5 things we learned from George Kent and Amb. Bill Taylor's impeachment testimony.
At the center of the inquiry is the assertion by House Democrats that the Trump administration engaged in a quid pro quo with Ukraine when it conditioned U.S. military aid, as well as a White House meeting between Trump and Zelenskiy, on the Ukrainian government launching investigations into Burisma Holdings — the Ukrainian gas company that Hunter Biden joined as a board member in 2014.
Republicans, including the president, have denied that the White House engaged in a quid pro quo with Ukraine, with many saying that such a thing was impossible for reasons that include Ukraine not being aware that there had been a hold placed on the military aid. Taylor testified Wednesday that, despite being told several times by Sondland that Trump was confident there was"no quid pro quo," Taylor strongly felt that wasn’t the case — and pointed to Sondland's use of the word"stalemate."
"Ambassador Sondland also said that he had talked to President Zelenskiy and Mr. Yermak [an aide] and had told them that, although this was not a quid pro quo, if President Zelenskiy did not 'clear things up' in public, we would be at a 'stalemate,'" Taylor testified."I understood a 'stalemate' to mean that Ukraine would not receive the much-needed military assistance."contributed.
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