{"id":8206,"date":"2019-09-25T23:58:44","date_gmt":"2019-09-26T06:58:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/worldcampaign.net\/?p=8206"},"modified":"2019-09-26T04:17:45","modified_gmt":"2019-09-26T11:17:45","slug":"post4-39","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/worldcampaign.net\/?p=8206","title":{"rendered":"&#8220;Trump Pressed Ukraine\u2019s President to Investigate Democrats as \u2018a Favor\u2019&#8221;, The New York Times"},"content":{"rendered":"<header class=\"css-6y0tqz e12qa4dv1\">\n<div class=\"css-xt80pu e12qa4dv0\">\n<div class=\"css-acwcvw epjyd6m0\">\n<div class=\"css-vp77d3 epjyd6m2\">\n<div class=\"css-1baulvz\">\n<p class=\"css-1nuro5j e1jsehar1\">By <span class=\"css-1baulvz last-byline\">Peter Baker,\u00a0<\/span>Sept. 25, 2019<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-1nuro5j e1jsehar1\">President Trump repeatedly pressured Ukraine\u2019s leader to investigate leading Democrats as \u201ca favor\u201d to him during a telephone call last summer in which the two discussed the former Soviet republic\u2019s need for more American financial aid to counter Russian aggression.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/header>\n<section class=\"meteredContent css-1i2y565\">\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-exrw3m evys1bk0\">In <a class=\"css-1g7m0tk\" title=\"\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/interactive\/2019\/09\/25\/us\/politics\/trump-ukraine-transcript.html?module=inline\">a reconstruction of the call<\/a> released Wednesday by the White House, Mr. Trump urged President <a class=\"css-1g7m0tk\" title=\"\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2019\/09\/25\/world\/europe\/ukraine-trump-whistleblower-zelensky.html?module=inline\">Volodymyr Zelensky<\/a> to work with Attorney General William P. Barr and Rudolph W. Giuliani, the president\u2019s personal lawyer, on corruption investigations connected to former Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr. and other Democrats.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-exrw3m evys1bk0\">Although there was no explicit quid pro quo in the conversation, Mr. Trump raised the matter immediately after Mr. Zelensky spoke of his country\u2019s need for more help from the United States. The call came only days after Mr. Trump blocked $391 million in aid to Ukraine, a decision that perplexed national security officials at the time and that he has given conflicting explanations for in recent days.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-exrw3m evys1bk0\">The aid freeze did not come up during the call, and Mr. Zelensky was not yet aware of it. Instead, he thanked Mr. Trump for previous American aid, including Javelin anti-tank weapons, and suggested he would need more as part of Ukraine\u2019s five-year-old war with Russian-backed separatists in the country\u2019s east.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-exrw3m evys1bk0\">\u201cI would like you to do us a favor, though,\u201d Mr. Trump responded, shifting to his interest in investigating Democrats and urging that he work with Mr. Barr and Mr. Giuliani.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-o6xoe7\">\n<div class=\"css-ke163a\" data-testid=\"article-companion-wrapper\">\n<div id=\"newsletter-module\" class=\"css-48vsi0\">\n<div class=\"css-1k9ek97\">\n<div class=\"css-tjpxhb\">\n<div class=\"css-sefkcv\">\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-exrw3m evys1bk0\">\u201cWhatever you can do, it\u2019s very important that you do it if that\u2019s possible,\u201d Mr. Trump said.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-exrw3m evys1bk0\">The July 25 call has become a major flash point in what is rapidly shaping up as a divisive battle between the president and House Democrats over impeachment that will consume Washington for weeks or months. The conflicting interpretations of the call\u2019s meaning began to define the contours of a debate that would seek to determine whether the president committed high crimes and misdemeanors.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-exrw3m evys1bk0\">In a series of public appearances on Wednesday that veered from bristling with anger to uncharacteristically subdued, Mr. Trump insisted that he did nothing wrong and was once again the victim of \u201ca total hoax.\u201d Mr. Zelensky, who by an odd coincidence was in New York for a previously scheduled meeting with Mr. Trump, backed him up by saying during a session with reporters that he did not feel pushed by the president.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-exrw3m evys1bk0\">\u201cIt\u2019s a joke,\u201d Mr. Trump said. \u201cImpeachment for that?\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-exrw3m evys1bk0\">But House Democrats denounced Mr. Trump for seeking foreign help to tear down Mr. Biden, a leading rival for his job, and said the quid pro quo was implied and clear, comparing him with a mob boss who makes veiled hints to extort money from his victims.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-exrw3m evys1bk0\">\u201cThe president has tried to make lawlessness a virtue in America and now is exporting it abroad,\u201d Speaker Nancy Pelosi said.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-exrw3m evys1bk0\">The White House released the reconstructed transcript of the call in the morning in hopes of undercutting suspicions about the president\u2019s actions, but it failed to convince Democrats. By the end of the day, the administration similarly sent Congress the original complaint filed by an unidentified intelligence official that triggered the furor that in just a matter of days has put the future of Mr. Trump\u2019s presidency at risk.