Former Trump ambassador sues Pompeo, U.S. government for legal fees

[May 25, 2021]  By Susan Heavey and Karen Freifeld

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Gordon Sondland, the former U.S. ambassador who testified against President Donald Trump during his first impeachment, sued former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and the federal government on Monday seeking $1.8 million in legal fees.

Sondland, in a lawsuit filed in federal court in Washington, accused Pompeo of not covering his legal expenses as promised after the ambassador told lawmakers about Trump's interactions with Ukraine in 2019, ahead of the 2020 U.S. presidential election.

Sondland, who had served as the American ambassador to the European Union, in the lawsuit said he was fired on Feb. 7, 2020, after appearing before a House panel on Oct. 17 and Nov. 20, 2019, for "simply for telling the truth."

"For all his troubles, Ambassador Sondland learned that testifying truthfully and candidly before Congress as cameras roll was in fact a fireable offense in Pompeo's Department of State," the lawsuit said.

The Democratic-led U.S. House of Representatives impeached the Republican former president in December 2019 on charges of abuse of power and obstruction of Congress arising from Trump's request that year that Ukraine investigate Democratic political rival Joe Biden and Biden's son Hunter. The Senate, led by Trump's fellow Republicans, voted to acquit Trump in February 2020. Biden defeated Trump in last year's election.

During the impeachment investigation, Sondland told Congress "everyone was in the loop" regarding Trump administration efforts to pressure Ukraine.

"Was there a quid pro quo? ... Yes," Sondland told lawmakers, using a Latin term meaning a favor for a favor.

Pompeo later said he never saw Sondland's testimony in advance.

A spokesperson for Pompeo called the lawsuit "ludicrous."

U.S. Ambassador to the European Union Gordon Sondland testifies before a House Intelligence Committee hearing as part of the impeachment inquiry into U.S. President Donald Trump on Capitol Hill in Washington, U.S., November 20, 2019. REUTERS/Loren Elliott

"Mr. Pompeo is confident the court will see it the same way," the spokesperson said in an emailed comment.

Sondland, a Seattle-based businessman who had donated $1 million to Trump's inauguration committee, was appointed by the former president as the ambassador to the EU. Trump later distanced himself from Sondland.

In the lawsuit, Sondland said he was told in 2019 that government lawyers would not be provided for him but that Pompeo "assured" him that "the State Department would reimburse him for all of his legal costs" when House lawmakers initially sought his testimony.

"After Pompeo learned what Ambassador Sondland's testimony was before Congress during the 2019 Impeachment Inquiry - words that were entirely candid and truthful (but uncomfortable to the Trump Administration) - Pompeo reneged on his promise" in a "willful breach of the October 2019 agreement" to pay his costs, the lawsuit added.

The U.S. Justice Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the lawsuit.

(Reporting by Karen Freifeld in New York and Humeyra Pamuk and Sarah Lynch in Washington; Writing by Susan Heavey; Editing by Marguerita Choy and Will Dunham)

[© 2021 Thomson Reuters. All rights reserved.]

Copyright 2021 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.  Thompson Reuters is solely responsible for this content.