Thread by @jentaub

🇺🇸 🇺🇸 Here we go. Two flags for day two of the Trump Impeachment Hearings. Chair @AdamSchiff gaveled in at 9:06 am

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@AdamSchiff Today's witness is Former Ambassador to Ukraine Marie "Masha" Yovanovitch.

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@AdamSchiff Chair Schiff begins his opening statement. Starts in April 2019 in Kiev when Yovanovitch was told by a Senior State Department official to get on the next plane to Washington.

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@AdamSchiff Though he's been in foreign service for 33 years and had been asked to extend her tour, when she got to Washington she was told she had to leave her position because she no longer had the confidence of the President.

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@AdamSchiff Now Schiff is going through praise. Taylor, her successor said she was tough on corruption. Schiff said she was too tough on corruption for the corrupt people who did not want that scrutiny. She "pissed off corrupt Ukrainians" as well as Rudy Giuliani, Fruman, Parnas, Don Jr.

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@AdamSchiff They began a smear campaign against her. There was effort to get Secretary of State Pompeo to support her, but he would not. "Why did Rudy Guiliani want her gone? And why did Trump?"

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@AdamSchiff Now Schiff is focused on Rudy.

"We're not meddling in an election, we're meddling in an investigation" but he also told Chris Cuomo, "of course I did" when asked if he sought Ukraine to investigate Joe Biden.

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@AdamSchiff Schiff said on call with Zelensky on July 25, Trump praised a known former corrupt Ukrainian prosecutor.

But President disparaged (and threatened) her.

"She's going to go through some things" Trump said about Yovanovitch

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@AdamSchiff She was considered an obstacle. President shouldn't destroy others to advance his professional or personal interest.

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@AdamSchiff Now Nunes is speaking. Claims Dems are "trying to overthrow a President" based on second hand and third hand information. Wrong. Alexander Vindmin was on the call. Also, Trump released his own "transcript" and Sondland had convos with president

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@AdamSchiff Nunes is returning again to the "nude pictures of Trump." Please, I am eating breakfast

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@AdamSchiff Nunes is doing a very bad job defending @realDonaldTrump. I hope he is not watching.

Oh, and he should not be defending the President. Nunes took an oath to "support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic"

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@AdamSchiff @realDonaldTrump "These hearings should not be occurring at all" Nunes says again. He has his three questions which are not related to the questions here.

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@AdamSchiff @realDonaldTrump "The President of the United States released his 'transcript' right before the hearing began." Referring to an April 21 phone call. Nunes is reading it into the record

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@AdamSchiff @realDonaldTrump Here's a link to article about the rough transcript cnbc.com/2019/11/15/tru…

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@AdamSchiff @realDonaldTrump OMG. This is very stupid. The fact that there was a phone call with a bunch of niceties (including Trump talking about his Miss Universe pageant) only makes the July 25th phone call more damning.

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@AdamSchiff @realDonaldTrump "I would now ask the President to release the thousands of records that he has instructed the State Department not to release . . .We would ask the president to stop obstructing the impeachment inquiry. . . witnesses."

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@AdamSchiff @realDonaldTrump Schiff continued addressing @realDonaldTrump: "I hope you explain to the country today that why it was after this call that you instructed the Vice President not to attend Zelensky's inauguration."

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@AdamSchiff @realDonaldTrump Good for Schiff. He refuses to recognize both Jim Jordan and Elise Stefanik who are pretending to make points of order, but really just trying to get their opinions on the record and confuse things.

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@AdamSchiff @realDonaldTrump Schiff provides background on witness Yovanovitch and swears her in.

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@AdamSchiff @realDonaldTrump Ambassador Yovanovitch begins her opening statement. Served our country for 33 years. "The country all of us love." Job was to implement the foreign policy objectives of country as defined by President and Congress, regardless of party in power.

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@AdamSchiff @realDonaldTrump Her father fled the Soviets and her mother's family escape the USSR and then was in Nazi Germany before they came to US.

Empathy for the Ukrainian people "who want to be free."

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@AdamSchiff @realDonaldTrump First joined government under Ronald Reagan. She has served under three Rs and two Ds administration. She has moved 13 times as a diplomat. It is not a cushy job.

Incredible stories of being under gunfire at a US embassy in Uzbekistan

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@AdamSchiff @realDonaldTrump Went to frontline 10 times during the "hot war" in Ukraine. She was ambassador since 2016 through May 2019.

"I worked to advance US policy. . . to help Ukraine" become a democratic state with market economy integrated into Europe.

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@AdamSchiff @realDonaldTrump Praises US values which help us build alliances. Ukraine could be a political partner of US.

"We see potential in Ukraine. Russia, by contrast, sees the risk."

