EU Ambassador Gordon Sondland walked back on his earlier testimony and told the House of Representatives that there was, in fact, a quid pro quo involved in the Trump call with Ukraine. According to the Wall Street Journal, Sondland originally told a House Committee that there was no quid pro quo. He changed his testimony after Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman, who heard the call directly, said there was.
"Nothing was ever raised to me about any concerns regarding our Ukraine policy," Sondland stated under oath but was recently contradicted by Vindman in ongoing testimony.
Sondland may have committed perjury
Democratic Rep. Joaquin Castro posted on Twitter that he believes Amb. Sondland committed perjury during his hearing with the House Intelligence Committee.
Based on all the testimony so far, I believe that Ambassador Gordon Sondland committed perjury. https://t.co/lOGRj8s1yP
— Joaquin Castro (@JoaquinCastrotx) October 29, 2019During his testimony, Sondland told investigators that he consulted directly with President Donald Trump before sending out a text to the Ukraine Ambassador saying there was no quid pro quo. Sondland was seen on Capitol Hill with reports saying he was there to go over his previous testimony.
Sondland, a major donor to the Trump campaign, was already being watched by Democrats due to his inexperience with international diplomacy and that he had no prior experience in politics in general.
Vindman calls Ukraine call concerning
Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman, an active Army member called the Trump/Ukraine call concerning and raised the call with a lawyer, according to the Associated Press. Vindman reported the concerns to the NSC's lead counsel. Some Republican lawmakers questioned Vidman's loyalty to the United States due to him being born in Eastern Europe.
Republican Rep. Liz Cheney pushed backed on some Republicans, saying it was "shameful" to question his loyalty to the US.
Vindman's testimony marks a drastic move in the impeachment inquiry since Vindman was one of the members who listened in on call. There were some concerns Vindman would not show up to testify so House Democrats subpoenaed him a few hours before the testimony was to take place.
President Donald Trump on Twitter raged about the testimony, calling the inquiry a "hoax" and a "disgrace." Other GOP members joined in calling for an end to the inquiry after Speaker Nancy Pelosi called for a vote on Thursday to authorize further moves in the inquiry. Rep. Matt Gaetz of Florida called the inquiry "devoid of rules."
Speaker Pelosi's announcement today acknowledges Adam Schiff’s free-wheeling impeachment inquiry is devoid of rules and lacks legitimacy. Schiff’s anarchic impeachment sham has devolved into mayhem and is entirely antithetical to constitutional principles.
— Rep. Matt Gaetz (@RepMattGaetz) October 28, 2019Vindman's testimony is sure to bring even more legitimacy to the inquiry as he one of the most high profile members to testify following former Ukraine Ambassador Marie Yovanovitch, who was fired by Trump because she didn't agree with what he wanted to do when it came to funding Ukraine defenses.
