From the view of the White House and some top Republicans, U.S. Rep. Chris Stewart's questioning of former U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine Marie Yovanovitch on Friday was the point where House Democrats' impeachment argument showed the party had "no case" against President Trump. During Friday's public hearings, Yovanovitvh told Stewart, a Utah
Republican on the House Intelligence Committee, that she could supply
the panel with no information regarding criminal activity or bribes that
President Trump may have been involved with. Stewart:
"I would now feel compelled to ask you, Madam Ambassador, as you sit
here before us, very simply and directly, do you have any information
regarding the president of the United States accepting any bribes?" Yovanovitch: "No." Stewart:
"Do you have any information regarding any criminal activity that the
president of the United States has been involved with at all?" Yovanovitch: "No." Stewart thanked Yovanovitch before predicting that public support for impeachment would decrease after the hearings. "The American people know this is nonsense," Stewart said. "The American people know this is unfair."
"The American people know this is nonsense. The American people know this is unfair." — U.S. Rep. Chris Stewart, House Intelligence Committee
Both
the White House and some top Republicans reacted to the exchange,
saying it proved their argument that the impeachment inquiry was without
merit. "In 30 seconds," a White House message on Twitter read,
"@RepChrisStewart got the answers that House democrats have spent 7
hours trying to avoid. "7 hours that Congress could've spent
working for you--on drug price legislation, USMCA, immigration reform,
or infrastructure--instead of for their own political careers." "Zero
evidence of wrongdoing by the President was presented," White house
press secretary Stephanie Grisham wrote in a statement. "In fact,
Ambassador Yovanovitch testified under oath that she was unaware of any
criminal activity involving President Trump." Grisham added later:
"It is difficult to image a greater waste of time than today's hearing,
and yet unfortinately we expect more of the same partisan political
theater next week from House Democrats."
"Zero
evidence of wrongdoing by the President was presented. ... It is
difficult to image a greater waste of time than today's hearing." — Stephanie Grisham, White House press secretary
Rep. Mark Meadows, R-N.C., reacted to the exchange on Twitter, saying that Democrats had "no case." "The
Democrats second day impeachment witness, Ambassador Yovanovitch, has
no information on any of the relevant questions," Meadows tweeted. "They
have no case. This is not serious." Earlier, Meadows wrote that Stewart's questioning of Yovanovitch had "summarized this whole hearing." Stewart later predicted that more Americans would support Trump as a result of the hearings. "The
American people are going to be able to see the evidence and they're
going to be able to make their own determination regarding that,"
Stewart told the Salt Lake Tribune. He also apologized to Yovanovitch for being "drugged" [dragged] into appearing. Fox News' Adam Shaw and Alex Pappas contributed to this report.
President
Donald Trump speaks during an event on healthcare prices in the
Roosevelt Room of the White House, Friday, Nov. 15, 2019, in Washington.
(AP Photo/ Evan Vucci)
OAN Newsroom
President Trump is delivering on his promise to make health care
prices more transparent for Americans. On Friday, the Trump
administration unveiled new rules to require increased disclosure of
health care prices, in a move to promote competition and push down
costs.
“We’re putting forward a proposed rule to require health insurance
providers to disclose their pricing information to consumers,” stated
President Trump. “We’re giving American families control of their health
care decisions and the freedom to choose that care.”
One regulation would require hospitals to provide an online page
where prices are listed for common procedures like lab tests. The second
would require insurers to provide an online tool where people could
compare their out-of-pocket costs with different medical providers
beforehand.
Officials said the rules would shine a light on the confusing process
and allow patients to find quality services at the lowest costs.
“We’re stopping American patients from just getting, pure and simple,
ripped off,” said the president. “They’ve been ripped off for years.”
Disclosure requirements for hospitals would not take effect until
2021 — for insurers, the timing is unclear. Officials said health care
companies are expected to sue to block the policy.
