2019. United States and Ukraine. Trump's Quid Pro Quo. (In Progress)
Russia Is A Terrorist State: Part 4 (2016 - 2019)
2019. United States and Ukraine. Trump's Quid Pro Quo. (In Progress)
"President Donald J. Trump participates in a bilateral meeting with Ukraine President Volodymyr Zalensky Wednesday, Sept. 25, 2019, at the InterContinental New York Barclay in New York City. (Official White House Photo by Shealah Craighead)" under Public Domain by The White House from Washington, DC
In late 2019, a scandal erupted around President Donald Trump's dealings with Ukraine. The controversy focused on the allegation that Trump pressured Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to investigate former Vice President Joe Biden and his son Hunter in exchange for military aid. Trump initially denied any quid pro quo, but subsequent revelations and testimony contradicted this assertion.
On October 4th, 2019, The New York Times reported that President Trump denied offering any quid pro quo to Ukraine. However, two American diplomats had their doubts and testified in front of Congress. The next week, on October 17th, the White House admitted to a quid pro quo, with acting chief of staff Mick Mulvaney telling reporters that military aid was withheld to pressure Ukraine into investigating Democrats. These witnesses claimed that Trump and his personal attorney, Rudy Giuliani, had indeed sought a quid pro quo with Ukraine. They alleged that the White House had conditioned military aid and a meeting between the two presidents on Ukraine's willingness to investigate Biden.
On November 4th, The Washington Post reported on six public confirmations of a quid pro quo between Trump and Ukraine. These included Mulvaney's statement, as well as texts and testimony from diplomats and other officials involved in the Ukraine affair.
On November 6th, NBC News reported that the top diplomat in Ukraine, Bill Taylor, directly tied Trump to the quid pro quo. Taylor testified that he was told by Trump that military aid was conditioned on Ukraine's announcement of investigations into the Bidens and a debunked conspiracy theory about Ukrainian interference in the 2016 election. Also on November 6th, CNN reported that the impeachment inquiry had uncovered three clear examples of the Trump-Ukraine quid pro quo.
The same day, USA Today published an explainer on what quid pro quo means and how it applies to the Ukraine scandal. Vox followed up a week later, outlining the two quid pro quos at the heart of the impeachment inquiry: the withholding of military aid and a White House meeting with Zelensky.
On November 15th, POLITICO reported on a statement made by Gordon Sondland, the US ambassador to the European Union and a key witness in the impeachment inquiry. According to a colleague who overheard their conversation, Sondland said that Trump "does nothing without a quid pro quo."
On November 20th, AP News reported that William Taylor had testified that he was told by another US diplomat that Trump had directed the quid pro quo. Also on that day, CNBC reported that Sondland had testified that he was acting on Trump's orders in pressuring Ukraine to investigate the Bidens. Finally, INSIDER reported that Trump essentially admitted to the quid pro quo during a live TV interview.
On December 2nd, Reuters published a factbox on Trump's defenses in the impeachment investigation, which largely revolved around the absence of a direct quid pro quo. Finally, on January 15th, 2020, Congresswoman Norma Torres published a timeline of the quid pro quo allegations against Trump, including a breakdown of key events and revelations in the scandal.