On October 3, in remarks before he departed on Marine One, President Trump expressed his “hope” that Ukraine would investigate Mr. Biden and his son. Specifically, President Trump stated that he had hoped—after his July 25 conversation—that Ukraine would “start a major investigation into the Bidens.” The President also stated that “by the way, likewise, China should start an investigation into the Bidens, because what happened in China is just about as bad as what happened with—with Ukraine.” He addressed the corrupt prosecutor general, Yuriy Lutsenko, who had recently been removed by Parliament: “And they got rid of a prosecutor who was a very tough prosecutor. They got rid of him. Now they’re trying to make it the opposite way.1045
The next day, on October 4, in remarks before he departed on Marine One, the President again said:
When you look at what Biden and his son did, and when you look at other people — what they’ve done. And I believe there was tremendous corruption with Biden, but I think there was beyond—I mean, beyond corruption—having to do with the 2016 campaign, and what these lowlifes did to so many people, to hurt so many people in the Trump campaign—which was successful, despite all of the fighting us. I mean, despite all of the unfairness.1046
President Trump reiterated his willingness to solicit foreign assistance related to his personal interests: “Here’s what’s okay: If we feel there’s corruption, like I feel there was in the 2016 campaign—there was tremendous corruption against me—if we feel there’s corruption, we have a right to go to a foreign country.”1047 President Trump added that asking President Xi of China to investigate the Bidens “is certainly something we can start thinking about.”1048
Consistent with the President’s remarks after this inquiry began, Ambassador Volker understood that references to fighting “corruption” in Ukraine, when used by President Trump and Mr. Giuliani, in fact referred to the two investigations into “Burisma”—and former Vice President Biden—and the 2016 election interference that President Trump sought to benefit his reelection efforts.1049
The President’s Scheme Undermined U.S. Anti-Corruption Efforts in Ukraine
Rather than combatting corruption in Ukraine, President Trump’s ongoing efforts to urge Ukraine to pursue an investigation into former Vice President Biden undermine longstanding U.S. anti-corruption policy, which encourages countries to refrain from using the criminal justice system to investigate political opponents. When it became clear that President Trump was pressuring Ukraine to investigate his political rival, career public servants charged with implementing U.S. foreign policy in a non-partisan manner, such as Lt. Col. Vindman and Ambassador Taylor, communicated to President Zelensky and his advisors that Ukraine should avoid getting embroiled in U.S. domestic politics.1050
Mr. Kent, an anti-corruption and rule of law expert, explained that U.S. anti-corruption efforts prioritize “building institutional capacity so that the Ukrainian Government has the ability to go after corruption and effectively investigate, prosecute, and judge alleged criminal activities using appropriate institutional mechanisms, that is, to create and follow the rule of law. 1051
Mr. Holmes concurred:
[O]ur longstanding policy is to encourage them [Ukraine] to establish and build rule of law institutions, that are capable and that are independent and that can actually pursue credible allegations. That’s our policy. We’ve been doing that for quite some time with some success. So focusing on [particular] cases, including [] cases where there is an interest of the President, it’s just not part of what we’ve done. It’s hard to explain why we would do that.1052
Mr. Kent emphasized that when foreign government officials “hear diplomats on the ground saying one thing, and they hear other U.S. leaders saying something else,” it raises concerns about the United States’ credibility on anti-corruption efforts.1053 Ambassador Taylor agreed, stating that “[o]ur credibility is based on a respect for the United States” and “if we damage that respect, then it hurts our credibility and makes it more difficult for us to do our jobs.”1054
Mr. Kent, like many other witnesses, explained that urging Ukraine to engage in “selective politically associated investigations or prosecutions” undermined the rule of law more generally:
As a general principle, I do not believe the United States should ask other countries to engage in selective politically associated investigations or prosecutions against opponents of those in power because such selective actions undermine the rule of law, regardless of the country.1055
Mr. Kent agreed that pressuring Ukraine to conduct political investigations is not a part of U.S. foreign policy to promote the rule of law in Ukraine and around the world.1056 Mr. Kent concluded that the President’s request for investigations “went against U.S. policy” and “would’ve undermined the rule of law and our longstanding policy goals in Ukraine, as in other countries, in the post-Soviet space.”1057
These conflicting messages came to a head at a September 14 meeting between American and Ukrainian officials in Kyiv. During that meeting, Ambassador Volker advised Mr. Yermak about the “potential problems” with investigations that the Zelensky administration was contemplating into former Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko.1058 Mr. Yermak retorted, “what, you mean like asking us to investigate Clinton and Biden?”1059 Ambassador Volker did not respond.1060
