Testimony and Evidence Collected in the Trump Impeachment Inquiry
By Weiyi Cai and Alicia Parlapiano UPDATED Nov. 26, 2019
After more than a month of hearing closed-door and public testimony from more than a dozen witnesses, House Democrats will now focus on drafting a report as a part of their impeachment investigation into President Trump.
Many sought-after witnesses refused to comply with House investigators’ requests, following orders from the White House. Democrats have decided not to enter into a court fight to force those witnesses to comply; they may instead use those refusals as a plank in a possible article of impeachment, obstruction of Congress.
Not complied
WHITE HOUSE
Mike Pence, Vice president
Mick Mulvaney, Acting White House chief of staff
Robert Blair, Top aide to acting White House chief of staff
NATIONAL SECURITY COUNCIL
John Bolton, Former national security adviser
Charles M. Kupperman, Former deputy national security adviser
John A. Eisenberg, Top National Security Council lawyer
Michael Ellis, Deputy National Security Council legal adviser
Mike Pompeo, Secretary of State
John J. Sullivan, Deputy Secretary of State
T. Ulrich Brechbuhl, State Department counselor
DEFENSE DEPARTMENT
Mark T. Esper, Defense secretary
BUDGET DEPARTMENT
Russell T. Vought, Acting budget director
Michael Duffey, White House budget official
ENERGY DEPARTMENT
Rick Perry, Energy secretary
Brian McCormack, Former chief of staff to the energy secretary
OTHER
Rudolph W. Giuliani, Trump’s personal lawyer
The impeachment investigation was launched after a whistle-blower complaint alleged that President Trump had abused his power for political gain by pressuring Ukraine’s president to investigate former Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr.
Witnesses who have provided evidence in the inquiry
Fiona Hill, Former Trump adviser on Russia
Dr. Hill quoted John Bolton, the national security adviser at the time, as saying, “I am not part of whatever drug deal Sondland and Mulvaney are cooking up,” referring to a back channel of Ukraine policy that sought to exchange a White House meeting for investigations sought by Mr. Trump. She also sharply denounced a “fictional narrative” embraced by President Trump and others that Ukraine interfered in the 2016 election.
Oct. 14 closed-door testimony
Nov. 21 opening statement to public testimony
David Holmes, Political counselor to the United States Embassy in Ukraine
Mr. Holmes provided details about an unusual call he overheard between Mr. Trump and Gordon D. Sondland, the ambassador to the European Union, in which Mr. Trump asked Mr. Sondland if the Ukrainian president planned “to do the investigation.”
Nov. 21 opening statement to public testimony
Laura K. Cooper, Deputy assistant secretary of defense for Russia, Ukraine and Eurasia
Ms. Cooper revealed during her public testimony that Ukrainian officials may have been aware that security aid had been cut off as early as July 25, the day Mr. Trump pressed Ukraine’s president during a phone call to investigate Democrats.
Oct. 23 closed-door testimony
Nov. 20 opening statement to public testimony
David Hale, Under secretary of state for political affairs
Mr. Hale publicly answered questions on Nov. 20 about the hold on security aid and the ouster of Marie L. Yovanovitch, the former ambassador to Ukraine who was targeted in a smear campaign by Rudolph W. Giuliani, the president’s personal lawyer.
Nov. 6 closed-door testimony
Gordon D. Sondland, Ambassador to the E.U.
Mr. Sondland testified publicly that there had been a clear “quid pro quo” at the highest levels of Mr. Trump’s government linking a White House meeting for the president of Ukraine to investigations that Mr. Trump wanted. He also amended his initial testimony to say that he had “presumed” the release of foreign aid was also tied to the investigations, and that he had communicated that to Ukrainian officials.
Nov. 5 closed-door testimony and addendum
Nov. 20 opening statement to public testimony
Timothy Morrison, Former Trump adviser on Russia
Mr. Morrison testified that Mr. Sondland had told him that the military aid for Ukraine would not be released until the country committed to investigating Mr. Trump’s political rivals. He also said that while he did not think the president’s July 25 call with the Ukrainian president was inherently wrong or illegal, he had been concerned about its political implications.
