Impeachment Transcripts Released

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New transcripts on the impeachment inquiry of President Donald Trump were recently released with more coming Tuesday. The inquiry sprang from the removal of Ambassador Marie Yovanovitch from Ukraine. Yovanovitch explains how she was warned that her removal was coming. As a rather haphazard update in current events, this article lacks organization rather than information.
Common Facts
Definitions (20)
Yovanovitch: Marie Yovanovitch is a former ambassador to Ukraine
Pompeo: Mike Pompeo is Secretary of State.
McKinley: Michael McKinley is a former senior adviser to Pompeo, and a career foreign service officer.
Zelenskiy: Volodymyr Zelenskiy is the Ukrainian President.
Giuliani: Rudy Giuliani is Trump's personal lawyer.
Parnas: Lev Parnas is a one of Giuliani's associates.
Fruman: Igor Fruman is one of Giuliani's associates.
Joe Biden: Joe Biden is the former Vice President.
Barr: William Barr is an Attorney General.
Schiff: Adam Schiff, from California, is the House Intelligence Committee Chairman.
Volker: Kurt Volker is a former special envoy to Ukraine.
Sondland: Gordon Sondland is an ambassador to the European Union.
Yovanovitch: Marie Yovanovitch is a recalled US ambassador to Ukraine.
Zelensky: Volodymyr Zelensky is the President of Ukraine.
Joe Biden: Joe Biden is Zelensky's US political rival.
Hunter Biden: Hunter Biden is Joe Biden's son, who worked with a Ukrainian gas company.
Sondland: Gordon Sondland is the US Ambassador to the European Union.
Giuliani: Rudy Giuliani is Trump's personal lawyer.
Lutsenko: Yuriy Lutsenko is Ukraine's chief prosecutor.
Shokin: Viktor Shokin is a former Ukrainian chief prosecutor.
Review Info (3)
First Published: 11/04/2019 09:23:29 pm
Last Updated: 11/30/-0001 12:00:00 am
Original Front Page Link
NPR
Content (17)
Congressional investigators "released the first transcripts of closed-door testimonies from individuals at the center of the Ukraine affair."
The Ukraine affair has landed President Trump in an impeachment inquiry.
The transcripts are several hours long.
The transcripts are depositions (sworn evidence) from Yovanovitch and McKinley.
Yovanovitch has had "decades of diplomatic experience."
Yovanovitch was recalled as an ambassador.
In her deposition, Yovanovitch said she first heard she was being targeted by Giuliani from Ukrainian officials.
Parnas and Fruman are now arrested.
House Intelligence Committee members include Republicans.
Hunter Biden is Joe Biden's son.
One theory was about the 2016 election, and the other about Joe Biden and Hunter Biden.
Previously, opening statements had been released.
These newly released transcripts are hundreds of pages long, and "include full questions and answers with some sensitive items redacted."
Schiff "promised to release more transcripts Tuesday."
The transcripts released Tuesday will be from Volker and Sondland.
Sondland was a major Trump donor.
Yovanovitch explained a campaign to remove her as ambassador.
Opinion (18)
Trump called Yovanovitch "the woman" and "bad news" in his phone call with Zelenskiy.
Yovanovitch said Ukrainian officials told her she should "watch her back."
Ukrainian officials told Yovanovitch this because Parnas and Fruman wanted a different ambassador.
Yovanovitch told the House Intelligence Committee members Parnas and Fruman wanted a different ambassador because they wanted business dealings in Ukraine or other places.
Yovanovitch said she didn't understand why Parnas and Fruman wanted additional business dealings because no one at the embassy had ever met them.
Yovanovitch said one of the biggest jobs of an American ambassador of the U.S. Embassy is to promote U.S. business.
Yovanovitch said if "legitimate business" comes to them, they promote U.S. business.
Releasing the transcripts is "one of the first steps in the new public phase of the impeachment inquiry."
A record of Trump's call with Zelenskiy shows Trump asking for "a favor" of investigations into two conspiracy theories.
Trump's request for "a favor" came immediately after Zelenskiy inquired about purchasing more American weapons.
Trump said Zelenskiy should work with Giuliani and Barr on the investigations.
"Witnesses have contradicted parts of Sondland's testimony."
When Yovanovitch told Sondland about the campaign to remove her as ambassador, Sondland told her she should "tweet her praise for Trump."
Yovanovitch paraphrased what Sondland told her: she should tweet that she supported Trump, that all these are lies, and everything else.
Yovanovitch said Sondland's words to her were advice.
Yovanovitch said Sondland's advice told her her she could not see how to fulfill her role as an ambassador and foreign service agent.
McKinley said the way Yovanovitch was treated "raised alarm bells."
McKinley said the way Yovanovitch was treated had "a very serious effect on morale."
Article Info (4)
Date Published: 11/04/2019 01:38:00 pm
Date Accessed: 11/04/2019 03:09:00 pm
Article Author: Domenico Montanaro
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BBC
Content (10)
Yovanovitch is at the center of the Trump impeachment inquiry.
"Democrats have just released the first transcripts from closed-door testimony."
Trump's call with Zelensky triggered the current congressional impeachment investigation that seeks to remove Trump from from office for alleged abuses of power.
"The House Intelligence Committee released Ms Yovanovitch's testimony from 11 October on Monday."
In her testimony, Yovanovitch said she sought advice from Sondland, who suggested her to tweet praise of the president.
Yovanovitch left Ukraine in May, months before her scheduled departure.
Yovanovitch testified that Giuliani had tried to get a US tourist visa for Shokin, who had been refused such a visa by the state department on the basis of "known corrupt activities."
Joe Biden and other representatives of Western governments have tried to fire Shokin for alleged corruption.
Burisma is the Ukrainian energy firm for which Hunter Biden worked.
It is unclear why Giuliani wanted Shokin's visa to be granted.
Opinion (14)
Yovanovitch said she "felt threatened by a cryptic remark the president made about her on a call."
Yovanovitch told Congress she was "very concerned" by Trump's comment in the phone call with Zelensky.
Trump told Zelensky "Well, she's [Ms Yovanovitch] going to go through some things."
Zelensky is accused of pressuring Ukraine into investigating unsubstantiated corruption claims against Joe Biden and Hunter Biden.
Yovanovitch said she has been "shocked" by what Trump said about her in the 25 July phone call with Zelensky.
Concerning Trump's words, Yovanovitch said "I didn't know what it meant. I was very concerned. I still am."
In the Trump-Zelensky call, the details of which were previously released by the White House, Trump also described Yovanovitch as "bad news."
"You need to go big or go home," Sondland told her, according to Yovanovitch.
"Yovanovitch testified that she did not think she could follow the advice."
Yovanovitch testified Giuliani began trying to discredit her in late 2018 when he "ran a shadow foreign policy on Ukraine."
Yovanovitch testified that Giuliani wanted to investigate Joe Biden and Hunter Biden to possibly find damaging information to a "Presidential run."
According to Yovanovitch, Giuliani enlisted Lutsenko to spread "falsehoods" about her in order to "hurt" her "in the US."
Yovanovitch said she had been warned to watch her back by Ukraine's justice minister.
Baselessly, Republicans argue that Biden wanted to fire Shokin because of his decision to investigate Burisma.
Article Info (4)
Date Published: 11/04/2019 12:00:00 am
Date Accessed: 11/04/2019 04:27:00 pm
Article Author: BBC
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