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@AdamSchiff @realDonaldTrump Ukrainians want to live "under the rule of law."

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@AdamSchiff @realDonaldTrump Corruption is a security issue as "corrupt officials are vulnerable to Moscow."

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@AdamSchiff @realDonaldTrump Our leadership depends on the power of our example and the consistency of our purpose."

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@AdamSchiff @realDonaldTrump Now Yovanovitch is setting out the events that transpired during her tenure in Ukraine.

"I did not tell [the former prosecutor] who they should or should not prosecute. . . I advocated the US position that rule of law should prevail." They should deal with all consistently

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@AdamSchiff @realDonaldTrump Said she never said that others in government should not follow the orders of President Trump "I did not and I would not say that"

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@AdamSchiff @realDonaldTrump Joe Biden never raised Burisma or Hunter Biden with her.

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@AdamSchiff @realDonaldTrump "I don't understand Mr. Guiliani's" reason for attacking her. But does know that the claims came from people who should not be trusted

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@AdamSchiff @realDonaldTrump In March of 2019 she was asked to extend her tour until 2020. But then the smear campaign begain. So, she negotiated a July departure. But then in May she was told to fly to DC on next plane.

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@AdamSchiff @realDonaldTrump Deputy Secretary Sullivan told her that Trump had been pushing to get rid of her since the previous summer. She asked why. Sullivan affirmed in his hearing that "I served capably and admirably."

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@AdamSchiff @realDonaldTrump Upset that private and foreign interests were used here and back channels to smear a US ambassador. State Department knew the allegations were false and the sources suspect

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@AdamSchiff @realDonaldTrump "Our Ukraine policy has been thrown into disarray and shading interests world over" now know how to remove a US ambassador if she does not give them want they want.

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@AdamSchiff @realDonaldTrump Very, very powerful testimony.

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@AdamSchiff @realDonaldTrump Calls attack on her and others "dangerously wrong" and condemns the leadership (I think she means Pompeo) for not standing up against these attacks.

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@AdamSchiff @realDonaldTrump Yovanovitch closes. "We make a difference every day. We are people who repeatedly uproot our lives" and sometimes give our lives. She reminds us that the hostages in Iran (444 days during Carter administration) were diplomats. Also references those who died in Benghazi.

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@AdamSchiff @realDonaldTrump "What Americans need to know . . ever foreign service officer" serves and takes risks "we answer the call to duty to advance and protect the interests of the United States.

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@AdamSchiff @realDonaldTrump Wow. She adds that she took the same oath that Congress did when joining the foreign service.

"Iwill support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same."

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@AdamSchiff @realDonaldTrump Now it's Chair Schiff's turn to ask questions of the former ambassador.

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@AdamSchiff @realDonaldTrump Schiff: "Did you earn the reputation of being an anti-corruption expert in Ukraine"?

Yovanovitch: "Yes"

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@AdamSchiff @realDonaldTrump Schiff asked her whether she angered corrupt former Ukrainian prosecutor Lutsenko.

She said yes.

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@AdamSchiff @realDonaldTrump She agreed that Rudy G. was working with Lutsenko on the smear campaign. Also Don Jr. participated in smear

Also Pompeo et al would not issue a supporting statement because they believed it would be undercut by President Trump

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@AdamSchiff @realDonaldTrump She was pushed to fly home right before the Zelensky inauguration. Instead the "three amigos" went. Rick Perry, Gordon Sondland, and Kurt Volker

For reference see thedailybeast.com/george-kent-re…

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@AdamSchiff @realDonaldTrump Now Dan Goldman is asking questions. Three days after Zelensky's election, she received an urgent call.

"What were you in the middle of doing?"

She was hosting an event for an anti-corruption activist in Ukraine who received "Woman of Courage" award.

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@AdamSchiff @realDonaldTrump This hero Kateryna Handzyuk was attacked with acid and died a painful death, so they gave her father the award in her name.

More on her here

theguardian.com/world/2018/nov…

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@AdamSchiff @realDonaldTrump On the phone her colleague in Washington gave her a head's up about President not supporting her

"What is the next step here?"

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@AdamSchiff @realDonaldTrump Colleague then called at 1 in the morning and said the Ambassador needed to get on the next plane to the US because there were concerns about her security (not physical). Concerns "up the street." (White House)

Yovanovitch argued, but still got on the plane

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@AdamSchiff @realDonaldTrump No reason was offered as to why she should come back or the urgency beyond there "concerns about your security."

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@AdamSchiff @realDonaldTrump In DC deputy Sec of State said she'd done nothing wrong but that there was a "concerted campaign against you."

