Trump ‘used mafia tactics in phone call’
But President says evidence will clear him
DONALD Trump was accused of a ‘classic mafia-style shakedown’ last night as he tried to head off an impeachment inquiry.
The US President released a transcript of a controversial phone call in which he asked the president of Ukraine several times to investigate his political rival Joe Biden.
The five-page statement revealed that Mr Trump even offered the services of his personal lawyer Rudy Giuliani and US attorney general William Barr to aid a probe into Mr Biden, who hopes to be the Democratic candidate in the 2020 race for the White House.
However, the script of the July call was not a verbatim recording of the conversation. Instead it was based on the recollections of Trump aides.
Mr Trump published it to counter the Democrats’ dramatic decision to move to impeach him over the controversy. He has asked for an investigation into claims that Mr Biden, when vice-president to Barack Obama, was behind the removal of a prosecutor looking into a Ukrainian oil company whose board members included his son Hunter.
Days before the phone call to Volodymyr Zelensky, Mr Trump had ordered a hold on $400million (£324million) of military aid for Ukraine, leading to allegations he was using that as leverage for a Biden investigation. The President authorised the release of the transcript knowing it mentioned no explicit quid pro quo and Trump supporters defended him, insisting he was simply determined to root out corruption.
But the account only fuelled Democrat claims that Mr Trump acted improperly by asking a foreign government for dirt on an election opponent.
Democrats said the conversation clearly showed that Mr Trump was raising America’s economic and military lifeline to Ukraine when he asked Mr Zelensky for a ‘favour’ and suggestively mentioned the US being ‘very, very good to Ukraine’.
Adam Schiff, who leads one of the committees involved in the impeachment investigation in Congress, said the notes ‘reflect a classic mafia-type shakedown of a foreign leader’. The conversation ‘was far more damning than I or many others had imagined’, he added.
‘[Trump is saying] “We do a lot for Ukraine. I have a favour to ask. Investigate my opponent. Nice country you got there. It would be a shame if something happened to her.” Ukraine understood what this President wanted.’
House speaker Nancy Pelosi, who announced the impeachment inquiry on Tuesday, added: ‘The fact is that the President of the United States asked a foreign government to help him in his political campaign at the expense of our national security, as well as undermining the integrity of our elections. That cannot stand. He will be held accountable. No one is above the law.’
Mitt Romney, the lone Republican anti-Trump voice in the US Senate, said it was a serious matter even if there had been no quid pro quo. ‘This remains deeply troubling,’ he said.
The scandal began when it was revealed that a US intelligence official had raised concerns about the phone call, saying it was part of a pattern of wrongdoing by Mr Trump in his dealings with Ukraine. Mr Trump met Mr Zelensky – a professional comedian – yesterday as both attended the UN.
Later he angrily dismissed Democrat claims. ‘It is the single greatest witch-hunt in American history, probably in history, just disgraceful,’ he said.
‘It was friendly, no pressure. You thought it was going to be the call from Hell but it turned out to be a nothing call, other than some people said “I never knew you could be so nice”.’
‘No one is above the law’