SECTION I ENDNOTES
1 Yovanovitch Hearing Tr. at 16-17.
2 Kateryna Handziuk, Ukrainian Activist, Dies From Acid Attack, New York Times (Nov. 5, 2018) (online at www.nytimes.com/2018/11/05/world/europe/kateryna-handziuk-dies-ukraine.html).
3 Yovanovitch Hearing Tr. at 30-31.
4 U.S. Embassy in Ukraine, Department of State, Ambassador Yovanovitch’s Remarks at a Women of Courage Reception in Honor of Kateryna Handziuk (Apr. 24, 2019) (online at https://ua.usembassy.gov/ambassador-yovanovitchs-remarks-at-a-women-of-courage-reception-in-honor-of-kateryna-handziuk/).
5 U.S. Embassy in Ukraine, Department of State, Ambassador Yovanovitch’s Remarks at a Women of Courage Reception in Honor of Kateryna Handziuk (Apr. 24, 2019) (online at https://ua.usembassy.gov/ambassador-yovanovitchs-remarks-at-a-women-of-courage-reception-in-honor-of-kateryna-handziuk/).
6 Yovanovitch Hearing Tr. at 31.
7 Yovanovitch Hearing Tr. at 31-32.
8 Yovanovitch Hearing Tr. at 32.
9 Yovanovitch Hearing Tr. at 31.
10 Yovanovitch Hearing Tr. at 31-32.
11 Giuliani to Join Trump’s Legal Team, New York Times (April 19, 2018) (online at https://www.nytimes.com/2018/04/19/us/politics/giuliani-trump.html).
12 Letter from John M. Dowd, Counsel to Igor Fruman and Lev Parnas, to Committee Staff (Oct. 3, 2019).
13 Department of Justice, Lev Parnas and Igor Fruman Charged with Conspiring to Violate Straw and Foreign Donor Bans (Oct. 10, 2019) (online at www.justice.gov/usao-sdny/pr/lev-parnas-and-igor-fruman-charged-conspiring-violate-straw-and-foreign-donor-bans).
14 Hill Dep. Tr. at 59.
15 Yovanovitch Dep. Tr. at 28-29.
16 Ukraine Ousts Victor Shokin, Top Prosecutor, and Political Stability Hangs in the Balance, New York Times (Mar. 29, 2016) (online at www.nytimes.com/2016/03/30/world/europe/political-stability-in-the-balance-as-ukraine-ousts-top-prosecutor.html).
17 Kent Dep. Tr. at 45.
18 Yovanovitch Dep. Tr. at 27-28.
19 Yovanovitch Dep. Tr. at 31-32.
20 Yovanovitch Dep. Tr. at 21.
21 Yovanovitch Dep. Tr. at 32-33, 38 (“I think that he felt that I and the embassy were effective at helping Ukrainians who wanted reform, Ukrainians who wanted to fight against corruption, and he did not – you know, that was not in his interest.”).
22 Yovanovitch Dep. Tr. at 30.
23 Holmes Dep. Tr. at 14.
24 Kent-Taylor Hearing Tr. at 25.
25 Ke
nt-Taylor Hearing Tr. at 132.
