Nation/World

Impeachment inquiry ensnares Trump’s inner circle, Bolton and Mulvaney

WASHINGTON - House Democrats’ impeachment inquiry is ensnaring a member of President Donald Trump’s inner circle after a critical witness testified that acting chief of staff Mick Mulvaney was involved in the Ukraine controversy - and former national security adviser John Bolton opposed the shadow operation.

Details of the testimony emerged as three current and former Trump administration officials have defied the White House's no-cooperation edict, issued Oct. 8 in a scathing letter to Democratic leaders, and have testified for House investigators accelerating their impeachment inquiry.

The witnesses have painted a picture of a White House bitterly divided not just over Ukraine, which has long been reliant on military aid and political support from the United States as it fights Russian-backed separatists, but also over which political appointees were calling the shots on foreign policy: the experienced national security staff, or a group of Trump loyalists and the president's personal attorney, Rudy Giuliani.

[Giuliani, Pence will not cooperate with impeachment inquiry]

Fiona Hill, the former National Security Council’s top Russia and Europe adviser, told investigators on Monday that Bolton was infuriated by a shadow operation being conducted by Giuliani to pressure Ukraine into digging up dirt on the president’s political rival.

Hill said Bolton, who instructed her to raise the matter with White House lawyers, even likened Giuliani to a "hand grenade," according to two people familiar with her testimony. Hill also testified that Bolton wanted to make clear he was not involved and very opposed to what he described as the "drug deal" between Mulvaney, and U.S. Ambassador to the European Union Gordon Sondland, who were also involved in the effort, the people said.

Some lawmakers and congressional aides have spoken privately about possibly summoning Bolton and Mulvaney to testify, although they deferred to House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff, D-Calif., and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., on next steps.

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The individuals spoke on the condition of anonymity to speak frankly.

Conversations about deposing Bolton and Mulvaney come as Democrats weigh whether to hold a full House vote for an impeachment inquiry, a step that is not required by the Constitution or House rules.

Trump and Republicans have repeatedly criticized Democrats for refusing to hold a formal vote as has been done in past impeachments of presidents. The White House has cited the absence of a vote in refusing to comply with subpoenas for documents and witness summons.

Democrats, who returned from a two-week recess Tuesday, began discussing the idea of putting Republicans on record by holding the vote. Aides to House Majority Whip James Clyburn, D-S.C., have begun reaching out to lawmakers to gauge interest, according to two Democratic aides.

Several Democratic lawmakers have suggested that the House schedule a vote to defuse that criticism, but others are wary of bowing to Republican pressure on the issue - noting that Trump's defenders will simply move on to criticize other aspects of the probe. Some aides are also reticent to change course after House lawyers who are seeking access to grand jury records generated by former special counsel Robert Mueller recently argued to a federal judge that a formal vote is not necessary for the House to enjoy the full legal rights it is afforded in an impeachment proceeding.

Discussions about next steps comes as the Pentagon, Office of Management and Budget as well as Vice President Mike Pence face a Tuesday deadline to turn over all documents pertaining to Ukraine. Giuliani has also been subpoenaed for relevant materials, though his lawyer told Congress Tuesday that he would not comply.

Many of the revelations about Bolton's stance were first reported by the New York Times.

Trump ousted Bolton last month after a rocky relationship in which the two men clashed over policy toward North Korea, Iran and Afghanistan, among other issues. The president even disparaged Bolton as he left, saying he made “some very big mistakes.”

Bolton, who initially declined to comment, said in a text: "I will have my say in due course." He is reportedly writing a book.

According to one person familiar with Hill's testimony, Bolton was so alarmed by the efforts of Giuliani, Sondland and Mulvaney to circumvent the NSC and diplomatic corps that he dispatched her to raise the concern with White House lawyers.

The order came after then-special envoy for Ukraine Kurt Volker, Bolton, Sondland, Hill and Energy Secretary Rick Perry met in early July. During the meeting, Sondland blurted out to the other officials present that there were "investigations that were dropped that need to be started up again" in Ukraine, according to a U.S. official familiar with the matter. The officials understood him to be referring to Burisma, a Ukrainian energy company, and former vice president Joe Biden's son Hunter Biden, who sat on its board.

Bolton went "ballistic" after the meeting, the official said.

[Gordon Sondland, a key figure in Trump impeachment furor, long coveted ambassadorship]

Hill herself got into a confrontation with Sondland over his involvement in Ukrainian affairs, according to one person familiar with her testimony, as Ukraine is not in the European Union and thus not part of his ambassadorial portfolio. Sondland said he had been put in charge by Trump, the person said - something Hill likened to the bravado of when Alexander Haig, then secretary of state, said he was in charge after a 1981 assassination attempt on President Ronald Reagan.

Sondland, who obeyed State Department orders not to show up for a planned deposition last week, is expected to testify in the House's impeachment inquiry Thursday under subpoena. Text messages provided to the panel by Volker showed it was Sondland who defended the president in early September, when other diplomats expressed concern that U.S. military assistance was being withheld from Ukraine to push Ukrainian leaders to conduct a politically motivated investigation of Burisma.

Hunter Biden served on Burisma's board for five years; Joe Biden is currently making a 2020 White House bid.

Trump told Mulvaney in mid-July to hold back almost $400 million in congressionally approved military aid for Ukraine. That order came the same week that Hill resigned from the NSC; it also took place one week before Trump spoke with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky by phone on July 25, when he appeared to pressure Zelensky to investigate the Bidens and purported Ukrainian interference in the 2016 U.S. presidential election.

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It is not yet clear whether the White House will attempt to block parts of Sondland's testimony by asserting executive privilege over the president's interactions with the ambassador. But any claim of privilege could be distinctly weakened by the White House's decision to release a rough transcript of Trump's July 25 call with Zelensky, according to a person familiar with the matter.

The White House could have also missed an opportunity on claiming privilege over Sondland's conversations, by failing to assert privilege over Volker's testimony. If lawyers for Sondland - or eventually the courts - decide that means the president waived his right to claim privilege over the matters that were discussed in the texts Volker shared with the committees, Sondland would be able to speak freely.

The White House sent Hill letters in advance of her deposition Monday warning her about respecting executive privilege, though it was never claimed officially to the committee. For those in government, testifying even as the White House asserts privilege could come with professional consequences, but the White House has essentially no way to punish former officials - unless the information they share is classified, in which case disseminating it could be a crime.

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The Washington Post’s Greg Miller contributed to this report.

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