They were not going to issue that statement that Rudy Giuliani wanted to include burisma and the 2016 elections there was no white house meeting. It soon became clear to them that the Security Assistance was also at risk and that took on a renewed importance for them. Well, following the 25th call, the July 25th Call, ambassador sondland and volker worked closely with mr. Giuliani and the ukrainians to help draft a statement that the president could make, president zelensky. Wasnt that right . Yes. And the report say they were closely and then also there were phone calls with the white house around the same time they were working closely do you know what that statement was supposed to say, according to mr. Giuliani and the u. S. Officials. The key difference is that it had to include that ukraine would do the investigations of burisma which equaled the Biden Investigation and the 2016
ukraine interference. Was there concern about doing the investigations or what . Just make a statement
other inner agencies certified that ukrainian was making the necessary progress on anti-corruption efforts to merit the aid. and yet the aid was not released, correct. the aid was subsequently held. it was supposed to be released. d.o.d. announced the release and then president trump held the aid without explanation. mr. goldman, based on the evidence and testimony that you have reviewed, is there any reason to believe that the president cared about corruption in ukraine? no. the evidence really supports the fact that president trump views corruption in ukraine to be synonymous with the two investigations that he wants. what the president did care about was a political favor from the ukrainian government and that is why he withheld the military aid, true? he told ambassador sondland himself that that is the only thing that he care cares
now the sum total of the democrats case comes down to this. not one of the hand-picked witnesses provided any firsthand knowledge of the president ordering a quid pro quo and two witnesses, sondland by testimony and senator johnson by letter, provided firsthand testimony that the president specifically ordered no quid pro quo. no testimony was provided that the ukrainian government believed there was in quid pro quo. but there are ample public statements that its officials did not believe there was such a linkage. the testimony of the witnesses crumbling under questions and we were left with career bureaucrats the only evidence was presumption and speculation and what they read in the new york times. it is upon this flimsy evidence that the democrats justify nullifying the 2016 presidential election. and it is so flimsy the democrats have turned our bill of rights on its head in order to make it.
here has repeated those questions during these hearings. we know what the president did. and we know when he knew it. mr. goldman, who sent rudy giuliani to ukraine to smear joe biden? president trump. who fired the anti-corruption ambassador in ukraine, marie yovanovitch? president trump. who hold ambassador sondland and ambassador volker to work with rudy giuliani on ukraine? president trump. who told vice president pence to not go to president zelensky saez inauguration? president trump. who ordered his own chief of staff mick mulvaney to withhold critical military assistance for ukraine? president trump. who refused to meet with president zelensky in the oval office? president trump. who ignored on july 25 his own national security council anti-corruption talking points? president trump. who asked president zelensky
about. now witnesses testified about the real motivation connected with the withheld military aid including ambassador bill taylor. here is what he said in his testimony. to withhold that assistance for in good reason other than help with the political campaign made no sense. it was it was counter productive to all of what we had been trying to do. it was illogical, it could not be explained. it was crazy. illogical, unexplainable, crazy. mr. goldman, according to the testimony from ambassador taylor, the only explanation for the withheld aid that made sense was the president was seeking help with a political campaign, correct? that is the only logical explanation as multiple witnesses said. ambassador sondland is a trump appointee who gave a million dollars to the president s inauguration. and he testified that he came to believe that the resumption of security aid would not occur