26 Morrison-Volker Hearing Tr. at 27.
27 Nickolay Kapitonenko, an advisor to the Ukrainian Parliament’s Foreign Policy Committee, described Giuliani as a “mythical link to the U.S.” who is viewed as “an extension of Trump.” Giuliani Sits at the Center of the Ukraine Controversy, Wall Street Journal (Sep. 26, 2019) (online at www.wsj.com/articles/giuliani-sits-at-tihe-center-of-the-ukraine-controversy-11569546774); David Sakvarelidze, a former Ukrainian deputy prosecutor general, stated, “Lutsenko was trying to save his political skin by pretending to be Trumpist at the end of his career.” Meet the Ukrainian Ex-Prosecutor Behind the Impeachment Furor, New York Times (Oct. 5, 2019) (online at www.nytimes.com/2019/10/05/world/europe/ukraine-prosecutor-trump.html).
28 Yovanovitch Dep. Tr. at 30.
29 Donald J. Trump, Twitter (Jan. 17, 2019) (online at https://twitter.com/realdonaldtrump/status/1086096691613323265) (“Gregg Jarrett: ‘Mueller’s prosecutors knew the ‘Dossier’ was the product of bias and deception.’ It was a Fake, just like so much news coverage in our Country. Nothing but a Witch Hunt, from beginning to end!”)).
30 Office of the Director of National Intelligence, Background to “Assessing Russian Activities and Intentions in Recent US Elections”: The Analytic Process and Cyber Incident Attribution (Jan. 6, 2017) (online at www.dni.gov/files/documents/ICA_2017_01.pdf); Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, Russian Active Measures Campaigns and Interference in the 2016 U.S. Election (May 8, 2018) (online at www.intelligence.senate.gov/publications/report-select-committee-intelligence-united-states-senate-russian-active-measures); House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, Report on Russian Active Measures (Mar. 22, 2018) (online at https://docs.house.gov/meetings/IG/IG00/20180322/108023/HRPT-115-1_1-p1-U3.pdf); House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, Minority Views (Mar. 26, 2018) (online at https://intelligence.house.gov/uploadedfiles/20180411_-_final_-_hpsci_minority_views_on_majority_report.pdf).
31 President Trump’s Former National Security Advisor ‘Deeply Disturbed’ by Ukraine Scandal: ‘Whole World Is Watching,’ ABC News (Sept. 29, 2019) (online at https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/president-trumps-national-security-advisor-deeply-disturbed-ukraine/story?id=65925477).
32 Charges of Ukrainian Meddling? A Russian Operation, U.S. Intelligence Says, New York Times (Nov. 22, 2019) (online at https://www.nytimes.com/2019/11/22/us/politics/ukraine-russia-interference.html).
33 Hill-Holmes Hearing Tr. at 56-57.
34 Kent Dep. Tr. at 45.
35 Volker Transcribed Interview Tr. at 330.
36 Volker Transcribed Interview Tr. at 330; Explainer: Biden, Allies, Pushed Out Ukrainian Prosecutor Because He Didn’t Pursue Corruption Cases, USA Today (Oct. 3, 2019) (online at www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2019/10/03/what-really-happened-when-biden-forced-out-ukraines-top-prosecutor/3785620002/).
37 See, e.g., Ukraine Prosecutor Says No Evidence of Wrongdoing by Bidens, Bloomberg (May 16, 2019) (online at www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-05-16/ukraine-prosecutor-says-no-evidence-of-wrongdoing-by-bidens) (“Hunter Biden did not violate any Ukrainian laws – at least as of now, we do not see any wrongdoing. A company can pay however much it wants to its board…Biden was definitely not involved…We do not have any grounds to think that there was any wrongdoing starting from 2014.”).
38 Notes of Call with Viktor Shokin (Jan. 23, 2019); Ukraine Prosecutor Says No Evidence of Wrongdoing by Bidens, Bloomberg (May 16, 2019) (online at www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-05-16/ukraine-prosecutor-says-no-evidence-of-wrongdoing-by-bidens).