President
Donald Trump holds up some papers as speaks at a campaign rally in
Bossier City, La., Thursday, Nov. 14, 2019. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
OAN Newsroom
President Trump is weighing in on a recent statement from Ukraine’s
foreign minister. During a ‘Keep America Great’ rally in Louisiana
Thursday, the president said Foreign Minister Vadym Prystaiko has stated
EU Ambassador Gordon Sondland did not link financial military
assistance to an investigation into former Vice President Joe Biden and
his son Hunter.
“Here it is — Ukrainian Foreign Minister (Vadym Prystaiko) said on
Thursday that the United States Ambassador (Gordon Sondland) did not
link financial military assistance to a request for Ukraine to open up
an investigation into former Vice President and current Democratic
presidential (candidate Joe Biden),” stated President Trump, reading
from the minister’s statement.
He echoed those remarks in a tweet, saying “Democrats must apologize to the USA” in light of the new report.
Democrats must apologize to USA: Ukrainian
Foreign Minister Vadym Prystaiko said that “United States Ambassador
Gordon Sondland did NOT link financial military assistance to a request
for Ukraine to open up an investigation into former V.P. Joe Biden &
his son, Hunter Biden…..
The article in question was published by Ukrainian state media on
Thursday. The story quoted the foreign minister, saying “I have never
seen a direct link between investigations and security assistance.” He
added, “yes — investigations were mentioned, but there was no clear
connection between these events.”
The statement has undermined Sondland’s testimony and undercuts the
basis of the House’s ongoing impeachment inquiry, which prompted the
president to say “the fake impeachment inquiry is now dead.”
….Ambassador Sondland did not tell us, and
certainly did not tell me, about a connection between the assistance and
the investigation.” THE FAKE IMPEACHMENT INQUIRY IS NOW DEAD!
President Trump said Sondland did not tell him or any other
administration official of a connection between the assistance and the
investigation. Despite this, opponents said the matter must continue to
be investigated to its fullest and the probe remains in full swing.
President
Donald Trump claps as he finishes speaking during a campaign rally at
the CenturyLink Center, Thursday, Nov. 14, 2019, in Bossier City, La.
(AP Photo/ Evan Vucci)
The
House Ethics Committee on Thursday released a trove of striking
internal campaign communications sent in 2018 by Michigan Democratic
Rep. Rashida Tlaib,
in which Tlaib urgently requested money from her congressional campaign
to defray personal expenses -- and, a government watchdog said,
possibly violated federal law in the process.
The document dump
was related to the committee's ongoing ethics probe into Tlaib, which
the panel said on Thursday would be "expanded" based on a referral from
the Office of Congressional Ethics (OCE). Additionally, the Ethics
Committee acknowledged for the first time on Thursday an investigation
into Florida Democratic Rep. Alcee Hastings concerning a "personal relationship with an individual employed in his congressional office."
Texts and emails released by the Ethics Committee show Tlaib frantically contacting members of her staff for financial help.
In
one April 2018 email offered as an exhibit by OCE, Tlaib wrote that she
was "struggling financially right now" and was "sinking." She
continued: "So I was thinking the campaign could loan me money, but Ryan
said that the committee could actually pay me. I was thinking a one
time payment of $5k."
In another email, on April 4, 2018, Tlaib wrote: "I am just not going to make it through the campaign without a stipend."
"With
the loss of a second income to lean back on," she wrote. "I am
requesting $2,000 per two weeks but not exceeding $12,000. The cost of
living stipend is going towards much needed expenses due to campaigning
that includes car maintenance, child care and other necessities. Please
let me know if I can proceed."
In
August of that year, Tlaib texted her future chief of staff Ryan
Anderson at 6:38 a.m.: "Sorry for the early text but do you think the
campaign can still pay me a stipend until the general. Trying to get out
of debt."
"I think we definitely afford to do so. But we need to
really clearly define your time and space," Anderson responded, noting
that the arrangement could arouse "concern" among the media.
The OCE also attached scans of checks made out to Tlaib from her campaign, totaling thousands of dollars.
Rep. Rashida Tlaib, D-Mich., once vowed to impeach 'the
motherf---er' -- and now is the subject of an Ethics Committee probe.
(AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)
Talib's lawyers said in August
there was no evidence that she violated the law on purpose or
otherwise, and insisted there were no bad intentions. They noted that
Federal Election Commission (FEC) regulations permit campaigns to "pay
limited salary to candidates who curtail outside employment to focus on
their campaigns" in certain limited conditions that, the lawyers said,
were met in this instance.
The attorneys went on to say it was
"most irregular" for OCE to call for a probe into a member of Congress
based on pre-election activities, and argued that there was no
"conscious disregard of any law or regulation." Tlaib was paid by her
campaign after Election Day, the attorneys conceded, but they asserted
that the money was for services performed before Election Day.
But
Tlaib's campaign committee, Rashida Tlaib for Congress, allegedly
"reported campaign disbursements that may not be legitimate and
verifiable campaign expenditures attributable to bona fide campaign or
political purposes," according to a release from OCE that unanimously recommended the Ethics Committee investigate Tlaib.
If Tlaib
"converted campaign funds from Rashida Tlaib for Congress to personal
use, or if Tlaib’s campaign committee expended funds that were not
attributable to bona fide campaign or political purposes, then Tlaib may
have violated House rules, standards of conduct, and federal law," the
OCE continued.
"The Board recommends that the Committee further
review the above allegation concerning Rep. Tlaib because there is
substantial reason to believe that Rep. Tlaib converted campaign funds
from Rashida Tlaib for Congress to personal use or Rep. Tlaib’s campaign
committee expended funds that were not attributable to bona fide
campaign or political purposes," it said.
The Ethics Committee first announced on August 16, 2019 that it had received a referral from the concerning Tlaib.
"So I was thinking the campaign could loan me money ..." — Michigan Democratic Rep. Rashida Tlaib, in 2018 email released by OCE
Meanwhile, the Ethics Committee also said
it was looking into an alleged relationship between Hastings and a
staffer, and whether Hastings "has received any improper gifts,
including any forbearance, from that employee."
Rep. Alcee Hastings, D-Fla. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)
"The Committee is specifically considering whether
Representative Hastings’ relationship with the individual employed in
his congressional office is in violation of House Rule XXIII, clause
18(a)," the ethics panel said. That provision refers to improper sexual
relationships with "any employee of the House who works under the
supervision of the Member, Delegate, or Resident Commissioner, or who is
an employee of a committee on which the Member, Delegate, or Resident
Commissioner serves."
"The Committee continues to gather additional information regarding the allegations," the panel noted.
The
announcement from the ethics panel came less than a month after
California Democratic Rep. Katie Hill resigned amid allegations that she
had improper personal relationships with her own staffers.
“I
have cooperated with the Committee since May 14, 2019," Hastings said in
a statement. "As they continue to conduct their work, I stand ready to
fully cooperate with their inquiry." Tlaib and Hastings have both
vocally supported impeaching and removing President Trump from office,
saying he is unfit to serve. Earlier this year, Tlaib boasted that
Democrats would "impeach the motherf---er," referring to the president.
And,
in a striking scene at the outset of a Rules Committee meeting last
month, Hastings -- who himself was impeached and removed from the
federal bench in 1989 for taking bribes -- outlined the alleged "high
crimes and misdemeanors" that he said Trump had committed. Fox News' Chad Pergram contributed to this report.
Sen. John Kennedy, R-La., slammed the Beltway "elite" during President Trump's rally for GOP gubernatorial candidate Eddie Rispone in Bossier City on Thursday evening.
Kennedy,
who received raucous cheers from the crowd, called out the Washington
D.C. establishment and claimed they do not care for the average American
as Trump or Rispone do.
"I stand before you tonight a proud
Deplorable," said Kennedy, referring to the moniker Hillary Clinton
bestowed on Trump supporters during the 2016 campaign.
"And,
unlike some of the folks in Washington, D.C. -- I'm talking about the
'cultured', cosmopolitan, goat's milk latte-drinking, avocado
toast-eating insider elite -- as a Deplorable, I believe that everybody
counts."
