Rudy Giuliani associate Lev Parnas has shown up unexpectedly on Capitol Hill, where he is demanding to meet with senators to tell his side of the impeachment scandal story.
Mr Parnas was spotted by reporters as he arrived, and asked what he would tell senators if he were able to get an audience with them.
"Call the witnesses," Mr Parnas responded. "The president knew everything."
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He continued, claiming that there were "many quid pro quos" beyond the one apparently highlighted in the 25 July phone call between Donald Trump and Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky in which the American asked for an investigation by the Ukrainian government into a domestic political rival. That phone call sparked a whistle blower complaint, and later the impeachment investigation that has led now to Mr Trump's trial in the Senate.
A federal judge ruled on Tuesday that Mr Parnas, who has been indicted last year on charges of alleged campaign finance violations, could attend the Senate impeachment investigation, but that he would not be allowed to take off his GPS ankle monitor to do so. Because of that, it appears as though he would not be permitted to enter the Senate floor due to the chamber's rules.
Shape Created with Sketch. All the president's lawyers: The team fighting Trump's impeachment Show all 6 left Created with Sketch. right Created with Sketch. Shape Created with Sketch. All the president's lawyers: The team fighting Trump's impeachment 1/6 Alan Dershowitz Dershowitz is a controversial American lawyer best known for the high-profile clients he has successfully defended. Those clients have included OJ Simpson, Jeffrey Epstein and Harvey Weinstein. One longtime Harvard Law associated told the New Yorker Dershowitz "revels in taking positions that ultimately are not just controversial but pretty close to indefensible." Getty 2/6 Ken Starr Starr became a household name in the 1990s as the independent counsel who led the investigation that led to Bill Clinton's impeachment. That investigation began as a look into a real estate scandal known as Whitewater, and eventually led to impeachment after Mr Clinton lied under oath about having an affair with White House intern Monica Lewinsky. AP 3/6 Jay Sekulow Sekulow is the president's longtime personal attorney, and, now, personal lawyer in the White House. He has been accused by former Rudy Giuliani associate Lev Parnas of being "in the loop" during the Ukraine scandal. Getty 4/6 Pam Bondi Bondi is the former attorney general in Florida, and a longtime backer of the president's. She made a name for herself in Florida for taking hyper partisan stances on issues, and her penchant for publicity. She is likely to be a prominent public-facing figure during the trial. AFP/Getty 5/6 Pat Cipollone Cipollone is the White House counsel, and leading the president's defence team. Getty 6/6 Rudy Giuliani While not officially named as one of the president's impeachment lawyers, it is hard to ignore Giuliani's outsized role in this process. The former mayor of New York has been making headlines for months as he defends his client, and for his apparent role in the effort to compel Ukraine to launch the investigation into Joe Biden. We'll see how he figures in the actual trial, which he has said he would like to be a part of. Reuters 1/6 Alan Dershowitz Dershowitz is a controversial American lawyer best known for the high-profile clients he has successfully defended. Those clients have included OJ Simpson, Jeffrey Epstein and Harvey Weinstein. One longtime Harvard Law associated told the New Yorker Dershowitz "revels in taking positions that ultimately are not just controversial but pretty close to indefensible." Getty 2/6 Ken Starr Starr became a household name in the 1990s as the independent counsel who led the investigation that led to Bill Clinton's impeachment. That investigation began as a look into a real estate scandal known as Whitewater, and eventually led to impeachment after Mr Clinton lied under oath about having an affair with White House intern Monica Lewinsky. AP 3/6 Jay Sekulow Sekulow is the president's longtime personal attorney, and, now, personal lawyer in the White House. He has been accused by former Rudy Giuliani associate Lev Parnas of being "in the loop" during the Ukraine scandal. Getty 4/6 Pam Bondi Bondi is the former attorney general in Florida, and a longtime backer of the president's. She made a name for herself in Florida for taking hyper partisan stances on issues, and her penchant for publicity. She is likely to be a prominent public-facing figure during the trial. AFP/Getty 5/6 Pat Cipollone Cipollone is the White House counsel, and leading the president's defence team. Getty 6/6 Rudy Giuliani While not officially named as one of the president's impeachment lawyers, it is hard to ignore Giuliani's outsized role in this process. The former mayor of New York has been making headlines for months as he defends his client, and for his apparent role in the effort to compel Ukraine to launch the investigation into Joe Biden. We'll see how he figures in the actual trial, which he has said he would like to be a part of. Reuters
The surprise visit isn't the first time that Mr Parnas has claimed Mr Trump as intimately aware of the scheme that he and Mr Giuliani engaged in to compel a Ukrainian investigation of Joe Biden, a potential 2020 Democratic nominee. And, in addition to Mr Trump, the businessman has claimed that other top level officials including Mike Pence, William Barr and John Bolton were all in the loop on the effort.
