PATCHING THINGS UP?

Trump Aides Seek New Ambassador to Ukraine Amid Impeachment

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is also reportedly visiting Ukraine in January.

President Trump’s aides are reportedly choosing a new U.S. ambassador to Ukraine, and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is slated to visit the country in January. The U.S. ambassadorship to Ukraine as been empty since Marie Yovanovitch was ousted from her position at the insistence of Trump's personal attorney Rudy Giuliani. Among those being considered for the role are retired Lt. Gen. Keith Dayton and acting Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs Philip Reeker. Dayton served as a defense adviser to Ukraine to ex-Defense Secretary Jim Mattis, and Reeker testified before Congress in late October during the impeachment inquiry.

Pompeo is reportedly set to visit Ukraine sometime in January as a gesture of support. It would be his first visit to Ukraine in his current position. The State Department has not commented publicly on the matter. Trump and his aides’ involvement in allegedly getting Ukraine to conduct investigations into former Vice President Joe Biden and his son has been examined throughout the impeachment process, which has yielded two articles of impeachment from the House.