WASHINGTON, Nov 17, 2019 (BSS/AFP) – A top US official restricted access
to the summary of Donald Trump’s Ukraine call that triggered an impeachment
probe, fearing it would damage the president, testimony released Saturday
showed.
White House Ukraine expert Timothy Morrison told House investigators he
knew immediately how sensitive the call was when he heard Trump press
Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky to investigate former US vice
president Joe Biden.
“I recommended… that we restrict access to the package,” said Morrison,
who left the National Security Council the day before testifying.
The conversation, which took place on July 25 while the White House was
withholding military aid to Ukraine, is central to the House impeachment
inquiry into Trump.
Democrats leading the probe say the call summary shows the president abused
his office by bullying a vulnerable ally into interfering on his behalf in
the 2020 US election.
“The testimony released today shows that President Trump’s July 25 phone
call with Ukrainian President Zelensky immediately set off alarm bells
throughout the White House,” Adam Schiff, the congressman leading the
inquiry, said in a statement released jointly with other senior Democrats.
Morrison said however the summary had been placed on a highly classified
system due to a “mistake” by White House staff — casting doubt on
allegations that it was squirreled away as part of a deliberate cover-up.
He also broke with other witnesses who have spoken out against the call,
telling House investigators he heard nothing wrong.
“In your view there was nothing improper that occurred during the call?”
the Republican’s lead counsel asked Morrison.
“Correct,” he replied.
House investigators also released testimony from Jennifer Williams, Vice
President Mike Pence’s special advisor for Europe and Russia, who told
lawmakers Trump’s push for Ukraine to open investigations was “unusual and
inappropriate.”
Williams listened in on the July 25 call and said the requests appeared to
have been made to further Trump’s “personal political agenda” rather than US
foreign policy goals.