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Secretary of State Mike Pompeo confirmed that he was on President Donald Trump’s controversial phone call with Ukraine‘s new president on July 25, days after evading questions about what he knew of the call that has sparked a congressional investigation and an impeachment inquiry.
“I was on the phone call,” he said during a press conference in Rome on Wednesday, adding it was “in the context of” the Trump administration’s “remarkably consistent” Ukraine policy — to counter the Russian threat to Ukraine, help “the Ukrainians to get graft out, and corruption outside of their government, and to help now this new government in Ukraine build a successful, thriving economy.”
Pompeo said the administration “will continue to do [that] even while all this noise is going on.”
Pompeo is engaged in an escalating standoff with the Democratic chairs of three House committees over the call and Trump’s larger effort with Rudy Giuliani to discuss investigating his politics opponents with Ukraine. The House has subpoenaed Pompeo and the department for documents and scheduled depositions with five State Department officials, but Pompeo rebuffed those efforts Tuesday.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
