Taylor, Kent, Yovanovitch Will Be First Public Impeachment Testimonies Next Week

US Representative Adam Schiff, Democrat of California and the Chairman of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence walks on Capitol Hill after witnesses failed to show up for closed door testimony during ... US Representative Adam Schiff, Democrat of California and the Chairman of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence walks on Capitol Hill after witnesses failed to show up for closed door testimony during the impeachment inquiry into US President Donald Trump on November 5, 2019 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Olivier Douliery / AFP) (Photo by OLIVIER DOULIERY/AFP via Getty Images) MORE LESS
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Several key witnesses in the House’s impeachment inquiry will be the fist to appear in public hearings next week.

The move toward public hearings, rather than the behind-closed-doors testimonies that have so far taken place in sealed rooms, marks a new phase in the impeachment inquiry.

The current acting ambassador to Ukraine, the former ambassador, and the deputy assistant secretary of State for European and Eurasian affairs will testify.

House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff (D-CA), who’s largely led the inquiry’s closed-door depositions, announced the news on Twitter Wednesday.

“More to come,” he said.

The three witnesses scheduled for public testimony have already testified privately for the inquiry. A transcript of Yovanovitch’s closed-door testimony was released publicly on Tuesday, and Schiff said Taylor’s transcript would be released Wednesday.

“These will be the first of the open hearings. And I think you will see throughout the course of the testimony — not only their testimony but many others — the most important facts are largely not contested,” Schiff said in a brief statement to reporters after tweeting the news.

“We are getting an increasing appreciation for just what took place during the course of the last year and the degree to which the President enlisted the whole departments of government in the illicit aim of trying to get Ukraine to dig up dirt on a political opponent, as well as further a conspiracy theory of the 2016 election that he believed would be beneficial to his re-election campaign,” he added. 

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Notable Replies

  1. “The move toward public hearings, rather than the behind-closed-doors testimonies that have so far taken place in sealed rooms, marks a new phase in the impeachment inquiry.”

    "Phasers on STUN"

  2. "…as well as further a conspiracy theory of the 2016 election that he believed would be beneficial to his re-election campaign,” he added.

    It is frustrating a glaring motive for Trump’s desire to impugn the IC finding of Russian election meddling is ignored. Absolving Russia of election meddling, or at least casting enough doubt over it, puts him in a position to lift sanctions on Russia with minimal political blowback. I think he cares more about what the deliverables are for lifting those sanctions than he does about how much it would elevate his election prospects.

    He DESPERATELY wants to please Putin and lift the sanctions. Why is that not talked about in the context of his Ukraine election meddling conspiracy ravings?

  3. Cue the Republican meltdown, we’ll hear all kinds of awful things about these three witnesses during the next week, none of which will be true. It’s going to be really powerful to watch Taylor and Yovanovich testify, watch the Democrats ask probing questions, and watch the Republicans sink into nonsense as they try to deflect and save Trump. I have a feeling that this will become a turning point, once people see the Republican sideshow compared to the seriousness of the evidence they will have a clear choice on how tho think about what happened.

  4. Avatar for pshah pshah says:

    The timing doesn’t leave much opportunity for the full House to vote on Jordan’s transfer to the IC. It’d be a shame if he missed those public testimonies next week. If I could only find that tiny violin I like to play on such occasions!

  5. Avatar for dont dont says:

    Will Genius Gym Jordan be the lead rethug by then?
    Asking for myself.

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