|
The
House of Representatives Democrats running the inquiry want to
hear first-hand from the mustachioed foreign-policy hawk who,
according to the testimony of other officials, was alarmed by a
White House effort to pressure the president of Ukraine to
investigate Trump's political rivals.
"Obviously he has very relevant information and we want him to
testify," House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff, one
of the Democrats leading the effort, told ABC's "This Week" on
Sunday, referring to Bolton.
That may not be easy. White House officials have tried, with
some success, to block current and former government officials
from testifying in the inquiry. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo,
acting White House Chief of Staff Mick Mulvaney and Trump's
personal lawyer, Rudy Giuliani, are among those who have defied
House subpoenas for documents, although other witnesses have
appeared before the committee despite orders from the
administration to steer clear.
The White House says the probe is illegitimate because the House
did not hold a formal vote in order to start it. A federal court
said on Friday that no vote was needed.
Congressional sources told Reuters last week that they may call
Bolton to testify in public hearings that are expected to start
in the coming weeks. On Sunday, Schiff said he anticipated the
White House would try to bar the former aide from appearing, but
did not say whether he would he planned to call Bolton to
testify in public or behind closed doors.
Bolton, who was fired by Trump in September after the pair
clashed over how to handle foreign policy challenges, has not
commented publicly on the impeachment effort.
ROADBLOCKS
Amid the legal roadblocks thrown up by the White House, Monday's
scheduled witness, former deputy national security adviser
Charles Kupperman, could fail to show up. Kupperman's lawyer
says lawmakers should wait for a court to rule whether he should
comply with a congressional subpoena or honor the Trump
administration's order not to testify.
The Democratic-led House committees are focusing on Trump's July
request to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy that he
investigate former U.S. Vice President Joe Biden, a leading 2020
Democratic presidential candidate, and his son Hunter Biden, who
had served on the board of a Ukrainian gas company.
U.S. law prohibits candidates from accepting foreign help in an
election.
Acting U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine William Taylor testified last
week that Trump withheld $391 million in security assistance to
Ukraine in an effort to get Zelenskiy to publicly commit to
investigate both the Bidens and a debunked conspiracy theory
that Ukraine - not Russia - meddled in the U.S. 2016
presidential election.
Lawmakers also hope to hear from Alexander Vindman, the White
House National Security Council's top Ukraine expert, on
Tuesday. On Wednesday, they have lined up Kathryn Wheelbarger,
the acting assistant secretary of defense for international
security, and two State Department Ukraine specialists -
Catherine Croft and Christopher Anderson.
Tim Morrison, a top White House adviser on Russia and Europe, is
scheduled for Thursday.
(Reporting by Andy Sullivan; Additional reporting by Lawrence
Hurley and Patricia Zengerle; Editing by Michelle Price and
Peter Cooney)
[© 2019 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.] Copyright 2019 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Thompson Reuters is solely responsible for this content.
|
|