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-exrw3m evys1bk0\">The complaint reportedly calls into question a range of actions by the president beyond just the phone conversation. Democrats and at least one Republican who reviewed it on Wednesday said it contained disturbing allegations, and, while still classified, it will be the central issue on Thursday morning when Joseph Maguire, the acting director of national intelligence, testifies before Congress.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-exrw3m evys1bk0\">The administration dropped its resistance to providing the complaint to lawmakers in the face of a vote planned by House Democratic leaders condemning its handling of the matter. By backing down, Mr. Trump made it possible for Republicans to go along with the resolution, which all but two did later in the day.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-exrw3m evys1bk0\">For Mr. Trump, keeping Republicans in his corner is more important than winning over Democrats, most of whom White House aides consider unmovable at this point. As of Wednesday, 218 House members have publicly advocated impeachment or at least an inquiry, reaching a majority for the first time after more than 70 declared their support since Monday.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-exrw3m evys1bk0\">Ms. Pelosi does not seem ready to test her members\u2019 resolve, though, planning to move forward with an inquiry without a vote on the floor to authorize it, as was done in the past two presidential impeachments. And even if the House did ultimately impeach Mr. Trump, it would require a two-thirds vote by the Senate to convict and remove him from office, meaning at least 20 Republican senators would have to decide he was guilty.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-exrw3m evys1bk0\">Few Republicans broke with Mr. Trump on Wednesday. Senator Mitt Romney of Utah called the record of Mr. Trump\u2019s phone call \u201cdeeply troubling,\u201d but most others who spoke publicly said it revealed no impeachable action.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-o6xoe7\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"story-ad-3-wrapper\" class=\"css-1r07izm\">\n<div id=\"story-ad-3-slug\" class=\"css-l9onyx\">\n<p>\u201cFrom a quid pro quo aspect, there\u2019s nothing there,\u201d said Senator Lindsey Graham, Republican of South Carolina, a Trump ally who served as a House prosecutor during the impeachment trial of President Bill Clinton in 1999.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-exrw3m evys1bk0\">Democrats said no direct quid pro quo was necessary to conclude that the president overstepped his bounds. But even if it was, they said Mr. Trump\u2019s meaning was hard to miss and the timing of the request to Ukraine coming just after he put the aid on hold was damning.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-exrw3m evys1bk0\">\u201cThere was only one message that that president of Ukraine got from that call and that was: \u2018This is what I need, I know what you need,\u2019\u201d said Representative Adam B. Schiff, Democrat of California and the chairman of the House Intelligence Committee. \u201cLike any mafia boss, the president didn\u2019t need to say, \u2018That\u2019s a nice country you have \u2014 it would be a shame if something happened to it.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-exrw3m evys1bk0\">Mr. Biden said that the House should \u201chold Donald Trump to account for his abuse of power,\u201d although he did not directly call for impeachment.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-exrw3m evys1bk0\">\u201cIt is a tragedy for this country that our president put personal politics above his sacred oath,\u201d Mr. Biden said. \u201cHe has put his own political interests over our national security interest, which is bolstering Ukraine against Russian pressure.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-exrw3m evys1bk0\">For Mr. Trump, the sudden turn of events has recast the remaining year of his term before next year\u2019s election, seemingly all but dooming chances for bipartisan legislation. He castigated Democrats for focusing on this \u201cnonsense\u201d instead of gun control or trade.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-exrw3m evys1bk0\">And he expressed surprise that impeachment was now back on the table after the threat seemed to fade following the report on Russian election interference by the special counsel, Robert S. Mueller III. \u201cI thought we won,\u201d the president said. \u201cI thought it was dead \u2014 it was dead.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-o6xoe7\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"story-ad-4-wrapper\" class=\"css-1r07izm\">\n<div id=\"story-ad-4-slug\" class=\"css-l9onyx\">\n<p>He blamed Ms. Pelosi, who until this week had been reluctant to pursue impeachment, which so far does not have the support of most Americans in polls. \u201cShe\u2019s lost her way,\u201d Mr. Trump said. \u201cShe\u2019s been taken over by the radical left.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-exrw3m evys1bk0\">He also tried to turn the tables on Democrats, arguing that Mr. Biden was the one who was really corrupt and even citing a letter written by three Democratic senators last year to Ukraine\u2019s prosecutor urging cooperation with Mr. Mueller. That letter, however, was written out of what the senators said was concern that Ukraine would be intimidated from cooperating by Mr. Trump\u2019s wrath.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-exrw3m evys1bk0\">The call between Mr. Trump and Mr. Zelensky took place just a day after Mr. Mueller testified before Congress, and the issue was clearly still on Mr. Trump\u2019s mind. Mr. Mueller reported that he did not find sufficient evidence to prove a criminal conspiracy between Mr. Trump\u2019s campaign and Russia, although he identified actions by Mr. Trump that could be construed as obstruction of justice.