39 Giuliani Pursued Business in Ukraine While Pushing for Inquiries for Trump, New York Times (Nov. 27, 2019) (online at www.nytimes.com/2019/11/27/nyregion/giuliani-ukraine-business-trump.html); Ukraine Prosecutor Says No Evidence of Wrongdoing by Bidens, Bloomberg (May 16, 2019) (online at www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-05-16/ukraine-prosecutor-says-no-evidence-of-wrongdoing-by-bidens).
40 Notes of Meeting with Yuriy Lutsenko (Jan. 25, 2019); Ukraine Prosecutor Says No Evidence of Wrongdoing by Bidens, Bloomberg (May 16, 2019) (online at www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-05-16/ukraine-prosecutor-says-no-evidence-of-wrongdoing-by-bidens).
41 Giuliani Pursued Business in Ukraine While Pushing for Inquiries for Trump, New York Times (Nov. 27, 2019) (online at www.nytimes.com/2019/11/27/nyregion/giuliani-ukraine-business-trump.html).
42 Rudy Giuliani, Twitter (Oct. 23, 2019) (online at https://twitter.com/RudyGiuliani/status/1187168034835894272).
43 Rudy Giuliani, Twitter (Oct. 30, 2019) (online at https://twitter.com/RudyGiuliani/status/1189667101079932928).
44 Hill-Holmes Hearing Tr. at 19.
45 As Russia Collusion Fades, Ukrainian Plot to Help Clinton Emerges, The Hill (Mar. 20, 2019) (online at https://thehill.com/opinion/campaign/435029-as-russia-collusion-fades-ukrainian-plot-to-help-clinton-emerges).
46 Ukraine Prosecutor General Lutsenko Admits U.S. Ambassador Didn’t Give Him a Do Not Prosecute List, The Ukrainian (Apr. 18, 2019) (online at www.unian.info/politics/10520715-ukraine-prosecutor-general-lutsenko-admits-u-s-ambassador-didn-t-give-him-a-do-not-prosecute-list.html).
47 As Russia Collusion Fades, Ukrainian Plot to Help Clinton Emerges, The Hill (Mar. 20, 2019) (online at https://thehill.com/opinion/campaign/435029-as-russia-collusion-fades-ukrainian-plot-to-help-clinton-emerges).
48 Yovanovitch Dep. Tr. at 21, 37.
49 AT&T Document Production, Bates ATTHPSCI_20190930_00768, ATTHPSCI_20190930_00772, ATTHPSCI_20190930_00775.
50 As Russia Collusion Fades, Ukrainian Plot to Help Clinton Emerges, The Hill (Mar. 20, 2019) (online at https://thehill.com/opinion/campaign/435029-as-russia-collusion-fades-ukrainian-plot-to-help-clinton-emerges).
51 Department of Justice, Lev Parnas and Igor Fruman Charged with Conspiring to Violate Straw and Foreign Donor Bans (Oct. 10, 2019) (online at www.justice.gov/usao-sdny/pr/lev-parnas-and-igor-fruman-charged-conspiring-violate-straw-and-foreign-donor-bans) (alleging that in May and June 2018, Mr. Parnas sought the assistance of an unnamed congressman in causing the removal or recall of the then-U.S. ambassador to Ukraine).
52 AT&T Document Production, Bates ATTHPSCI_20190930_00775.
53 Donald J. Trump, Twitter (Mar. 20, 2019) (online at https://twitter.com/realdonaldtrump/status/1108559080204001280).
54 Rudy Giuliani, Twitter (Mar. 22, 2019) (online at https://twitter.com/RudyGiuliani/status/1109117167176466432); Giuliani Slams Mueller Leak, Fox News (April 7, 2019) (online at https://www.foxnews.com/transcript/giuliani-slams-mueller-leak).
