Why releasing the Ukraine call transcript could backfire on Trump

Donald Trump.
(Image credit: Stephanie Keith/Getty Images)

Many opponents of the Trump administration fear that the White House will be able to take control of the Ukraine scandal narrative by releasing the transcript of the July phone call between President Trump and his Ukrainian counterpart, President Volodymyr Zelensky. Although Trump has claimed it's a complete, unredacted transcript, others aren't so sure.

See more

That's led to an outcry for the release of the whistleblower complaint which sparked the entire saga and led to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) formally opening an impeachment inquiry. It's believed the complaint holds additional information that goes beyond what will be in the transcript.

While that may be true, New York Times columnist David Leonhardt thinks the Democrats should actually try to use the transcript to their advantage instead of just clamoring for more info. He points out that the White House allegedly trying to control the contents of the transcript could actually be grounds for a more fervent impeachment inquiry. Tim O'Donnell

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up
See more

Continue reading for free

We hope you're enjoying The Week's refreshingly open-minded journalism.

Subscribed to The Week? Register your account with the same email as your subscription.