"He lied," Mr Parnas said of Mr Trump, when asked during a recent MSNBC interview about the president's claims that he does not know the businessman or his fellow indicted associate, Igor Fruman. "I mean, we're not friends. ... But he knows exactly who we were. He knows exactly who I was, especially because I interacted with him at a lot of events."
The Capitol Hill visit also comes days after a New York Times report was released detailing claims in an upcoming book by Mr Bolton, who was then the president's national security adviser. In that manuscript, Mr Bolton claims that the president was aware of the efforts to use a White House visit and US military aid to Ukraine as leverage to spark an investigation into the Bidens.
Those claims have led to renewed demands that the Senate impeachment trial call on new witnesses, including Mr Bolton, who has signalled a willingness to testify before the trial should be be subpoenaed.
In response to those manuscript claims, Mr Giuliani himself has responded, telling CBS News in an interview that Mr Bolton "never said to me, 'I've got a problem with what you are doing in Ukraine. Never once, never winked, never sent me a little note. He is a personal friend, I thought. So here's the only conclusion I can come to, and it's a harsh one, and I feel very bad about it: "He's a backstabber."
CharlesTransFan on January 29th, 2020 at 18:06 UTC »
Ok that website is just a mess of ad's. Here's the article:
'The president knew everything': Key Trump impeachment figure unexpectedly arrives at Capitol Hill demanding to testify
Rudy Giuliani associate Lev Parnas has shown up unexpectedly on Capitol Hill, where he is demanding to meet with senators to tell his side of the impeachment scandal story.
Mr Parnas was spotted by reporters as he arrived, and asked what he would tell senators if he were able to get an audience with them.
"Call the witnesses," Mr Parnas responded. "The president knew everything."
He continued, claiming that there were "many quid pro quos" beyond the one apparently highlighted in the 25 July phone call between Donald Trump and Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky in which the American asked for an investigation by the Ukrainian government into a domestic political rival. That phone call sparked a whistle blower complaint, and later the impeachment investigation that has led now to Mr Trump's trial in the Senate.
A federal judge ruled on Tuesday that Mr Parnas, who has been indicted last year on charges of alleged campaign finance violations, could attend the Senate impeachment investigation, but that he would not be allowed to take off his GPS ankle monitor to do so. Because of that, it appears as though he would not be permitted to enter the Senate floor due to the chamber's rules.
The surprise visit isn't the first time that Mr Parnas has claimed Mr Trump as intimately aware of the scheme that he and Mr Giuliani engaged in to compel a Ukrainian investigation of Joe Biden, a potential 2020 Democratic nominee. And, in addition to Mr Trump, the businessman has claimed that other top level officials including Mike Pence, William Barr and John Bolton were all in the loop on the effort.
"He lied," Mr Parnas said of Mr Trump, when asked during a recent MSNBC interview about the president's claims that he does not know the businessman or his fellow indicted associate, Igor Fruman. "I mean, we're not friends. ... But he knows exactly who we were. He knows exactly who I was, especially because I interacted with him at a lot of events."
The Capitol Hill visit also comes days after a New York Times report was released detailing claims in an upcoming book by Mr Bolton, who was then the president's national security adviser. In that manuscript, Mr Bolton claims that the president was aware of the efforts to use a White House visit and US military aid to Ukraine as leverage to spark an investigation into the Bidens.
Those claims have led to renewed demands that the Senate impeachment trial call on new witnesses, including Mr Bolton, who has signalled a willingness to testify before the trial should be be subpoenaed.
In response to those manuscript claims, Mr Giuliani himself has responded, telling CBS News in an interview that Mr Bolton "never said to me, 'I've got a problem with what you are doing in Ukraine. Never once, never winked, never sent me a little note. He is a personal friend, I thought. So here's the only conclusion I can come to, and it's a harsh one, and I feel very bad about it: "He's a backstabber."
GODGK2 on January 29th, 2020 at 17:34 UTC »
Many??
Tell us more Lev.
bisl on January 29th, 2020 at 17:22 UTC »
article refers to Lev Parnas, since it's unstated in the headline