Ukraine Call Memo Could Be September Surprise
By Mona Austin
By Mona Austin
Today incriminating notes from Pres. Donald Trump's call suggesting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky investigate the business dealings of Hunter Biden were made public.
The White House referred to the conversation from July 25, 2019 as a "declassified, unredacted transcript." The document is not a verbatim transcript, as noted in a fine print "CAUTION" section at the bottom of the first page, which leaves some questioning the validity of the document. It is a summarized memo intended to give insight into what was said that led to a whisleblower complaint from an unidentified CIA Agent who was acting based on second hand information. Pres. Donald Trump urged the release of the 5-page report, confident that the Democrats are attempting another witch-hunt that he likens to the Mueller Investigation, to thwart his re-election efforts.
Because there is no way of knowing what parts of the conversation are included or excluded, not only is the credibility of the whistleblower being questioned, but also the credility of the document itself.
The White House referred to the conversation from July 25, 2019 as a "declassified, unredacted transcript." The document is not a verbatim transcript, as noted in a fine print "CAUTION" section at the bottom of the first page, which leaves some questioning the validity of the document. It is a summarized memo intended to give insight into what was said that led to a whisleblower complaint from an unidentified CIA Agent who was acting based on second hand information. Pres. Donald Trump urged the release of the 5-page report, confident that the Democrats are attempting another witch-hunt that he likens to the Mueller Investigation, to thwart his re-election efforts.
Because there is no way of knowing what parts of the conversation are included or excluded, not only is the credibility of the whistleblower being questioned, but also the credility of the document itself.
It is a summarized receipt provided by the Justice Department as a goodwill gesture to be transparent with the public. There is not an audio recording of the exchange. The nation is faced with a case of a president allegedly soliciting interference from a foreign government and there is no verbatim proof of what the two leaders discussed.
The White House also shared one-sheets with the press that literally tells the American people what they should know about the call.
Republican Sen. Mitt Romney said, "I read the transcript and it remains troubling in the extreme."
The president is declaring his innocence on Twitter, but there are blatant statements that reflect the abuse of authority that law lawmakers find troubling. For instance the president stated in the call, "There is a lot of talk about Biden's son, that Biden stopped the prosecution and a lot of people want to find out about that. . .so whatever you could do with the Attorney General would be great."
"The president of the United States has betrayed the United States and his oath of office," said Adam Schiff, adding that he compromised national security.
Trump met with the Ukranian leader today at the United Nations General Assembly in New York who said he did not feel "pushed' to pursue a probe at the behesst of the president and the phone call was "normal."
Later in a press conference, exuding confidence that he did nothing worng, the U.S. president said he would also release the transcript for a second call with Zelensky and suggested that the calls of Vice Pres. Mike Pence could be released too.
Trump met with the Ukranian leader today at the United Nations General Assembly in New York who said he did not feel "pushed' to pursue a probe at the behesst of the president and the phone call was "normal."
Later in a press conference, exuding confidence that he did nothing worng, the U.S. president said he would also release the transcript for a second call with Zelensky and suggested that the calls of Vice Pres. Mike Pence could be released too.
The impeachment inquiry is underway stemming from awhislteblower complaint last week that alleged president jeopordized nationa security in asking Zelensky for his help in identifying . House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has vowed to move swiftly and "strike while the iron is hot" in holding Trump accountable.
CLICK HERE TO READ THE UKRAINE CALL MEMO
Documents explaining the call from the White House are also provided for your reference.
CLICK HERE TO READ THE UKRAINE CALL MEMO
Documents explaining the call from the White House are also provided for your reference.
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| First page of the compiled 5-page summary of the July 25, 2019 phone onversaion between Pres. Donal Trump and the leader of the Ukraine Vlodomyr Zelensky. |
This report was updated on 9/20/2019.