Oct. 31 closed-door testimony
Nov. 19 opening statement to public testimony
Kurt D. Volker, Former special envoy to Ukraine
Mr. Volker testified before congressional investigators and provided text messages revealing that Mr. Trump’s envoys had made clear to the Ukrainian president that he would need to agree to Mr. Trump’s requests for investigations before visiting the Oval Office. He has said that he did not know that the investigations were focused in part on the Bidens.
Oct. 3 closed-door testimony
Nov. 19 opening statement to public testimony
Jennifer Williams, Foreign Service officer
Ms. Williams, who serves as a national security aide to Vice President Mike Pence, testified behind closed doors and in an open hearing. Ms. Williams was among officials who listened in on a July 25 telephone call between Mr. Trump and President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine.
Nov. 7 closed-door testimony
Nov. 19 opening statement to public testimony
Lt. Col. Alexander S. Vindman, National Security Council official
Colonel Vindman told impeachment investigators that he had tried and failed to restore key details that the White House had removed from a transcript of the call between Mr. Trump and the Ukrainian president. He also testified that he was not aware of any security official who supported the freeze on aid to Ukraine.
Oct. 29 closed-door testimony
Nov. 19 opening statement to public testimony
Mark Sandy, White House budget official
Mr. Sandy, who signed a legal document directing the freeze of aid to Ukraine, appeared before congressional investigators on Nov. 16.
Nov. 16 closed-door testimony
Marie L. Yovanovitch, Former ambassador to Ukraine
Ms. Yovanovitch testified that she felt “threatened” by Mr. Trump and that he had personally directed her removal based on “false claims.” During her public testimony, Mr. Trump railed against her on Twitter.
Oct. 11 closed-door testimony
Nov. 15 opening statement to public testimony
George P. Kent, Deputy assistant secretary of state
Mr. Kent, who oversees U.S. policy toward Ukraine at the State Department, appeared before impeachment investigators against the White House’s wishes, telling them that Mr. Trump’s inner circle had cut him out of Ukraine policymaking. In his public hearing, he denounced a “campaign to smear” American officials working in Ukraine.
Oct. 15 closed-door testimony
Nov. 13 opening statement to public testimony
William B. Taylor Jr., Top American diplomat in Ukraine
Mr. Taylor told impeachment investigators that Mr. Trump had withheld foreign aid and had refused to hold a White House meeting with Ukraine’s leader until he publicly announced that his country would investigate Mr. Trump’s political rivals. In his public testimony, Mr. Taylor provided new information about a phone call between Mr. Sondland and Mr. Trump that was overheard by one of his aides.
Oct. 22 closed-door testimony
Nov. 13 opening statement to public testimony
Catherine M. Croft, Foreign Service officer
Ms. Croft, who worked on the National Security Council, said that she had received multiple calls from Robert Livingston, a lobbyist and former Republican congressman, who told her that Ms. Yovanovitch should be fired.
Oct. 30 closed-door testimony
Christopher J. Anderson, Foreign Service officer
Mr. Anderson, who served as an adviser to Kurt D. Volker, the former United States special envoy to Ukraine, helped fill in details about Mr. Volker’s earlier testimony.
Oct. 30 closed-door testimony
Philip T. Reeker, Acting Assistant Secretary of State
Mr. Reeker, who serves at the State Department’s Bureau of European and Eurasian Affairs, told House investigators on Oct. 26 that he had tried to rally top State Department leaders behind Ms. Yovanovitch as she faced a smear campaign orchestrated by Mr. Trump’s political allies.
Oct. 26 closed-door testimony
Michael McKinley, Former adviser to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo
Mr. McKinley told congressional investigators that he had resigned because he was upset that the Trump administration had wrestled Ukraine policy away from career diplomats. He also told investigators that he had urged Mr. Pompeo to come to the defense of Ms. Yovanovitch.
Oct. 16 closed-door testimony
Joseph Maguire, Acting Director of National Intelligence
Joseph Maguire, the acting director of national intelligence, shared the whistle-blower’s complaint with Congress weeks after he was mandated to provide it. In testimony on Sept. 26, he defended the whistle-blower’s actions, as well as his own handling of the case.
