President Trump is once again going after a witness in the impeachment inquiry on Twitter during their hearing, this time by trying to undermine diplomat David Holmes' testimony.
Holmes is testifying in the fifth day of public impeachment hearings about having overheard a phone call between Trump and U.S. Ambassador to the European Union Gordon Sondland in July. He previously told Congress that he could hear Trump asking Sondland on the call if Ukraine was going to "do the investigation," with this coming after Trump pushed for Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to investigate former Vice President Joe Biden and the 2016 election.
As the hearing was getting underway, but before Holmes could begin speaking, Trump tried to undermine the idea that Holmes could have possibly overheard him when the call wasn't on speakerphone, declaring in a tweet that although his "hearing is, and has been, great," he has never been able to accomplish such a supposedly improbable feat, despite apparently actively trying to do so.
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.
"While Ambassador Sondland's phone was not on speakerphone, I could hear the president's voice through the earpiece of the phone," Holmes will tell Congress, according to his prepared opening statement. "The president's voice was very loud and recognizable, and Ambassador Sondland held the phone away from his ear for a period of time, presumably because of the loud volume."
This is the latest instance of Trump going after an impeachment witness on Twitter after last week attacking former Ukraine ambassador Marie Yovanovitch in a tweet while she was testifying, prompting Democrats to accuse him of witness intimidation.
-
What happens to a Democratic Party without Nancy Pelosi?TODAY'S BIG QUESTION The storied former speaker of the House is set to retire, leaving congressional Democrats a complicated legacy and an uncertain future
-
The plant-based portfolio diet focuses on heart healthThe Explainer Its guidelines are flexible and vegan-friendly
-
Gregory Bovino: the officer leading Border Patrol’s aggressive tacticsIn the Spotlight He has been referred to as the Border Patrol’s ‘commander-at-large’
-
Has Zohran Mamdani shown the Democrats how to win again?Today’s Big Question New York City mayoral election touted as victory for left-wing populists but moderate centrist wins elsewhere present more complex path for Democratic Party
-
Senate votes to kill Trump’s Brazil tariffSpeed Read Five Senate Republicans joined the Democrats in rebuking Trump’s import tax
-
Border Patrol gets scrutiny in court, gains power in ICESpeed Read Half of the new ICE directors are reportedly from DHS’s more aggressive Customs and Border Protection branch
-
Shutdown stalemate nears key pain pointsSpeed Read A federal employee union called for the Democrats to to stand down four weeks into the government standoff
-
Trump vows new tariffs on Canada over Reagan adspeed read The ad that offended the president has Ronald Reagan explaining why import taxes hurt the economy
-
NY attorney general asks public for ICE raid footageSpeed Read Rep. Dan Goldman claims ICE wrongly detained four US citizens in the Canal Street raid and held them for a whole day without charges
-
Trump’s huge ballroom to replace razed East WingSpeed Read The White House’s east wing is being torn down amid ballroom construction
-
Trump expands boat strikes to Pacific, killing 5 moreSpeed Read The US military destroyed two more alleged drug smuggling boats in international waters