55 Donald Trump, Jr., Twitter (Mar. 24, 2019) (online at https://twitter.com/donaldjtrumpjr/status/1109850575926108161).
56 Kent Dep. Tr. at 57-58.
57 Kent Dep. Tr. at 178.
58 Yovanovitch Dep. Tr. at 62.
59 Hale Dep. Tr. at 37-38.
60 Hale Dep. Tr. at 99-100.
61 Yovanovitch Dep. Tr. at 63-64.
62 Hale Dep. Tr. at 27.
63 Yovanovitch Dep. Tr. at 124.
64 Yovanovitch Dep. Tr. at 267-268.
65 Yovanovitch Dep. Tr. at 268.
66 Email from [Redacted] to S_All (Mar. 26, 2019) (online at www.americanoversight.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/AO_State_Ukraine_Docs_11-22.pdf); Email from Operations Center to [Redacted] (Mar. 29, 2019) (online at www.americanoversight.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/AO_State_Ukraine_Docs_11-22.pdf). (The same State Department records show that Secretary Pompeo was scheduled to have a secure call with Rep. Nunes on April 1, 2019.); Email from Operations Center to [Redacted] (Mar. 29, 2019) (online at www.americanoversight.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/AO_State_Ukraine_Docs_11-22.pdf).
67 Joe Biden’s 2020 Ukrainian Nightmare: A Closed Probe is Revived, The Hill (Apr. 1, 2019) (online at https://thehill.com/opinion/white-house/436816-joe-bidens-2020-ukrainian-nightmar
e-a-closed-probe-is-revived).
68 Donald Trump, Jr., Twitter (Apr. 2, 2019) (online at https://twitter.com/donaldjtrumpjr/status/1113046659456528385).
69 AT&T Document Production, Bates ATTHPSCI_20190930_00848-ATTHPSCI_20190930_00884. Mr. Parnas also had an aborted call that lasted 5 seconds on April 5, 2019 with an aide to Rep. Devin Nunes on the Intelligence Committee, Derek Harvey. AT&T Document Production, Bates ATTHPSCI_20190930_00876. Call records obtained by the Committees show that Mr. Parnas and Mr. Harvey had connected previously, including a four minute 42 second call on February 1, 2019, a one minute 7 second call on February 4, and a one minute 37 second call on February 7, 2019. AT&T Document Production, Bates ATTHPSCI_20190930_00617, ATTHPSCI_20190930_00630, ATTHPSCI_20190930_00641. As explained later in this Chapter, Rep. Nunes would connect separately by phone on April 10, 11, and 12 with Mr. Parnas and Mr. Giuliani. AT&T Document Production, Bates ATTHPSCI_20190930_00913-ATTHPSCI_20190930_00914; ATTHPSCI_20190930-02125.
70 Ukrainian to US Prosecutors: Why Don’t You Want Our Evidence on Democrats?, The Hill (Apr. 7, 2019) (online at https://thehill.com/opinion/white-house/437719-ukrainian-to-us-prosecutors-why-dont-you-want-our-evidence-on-democrats).
71 Ukrainian to US Prosecutors: Why Don’t You Want Our Evidence on Democrats?, The Hill (Apr. 7, 2019) (online at https://thehill.com/opinion/white-house/437719-ukrainian-to-us-prosecutors-why-dont-you-want-our-evidence-on-democrats).
72 Ukrainian to US Prosecutors: Why Don’t You Want Our Evidence on Democrats?, The Hill (Apr. 7, 2019) (online at https://thehill.com/opinion/white-house/437719-ukrainian-to-us-prosecutors-why-dont-you-want-our-evidence-on-democrats).
73 Ukrainian to US Prosecutors: Why Don’t You Want Our Evidence on Democrats?, The Hill (Apr. 7, 2019) (online at https://thehill.com/opinion/white-house/437719-ukrainian-to-us-prosecutors-why-dont-you-want-our-evidence-on-democrats).
74 Giuliani Slams Mueller Leak, Fox News (Apr. 7, 2019) (online at www.foxnews.com/transcript/giuliani-slams-mueller-leak).
The Impeachment Report Page 25