Have not complied with the inquiry
The White House
The White House was sent a subpoena to produce a vast range of documents after failing to voluntarily comply with multiple requests by House Democrats. In a letter to congressional investigators, the White House counsel, Pat A. Cipollone, called the House’s impeachment inquiry illegitimate and said the administration would not cooperate.
Mike Pence, Vice president
Mr. Pence was asked to hand over documents by Oct. 15 that could reveal “any role” he had played in Mr. Trump’s pressure campaign on Ukraine.
Mick Mulvaney, Acting White House chief of staff
Mr. Mulvaney failed to comply with his summons to appear before impeachment investigators. Last month, Mr. Mulvaney undercut Mr. Trump’s denials of a quid pro quo when he said, “We do that all the time with foreign policy.” He later issued a statement denying what he had said earlier.
Robert Blair, Top aide to acting White House chief of staff
Mr. Blair defied a subpoena for testimony. Mr. Blair listened in on the July 25 call and had been asked by investigators to testify about White House policy toward Ukraine.
John Bolton, Former national security adviser
Mr. Bolton did not appear for a voluntary interview as a part of the inquiry, a refusal that Democrats said they would use as evidence of Mr. Trump’s attempt to obstruct Congress. House Democrats believe he could be a significant witness in the investigation.
Charles M. Kupperman, Former deputy national security adviser
Mr. Kupperman was subpoenaed to testify, but congressional investigators withdrew the subpoena because they believed that a lawsuit filed by Mr. Kupperman could slow down the investigation. In the unusual lawsuit, Mr. Kupperman asked a federal judge to rule on whether he could testify against the orders of Mr. Trump.
Wells Griffith, Trump adviser on energy and climate
Mr. Griffith failed to appear for a deposition on Nov. 5.
John A. Eisenberg, Top National Security Council lawyer
Mr. Eisenberg defied a subpoena by declining to appear for his deposition, saying he would wait to hear a federal judge’s ruling on whether Mr. Trump’s closest advisers must answer questions from impeachment investigators. Mr. Eisenberg placed a rough transcript of the July call between Mr. Trump and Mr. Zelensky in a computer system typically reserved for the nation’s most sensitive secrets.
Michael Ellis, Deputy National Security Council legal adviser
Mr. Ellis, Mr. Eisenberg’s deputy, had been subpoenaed to appear before investigators, but his lawyer said that he had been directed by the White House to not cooperate.
Mike Pompeo, Secretary of State
Mr. Pompeo was subpoenaed to hand over documents, but after he revealed that he had been on a July 25 call between Mr. Trump and the Ukrainian president, congressional investigators said that he should not be involved in decisions about what documents should be given to the House.
John J. Sullivan, Deputy Secretary of State
Mr. Sullivan was asked to hand over a specific set documents in possession of the State Department, but they have not been provided. At his Oct. 30 confirmation hearing as Mr. Trump’s nominee for ambassador to Russia, Mr. Sullivan said the president’s personal lawyer was involved in a smear campaign to oust the ambassador to Ukraine.
T. Ulrich Brechbuhl, State Department counselor
Mr. Brechbuhl listened in on the call between Mr. Trump and the Ukrainian president, according to the whistle-blower complaint. He has failed to comply with a subpoena to testify before House investigators.
Mark T. Esper, Defense secretary
Mr. Esper was subpoenaed for documents about the Trump administration’s decision to withhold security aid for Ukraine. His agency was given until Oct. 15 to comply.
Russell T. Vought, Acting budget director
Mr. Vought has resisted subpoenas for his own testimony and for documents about the Trump administration’s decision to withhold security aid for Ukraine. He called the inquiry a “sham process” and said that his office would not comply.
Michael Duffey, White House budget official
Mr. Duffey defied a subpoena to appear on Nov. 5 before congressional investigators, who believe he could help answer questions about the foreign aid freeze.
Rick Perry, Energy secretary
Mr. Perry failed to appear for a scheduled deposition. He has also defied a subpoena for documents regarding his knowledge of Mr. Trump’s July call with Mr. Zelensky, and for documents related to his own efforts in Ukraine.
Brian McCormack, Former chief of staff to the energy secretary
Mr. McCormack, Mr. Perry’s former chief of staff, defied a subpoena to testify.
