Ukraine president on Trump phone call: 'There was no pressure' to investigate Biden
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is finally having his say in this whole uproar.
On Wednesday morning, the White House released a memorandum from a call between President Trump and Zelensky, which shows Trump pushed Zelensky to investigate former Vice President Joe Biden's son, Hunter Biden, and the 2016 DNC email hack. So when Trump and Zelensky met publicly that afternoon, Zelensky was obviously questioned on whether he "felt any pressure by President Trump to investigate Joe Biden." Zelensky preferred to leave it at what was released, saying "I think you read everything" and "I don't want to be involved" in America's elections.
Trump then jumped in to say "in other words," there was "no pressure." He was later asked about another topic in the memorandum — whether he thought Hillary Clinton's emails were "in Ukraine." "I think they could be," he emphatically responded.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
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.
Zelensky was later asked about Trump's possible pressure once again, and reaffirmed his stance. Kathryn Krawczyk
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Kathryn is a graduate of Syracuse University, with degrees in magazine journalism and information technology, along with hours to earn another degree after working at SU's independent paper The Daily Orange. She's currently recovering from a horse addiction while living in New York City, and likes to share her extremely dry sense of humor on Twitter.
-
Grok in the crosshairs as EU launches deepfake porn probeIN THE SPOTLIGHT The European Union has officially begun investigating Elon Musk’s proprietary AI, as regulators zero in on Grok’s porn problem and its impact continent-wide
-
‘But being a “hot” country does not make you a good country’Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
-
Why have homicide rates reportedly plummeted in the last year?Today’s Big Question There could be more to the story than politics
-
Trump: A Nobel shakedownFeature The president accepts gold medal he did not earn
-
Trump inches back ICE deployment in MinnesotaSpeed Read The decision comes following the shooting of Alex Pretti by ICE agents
-
Is Alex Pretti shooting a turning point for Trump?Today’s Big Question Death of nurse at the hands of Ice officers could be ‘crucial’ moment for America
-
Trump’s ‘Board of Peace’ comes into confounding focusIn the Spotlight What began as a plan to redevelop the Gaza Strip is quickly emerging as a new lever of global power for a president intent on upending the standing world order
-
Trump sues JPMorgan for $5B over ‘debanking’Speed Read Trump accused the company of closing his accounts for political reasons
-
ICE memo OKs forcible entry without warrantSpeed Read The secret memo was signed last May
-
Halligan quits US attorney role amid court pressureSpeed Read Halligan’s position had already been considered vacant by at least one judge
-
Can anyone stop Donald Trump?Today's Big Question US president ‘no longer cares what anybody thinks’ so how to counter his global strongman stance?