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@AdamSchiff @realDonaldTrump The campaign included Rudy G., Lutsenko (who was then the lead prosecutor general), and previous corrupt prosecutor

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@AdamSchiff @realDonaldTrump It was a "terrible thing to hear" when she was told "the President has lost confidence in you." But she was provided no reason, and the State Department still had confidence in her.

Pompeo tried to protect her. But she did not know at that time

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@AdamSchiff @realDonaldTrump Ambassador Yovanovitch: "After 33 years of service to our country, that was not the way I wanted my career to end"

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@AdamSchiff @realDonaldTrump She made this point to the Deputy Secretary that this incident undermines US interests generally. If people realize they "can just remove us, they are going to do that,"

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@AdamSchiff @realDonaldTrump Ambassador Yovanovitch's testimony and this Q&A is absolutely chilling

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@AdamSchiff @realDonaldTrump Until she read the call record, she did not know Trump had mentioned her in the July 25th call.

Her reaction was "I was shocked and devastated." Described it as "a terrible moment." A friend who watched her read it said, "the color drained from my face."

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@AdamSchiff @realDonaldTrump Goldman kindly said he does not want to upset her, but was going to show her the language in the call record in which @realDonaldTrump referred to her as "bad news."

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@AdamSchiff @realDonaldTrump Marie Yovanovitch the language "she's going to go through some things" sounded like a threat and she felt threatened.

"It felt like a vague threat so I wondered what that meant."

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@AdamSchiff @realDonaldTrump Also in call Trump praised Lutsenko the corrupt prosecutor and praised him falsely calling him a "very good and very fair prosecutor."

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@AdamSchiff @realDonaldTrump Who was working with Rudy as his associates in Ukraine. Was Lutsenko and Shokin. Plus Americans Igor Fruman and Lev Parnas

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@AdamSchiff @realDonaldTrump Now Goldman is displaying and reading from two Trump tweets. The first from Trump the second from Don Jr. Here's one of them

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@AdamSchiff @realDonaldTrump False allegations were later recanted. She never had a do-not-prosecute list. Articles by John Solomon

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@AdamSchiff @realDonaldTrump The State Department came out in days with a statement saying the allegations were false.

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@AdamSchiff @realDonaldTrump Here's the other Tweet that Goldman mentioned

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@AdamSchiff @realDonaldTrump Statement of support from Pompeo or the department was never issued because "there was a concern on some floor" that "it could be undermined" by the President "issuing a tweet to the contrary."

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@AdamSchiff @realDonaldTrump Goldman is astonished that out of concern about a tweet from the president, the State Department would not issue a statement in support against false allegations about one of our most senior, respected diplomats

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@AdamSchiff @realDonaldTrump Now Adam Schiff jumped in mentioning to the Ambassador that right now, the president is tweeting that "everywhere" she went "went bad."

Her response, "I don't think I have that power." She said she believes she and her colleagues made things better

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@AdamSchiff @realDonaldTrump Not to get too meta, but here is the tweet attacking her from minutes ago that Schiff mentioned

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@AdamSchiff @realDonaldTrump She said the effect of this "is to be intimidating."

Schiff said, "some of us here take witness intimidation very seriously."

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@AdamSchiff @realDonaldTrump Goldman is back with his questions and about to wrap up.

"I would like you to do us a favor though. . .they say Crowdstrike. . the server, they say Ukraine has it"

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@AdamSchiff @realDonaldTrump Goldman asks Yovanovitch, "how would you expect President Zelensky to interpret a request for a favor."

Given that the US was the most important relationship

"They would try to lean in and see what they could do."

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@AdamSchiff @realDonaldTrump "We are an important relationship on the security side and on the political side."

Central goal of President of Ukraine to make sure he has a "rock solid" relationship with US.

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@AdamSchiff @realDonaldTrump Goldman displays and reads from Feb. 2, 2017 press conference, in which Putin claims Ukraine interfered in 2016 election.

Yovanovitch: "Classic for an intelligence officer [Putin] to throw off the scent and create an alternative narrative"

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@AdamSchiff @realDonaldTrump Both Putin from that call and the Trump 2019 call reference a "wealthy Ukrianian.

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@AdamSchiff @realDonaldTrump Goldman asks are you aware if Biden went around bragging that he stopped the prosecution of anyone?

Ambassador: No

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@AdamSchiff @realDonaldTrump At time of July 25th call Biden was the frontrunner.

Goldman: Was having Biden investigated part of official US policy?

Yovanovitch: "It would not have been the policy in May"

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@AdamSchiff @realDonaldTrump President in call endorsed the false allegations against her and the Bidens. Echoes the Hill article (from March)

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@AdamSchiff @realDonaldTrump Brief recess called at 10:37 am.

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