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-exrw3m evys1bk0\">Feeling that he had survived the special counsel inquiry, Mr. Trump apparently wanted to turn the tables and prove that it was illegitimate to begin with. In his discussion with Mr. Zelensky, he pressed the Ukrainian leader to use Mr. Barr\u2019s help to investigate a company involved in the beginnings of the Russia inquiry.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-exrw3m evys1bk0\">Mr. Trump also pressed Mr. Zelensky to open an investigation of Mr. Biden and his younger son, Hunter Biden, who sat on the board of a Ukrainian energy company, asserting that the former vice president forced the dismissal of a Ukrainian prosecutor to benefit the company\u2019s owner. Neither claim has been borne out by evidence, but both held the potential to benefit the president politically.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-exrw3m evys1bk0\">Mr. Zelensky told Mr. Trump that he would have the country\u2019s new top prosecutor examine the matters he raised.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-o6xoe7\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"story-ad-5-wrapper\" class=\"css-1r07izm\">\n<div id=\"story-ad-5-slug\" class=\"css-l9onyx\">\n<p>\u201cThe next prosecutor general will be 100 percent my person, my candidate,\u201d Mr. Zelensky assured the president. \u201cHe or she will look into the situation.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-exrw3m evys1bk0\">Mr. Trump did not directly condition any aid or support on Ukraine following through, but he did start the call noting how generous he believed he had been. \u201cThe United States has been very, very good to Ukraine,\u201d he said. \u201cI wouldn\u2019t say that it\u2019s reciprocal necessarily.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-exrw3m evys1bk0\">Sitting side by side with Mr. Trump in their first face-to-face meeting on Wednesday, Mr. Zelensky told reporters that he wanted to stay out of United States politics but provided a benign interpretation of the call.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-exrw3m evys1bk0\">\u201cWe had, I think, a good phone call,\u201d Mr. Zelensky said. \u201cIt was normal; we spoke about many things. So, I think, and you read it, that nobody pushed \u2014 pushed me.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-exrw3m evys1bk0\">\u201cIn other words, no pressure,\u201d Mr. Trump chimed in. \u201cAnd by the way,\u201d he added, addressing a reporter, \u201cyou know there was no pressure.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-exrw3m evys1bk0\">The meeting on the sideline of the United Nations General Assembly could hardly have come at a more charged moment in Ukrainian-American relations. Mr. Zelensky, a former comedian with no prior political experience, <a class=\"css-1g7m0tk\" title=\"\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2019\/04\/21\/world\/europe\/Volodymyr-Zelensky-ukraine-elections.html?module=inline\">was elected this year<\/a> to take over a country torn by Russian military intervention and desperately dependent on help from the United States and Europe.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-exrw3m evys1bk0\">Even as he flattered Mr. Trump, the Ukrainian leader made a point of saying he did not actually order the sought-after investigation.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-exrw3m evys1bk0\">\u201cWe have independent country and independent general security, and I can\u2019t push anyone,\u201d Mr. Zelensky said in halting English, referring to the prosecutor general. \u201cSo I didn\u2019t call somebody or the new general security. I didn\u2019t ask him; I didn\u2019t push him.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<div class=\"bottom-of-article\">\n<div class=\"css-vdv0al\"><em>A version of this article appears in print on <time class=\"css-10rvbm3\" datetime=\"2019-09-26T04:00:00.000Z\">Sept. 25, 2019<\/time>, Section A, Page 1 of the New York edition with the headline: Trump Asked for \u2018Favor\u2019 in Call, Memo Shows.<\/em><\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>By Peter Baker,\u00a0Sept. 25, 2019 President Trump repeatedly pressured Ukraine\u2019s leader to investigate leading Democrats as \u201ca favor\u201d to him during a telephone call last summer in which the two discussed the former Soviet republic\u2019s need for more American financial aid to counter Russian aggression. In a reconstruction of the call released Wednesday by the [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1001004,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[53],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/worldcampaign.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8206"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/worldcampaign.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/worldcampaign.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/worldcampaign.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1001004"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/worldcampaign.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=8206"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/worldcampaign.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8206\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":8209,"href":"https:\/\/worldcampaign.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8206\/revisions\/8209"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/worldcampaign.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=8206"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/worldcampaign.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=8206"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/worldcampaign.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=8206"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}