This month saw the first public testimonies from officials involved in the controversy over President Trump’s phone call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky earlier this year, with House Democrats hoping to implicate President Trump in an alleged attempt to pressure the Ukrainian government to investigate Hunter Biden, Joe Biden’s son, in exchange for foreign aid. The alleged request by Trump was to look into Biden’s involvement in a Ukrainian oil company during his father’s vice presidency and the dismissal of a prosecutor supposedly investigating the company. While Hunter Biden had no previous experience in oil and gas, no wrongdoing by Biden has yet been uncovered, and the dismissal of the prosecutor has been linked to the prosecutor’s own previous corruption.
Trump has denied any wrongdoing in making the call, dismissing claims of a quid pro quo in which American aid would only be released if the investigation into Biden’s conduct began. While the foreign aid did go through, it may have only gone through after a complaint was filed by a whistleblower documenting concerns with Trump’s request. It does not prove, however, that the aid would not have been delivered otherwise.
Most witnesses, including former acting Ukrainian Ambassador Bill Taylor, have said that they received the impression that a quid pro quo existed, though they based that on information from second-hand sources, not from the president himself. US Ambassador to the EU, Gordon Sondland, said that members of the Trump cabinet knew about the request, including Vice President Mike Pence and acting Chief of Staff Mick Mulvaney.
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