Second U.S. Official Heard Trump’s Call With Ambassador Sondland: Report
DRIP, DRIP, DRIP
A second U.S. embassy staffer in Kyiv reportedly overheard the call between President Trump and U.S. Ambassador to the European Union Gordon Sondland, in which the pair discussed the need for Ukraine leaders to pursue “investigations,” the Associated Press reports. The call, on July 26, was described to Congress on Wednesday by William Taylor, the acting U.S. ambassador to Ukraine. Trump’s infamous call with Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky, which sparked the impeachment inquiry over its mention of investigations into former Vice President Joe Biden and his son, happened just one day earlier. Taylor testified that one of his staffers overheard the call with Sondland in a restaurant. NBC News reported Wednesday that the staffer was identified as a State Department official David Holmes, who has been added to the calendar to testify in a closed session next week before Congress. According to the AP, the second diplomatic staffer who overheard the call has been identified as foreign service officer Suriya Jayanti.