Published 12:02 IST, November 24th 2019
Trump accuses impeachment witness of lying, defends Giuliani's use
Trump accuses impeachment witness of lying inquiry hearing and defends use of his personal lawyer Rudi Giuliani in the formation of American Policy in Ukraine.
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Accusing the impeachment witness of lying, US President Donald Trump defends the use of his personal lawyer, Rudi Giuliani on Ukraine policy. During the Democratic-led impeachment enquiry, Trump accused the witness of lying and stated that Rudi Giuliani's 'crime-fighting' skills were needed to take on a corrupt country.
Trump accuses the witness of lying under oath
Trump on Thursday took offence when a Unites States embassy official David Holmes testified under oath that he had heard a cellphone conversation on July 26 between Donald Trump and the US Ambassador to the European Union Gordon Sondland in which he claimed to have heard Trump asked if Ukraine would carry out politically motivated investigations against the 2020 Democratic Party presidential primary candidate Joe Biden and into the Russian interference into the 2016 US Presidential elections. Later when President Trump was being interviewed he said that no such call ever took place and that it was a 'phoney deal'.
Sondland was appointed the US Ambassador to the European Union after he made a $1 million dollar donation to Trump's inaugural committee and while Somdland has described his relationship with Trump to be relaxed and understanding, Trump, on the other hand, has said that he has talked to Sondland a few times and that he barely knows him.
In another development that comes at a rather inopportune time for Trump is that the former national security advisor John Bolton has gotten back control of his personal Twitter account. In the past after his exit from the White House, Bolton had accused the White House of blocking access to his account.
While, Bolton has declined to cooperate with the impeachment inquiry, he has accused the White House of blocking his access to his account after his exit back in September. Trump reportedly denied that White House had anything to do with the blocking of Bolton's account.
Reason behind impeachment
The impeachment inquiry of Donald Trump centres around his decision to use Rudi Giuliani, a private citizen and his personal lawyer to shape American policy toward Ukraine instead of using US Government officials or the usually national security channels. Bolton was one of the first White House officials to express alarm at Giuliani's actions and during the hearings, current and former White House officials and diplomats voiced alarm at Giuliani's activities.
But Trump had continued to maintain that Giuliani was the right man for the job and that his skills were needed in order to tackle a corrupt country like Ukraine.
10:52 IST, November 24th 2019