Rudolph W. Giuliani, Trump’s personal lawyer
Mr. Giuliani was subpoenaed to hand over documents, but he has refused to comply. Mr. Trump asked Mr. Giuliani to work with Ukrainian officials to seek damaging information about Mr. Biden and his family.
Three Ukrainian-American businessmen received requests for documents and depositions from House Democrats, though none ended up appearing before the investigating committees.
Lev Parnas, an energy company executive who has known Mr. Giuliani for years and helped connect Mr. Giuliani and Ukrainian prosecutors, newly opened a dialogue with impeachment investigators this week after previously defying a subpoena. Mr. Parnas was arrested on Oct. 10 on separate charges that he had violated campaign finance laws.
Igor Fruman, another energy company executive who worked with Mr. Parnas to gather information in Kiev about the Bidens and others in Ukraine, was also subpoenaed for documents and testimony after refusing to cooperate. Mr. Fruman was also arrested on Oct. 10 on separate campaign finance charges.
Semyon Kislin, another associate of Mr. Giuliani.
The whistle-blower, a C.I.A. officer who was detailed to work at the White House, offered to answer written questions from Republicans in Congress, as several demanded his identity be revealed. Democrats have maintained that the whistle-blower’s testimony is unnecessary because there is enough direct evidence to support his explosive complaint about Mr. Trump’s effort to pressure Ukraine.
Nicholas Fandos contributed reporting.
Correction: Nov. 22, 2019 An earlier version of this article gave an incorrect job title for Michael Ellis. He is a deputy legal adviser to the National Security Council, not a former national security adviser.
@coldjoint,
that in no sense debunks it. It's basically just claiming that nob-cooperation is ok because they say it's ok. c which it shouldn't be.ongress is empowered to investigate. Thst's what they do, among other things. Fpr the executive to thwart that, maes the sytem st up by the constitution stonewalable. which it shouldn't be.
@coldjoint,
Trump is asserting upremcy of the executive branch, not co-equality, not checks and balances. He's saying whatever HE wants to do cannt bequestioned by any other branch. Even you should be able to see that's unconstitutional.
@coldjoint,
even after the USSC decisions. Look what hppened to the NixonianWar Powers ACt when, even with them in power and having been USSC blessed, presidents Reagan, Clinton, Bush, and Obama ignored it.
The USSC decisions re presidential authority and "checks n Balance" are quite vividly presented in USSC precedence . Noone hs to retry anything.
Im more concerned in the actual facts that Trump is acting ABOVE the laws of the land and the Constitution. Since its all become a tribal decision, I think that we will have to accept the fact that he will be found "Not Guilty" (Which does NOT mean "Innocent" ).
The stain will remain.
@coldjoint,
I will repeat this more slowly so that even you can understand.
"Not Guilty" has no bearing (NONE!!) on whether the accused is "innocent or not". Going to prison is just your door prize for being found guilty. Being found "not guilty" does not remove the accused from firm suspicion. Especially this case. The GOP is acting as his attorney advocate as well as the jury. I would love to see Rusy act as hi attorney of court record. Imagine if h shows up in court
hammered again.
Oh YEH, Do you actually believe that OJ was innocent??
@coldjoint,
Youre merely trying to evade or deny, that being found "Not guilty" does not mean INNOCENT. It doesnt even mean innocent on behalf of the law.
@coldjoint,
Trump is being "tried" in name only. Hes surrounded by cowardly cronies who are trying thir best to belittle the facts in evidence. Hes in control of hi attorneys AND the jury.
This will really be a kangaroo court, in favor of the accused, If you dont only listen to Faux news, The Senate GOPers have come out and said so, are you denying that?
We already know hes gonna walk and its not because hes got an unassailable mass of evidence in his defense. He owns the jury. That is the fact . Please stop trying to blow smoke up people's ass with non applicable quotes from Wikipedia.
In any other (non legislature "trials" of felonies in the real world, this would be "Jury tampering" a felony in itself.
@coldjoint,
Well, he sure as hell isn't getting an impartial JURY. tHE sENATE gop MAJORITY IS ALREADY LOCKED AND LOADED THAT HE IS GOING TO BE DECLARED NOT GUILTY, NO MATTER THE OVERHELMING EVIDENCE HE IS GUILTY.
@MontereyJack,
Guilty of what crime pray tell?
