Sondland sues Pompeo, U.S. for allegedly reneging on promise to cover impeachment legal fees

Gordon Sondland.
(Image credit: Drew Angerer/Getty Images)

Former U.S. Ambassador to the European Union Gordon Sondland is suing former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and the U.S. government for $1.8 million for allegedly backing out on a promise to cover his legal fees following his testimony against former President Donald Trump during his first impeachment trial, The Washington Post reports.

Sondland, who made waves during the Senate trial when he testified that Trump and his aides pressured Ukrainian President Volodmyr Zelensky to investigate President Biden and his son Hunter in exchange for military aid (the infamous "quid pro quo"), is alleging that Pompeo told him the government would cover all of his attorney fees and that the $86,040 he reportedly did receive falls well short of that promise.

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Tim O'Donnell

Tim is a staff writer at The Week and has contributed to Bedford and Bowery and The New York Transatlantic. He is a graduate of Occidental College and NYU's journalism school. Tim enjoys writing about baseball, Europe, and extinct megafauna. He lives in New York City.