US Energy Secretary Rick Perry declined to testify behind closed doors in the impeachment case of President Donald Trump, who is being investigated by the House of Representatives. This was reported in the press service of the head of the US Department of Energy.
“If the committee is interested in conducting a serious trial, then it can send an invitation to the minister for an open hearing, which can be held in the presence of a lawyer of the ministry and in front of the American people,” said Shaileen Hines, spokeswoman for the Department of Energy.
The agency clarifies that, in addition to Perry, senior officials of the White House Administrative and Budget Department and the US State Department were also summoned to closed meetings of Congress.
At the end of September, the impeachment of the US president was initiated by the speaker of the House of Representatives, a member of the Democratic Party, Nancy Pelosi. The investigation involved six committees of the lower house of the United States Parliament.
The reason was Trump's telephone conversation with Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky on July 25.
From the transcript of the conversation, which was later published by the White House, it follows that the president asked the interlocutor to investigate Hunter Biden, the son of Joe Biden, Trump's likely rival in the 2020 presidential election. Zelensky said that the prosecutor general (Ruslan Ryaboshapka was appointed to this position in August. - RT ) will open a “new case” in September. As a result, the Ukrainian leader did not fulfill his promise.
Pelosi claims that during a telephone conversation, the head of the White House exceeded his authority. In her opinion, Trump turned for help to a foreign state to solve his own political problems. The House Speaker accused the president of “betraying” democracy, “threatening” national security, and undermining “fair elections." Joe Biden supported Pelosi, saying that Trump violated the oath.
In late October, US Chargé d'Affaires in Ukraine William Taylor also said that Trump was trying to put pressure on Zelensky. According to him, for this, the US president gave the order to freeze the allocation of $ 250 million in annual military assistance to Ukraine.
Meanwhile, Ukraine was informed that there was “no pressure” from the American leader. This was announced in September by the Foreign Minister of Ukraine Vadim Priestayko. On October 29, he noted that country officials would not testify in Congress. He also stated that there was “no pressure” from the American leader.
“Fabricated Impeachment”
Currently, as part of the impeachment procedure, US officials are being called to closed meetings of House Committee committees. In addition to Taylor, U.S. ambassador to the EU Gordon Sondland, former Trump adviser for relations with the Russian Federation Fiona Hill, deputy assistant secretary of state George Kent, ex-ambassador of the United States to Kiev Marie Yovanovitch, and former U.S. Department of State Special Representative for Ukraine Kurt Walker answered questions from congressmen.
According to American media, the testimony of most current and retired officials is negative in relation to Trump.
- US Secretary of Energy Rick Perry
- Reuters
- © Ints Kalnins
In addition to Perry, testimony in Congress was refused to be given by Trump's personal lawyer Rudolph Giuliani and former Presidential Adviser on National Security John Bolton. Perry’s testimony, according to Reuters, could seriously affect the impeachment case.
Testimony was also given by former senior adviser to Secretary of State Michael McKinley, who recently resigned. According to media reports, he said that he left his post allegedly due to "disappointment" caused by the dismissal of Jovanovic.
At the same time, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo himself opposes the impeachment procedure. According to the head of the Department of State, Trump did not exert pressure on Zelensky. He also denied allegations against the president regarding the freezing of military assistance to Kiev.
On October 8, the White House legal adviser Pat Cipollone wrote a letter to Congress stating that the House’s investigations were devoid of “even the appearance of an honest approach and basic compliance with guarantees of legal proceedings”.
Later, White House spokeswoman Stephanie Grisham accused the president’s opponents of “preferring to spend time daily on fabricated impeachment” rather than addressing urgent issues for the country.
“Democrats want to make a verdict, not giving the administration and a chance to speak in their defense. This is unfair, unconstitutional and, in fact, not American, ”she added.
Democrats explain criticism from the Trump administration as an attempt to impede the investigation.
Interviewed by RT experts noted that Trump de facto forbade persons in the civil service to testify in Congress. The vast majority of officials obeyed the president’s order. Retired civil servants (such as Bolton) refused to go to the House of Representatives because of their reluctance to recognize the legitimacy of the investigation and play along with the Democrats, analysts say.
“The massive appearance in the house of representatives of officials, including former ones, will harm Trump’s tactics, which are aimed at sabotaging and discrediting the impeachment procedure. In addition, the president fears that the testimonies of people related to the Ukrainian case may be misinterpreted. In connection with this, accusations of giving false testimonies can be poured, ”said Vladimir Vasiliev, the chief researcher at the Institute of the USA and Canada, at RT.
As explained by the director of the Franklin Roosevelt Foundation for the Study of the USA at Moscow State University, Yuri Rogulev, coming to a meeting of the House of Representatives is "voluntary." At the same time, Trump has no legal authority to prohibit officials from giving evidence.
“Each official and especially the retired employees of the Trump administration make their own choices. Someone considers it necessary to address the committees of the House of Representatives, and in support of the president. True, in this case, the impeachment procedure is legitimized, which contradicts Trump’s interests, ”Rogulev emphasized.
“Expand the evidence base”
On October 31, the House of Representatives approved a resolution supporting the impeachment process. The document states that part of the meetings will be held in public. According to experts, in the future, the resolution will allow the Democrats to finally formulate an accusation against Trump.
However, the opponents of the president have no confidence in the success of the investigation, according to the American media. For example, in an interview with Bloomberg, Pelosi complained about the “many problems” that the investigation is facing, including the lack of deadlines for the completion of the proceedings.
- House Speaker Nancy Pelosi
- Reuters
- © Tom Brenner
According to Vasiliev, Pelosi realizes that the impeachment procedure is starting to slip. Therefore, Democrats are trying to attract more attention to her, opening the House of Representatives for journalists. According to him, opponents of Trump are aware of the gaps in the legal grounds for impeachment.
“The situation remains uncertain. Democrats expect to expand the evidence base by increasing the number of interrogated. Now the case against the president is political and biased. In this form, it will certainly fall apart in the Senate. Democrats need openness of the process in order to win over American public opinion, ”says Vasiliev.
Rogulev is sure that the Democratic Party is beginning to understand the failure of attempts to discredit Trump in anticipation of the election. According to him, the opponents of the president practically "have no evidence base." He recalled that Pelosi several times opposed the impeachment procedure, but in the end yielded to the pressure of radical party members.
“The situation around impeachment has turned into a confrontation between two parties. Obviously, in such circumstances, the accusation against Trump will not be approved by the Senate, which is controlled by the Republicans. The purpose of the investigation into the Ukrainian case is to harm Trump's election campaign. However, it is likely, as Pelosi had previously warned, that as a result, the impeachment procedure will hit the democrats themselves, ”Rogulev predicts.