with Trump shouldn’t have been publicly released, and he played down Ukraine’s investigation of Biden, a former vice president who’s w a 2020 presidential candidate.

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