The closed-door testimony by acting U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine Bill Taylor elicited “sighs and gasps” from lawmakers and staff during Tuesday’s House impeachment investigation, Politico reports. Taylor’s testimony is being described as “incredibly damaging” to President Donald Trump, Democratic Congressman Ted Lieu says.
Ambassador Taylor told House impeachment investigators “of intense efforts by Trump administration officials to secure politically-motivated investigations of Trump’s political rivals in exchange for a White House meeting with Ukraine’s president and critical military aid, according to sources in the room for the testimony.”
Ambassador Taylor “prompted sighs and gasps when he read a lengthy 15-page opening statement, two of the sources said. Another person in the room said Taylor’s statement described ‘how pervasive the efforts were’ among Trump’s allies to convince Ukrainian officials to launch an investigation targeting former Vice President Joe Biden and another probe centering on a debunked conspiracy theory regarding the 2016 election.”
Secretary Mike Pompeo’s State Dept. attempted to block Taylor from testifying, prompting yet another subpoena from House Democrats.