"And I care about you, and so does the president of the United States of America."
Turning
his attention to Saturday's runoff election between businessman Rispone
and incumbent Democratic Gov. John Bel Edwards, Kennedy urged attendees
to get out the vote.
"Unless you're happy with 'crappy', vote Eddie Rispone for governor," he remarked.
Kennedy,
who holds degrees from Vanderbilt University, the University of
Virginia and Oxford University, created controversy last week when he
made critical comments about House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif. at
another Louisiana Trump rally.
At that event in Monroe, Kennedy discussed the Trump impeachment inquiry and said of Pelosi: "It must suck to be that dumb.
"The
same people that are backing Speaker Pelosi are sending tens of
millions of dollars to support Governor Edwards. And all ... Edwards has
given us is decline and uncertainty."
At the Bossier City rally, Trump introduced a new political attack line against House Democrats amid their ongoing impeachment inquiry, forcefully declaring, "We did nothing wrong -- and they're doing nothing."
Hours earlier, Pelosi accused the president of "bribery" by
allegedly "threatening to withhold military aid and a White House
meeting in exchange for an investigation into his political rival" --
signaling that House Democrats are preparing to go all-in on
impeachment even as the Trump administration touts its successes on
unemployment and energy independence. Fox News' Gregg Re contributed to this report.
FILE
– In this July 17, 2019 file photo, three migrants who had managed to
evade the Mexican National Guard and cross the Rio Grande onto U.S.
territory walk along a border wall set back from the geographical
border, in El Paso, Texas, as seen from Ciudad Juarez, Mexico. (AP
Photo/Christian Chavez)
The Trump administration is preparing to acquire privately owned land
along the Mexico border to build new sections of the border wall.
Thursday reports said President Trump’s team is preparing the paperwork
to start buying privately held land as soon as this week. Administration officials said they may use the Declaration of Taking
Act to speed up legal proceedings. In the past, Washington had to pay
landowners and battle legal challenges for access to their land to build
border infrastructure. This time, the president may use emergency
powers to expedite wall construction. This comes amid efforts to increase security along the U.S.-Mexico
border. Acting CBP Commissioner Mark Morgan said there is significant
progress being made to secure the border, despite Congress and the lower
courts fighting their efforts.
Acting
Customs and Border Protection director Mark Morgan speaks with
reporters in the briefing room at the White House, Thursday, Nov. 14,
2019, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
During a Thursday press conference, Morgan noted that the Trump
administration’s strategies are successfully sending a message to
Mexico’s drug cartels and other criminal organizations contributing to
the national security crisis at the border. The commissioner reported that the U.S. is continuing to see an
overall decline in migrant apprehensions and an increase in drug
seizures. “The month of October has continued with that trend, reaching a 14
percent decline compared to September — with just over 42,000
apprehensions,” stated Morgan. “Last month on the southwest border, CBP
seized more than 47,000 pounds of drugs — a 50 percent increase from
this time last year.” He added though there is progress, there still needs to be more wall
constructed in order to put the cartels permanently out of business.
FILE – In this Jan. 30, 2010, file photo, former Vice President Joe
Biden, left, with his son Hunter, right, at the Duke Georgetown NCAA
college basketball game in Washington. (AP Photo/Nick Wass, File)
OAN Newsroom
UPDATED 6:27 PM PT — Friday, November 14, 2019
A top Ukrainian diplomat is saying U.S military aid was never tied to
an investigation into Joe and Hunter Biden’s corruption. On Thursday,
Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Vadym Prystaiko said U.S. envoy to the EU
Gordon Sondland never linked aid to probes into the Bidens.
The minister said the Bidens were mentioned during U.S.-Ukrainian
talks, but emphasized there was no conditionality attached to the
investigation.
On Wednesday, two witnesses in an open impeachment hearing claimed a ‘quid pro quo’ took place. Prior to that, witnesses in closed-door depositions made similar claims.
Colonel Alexander Vindman reportedly listened in on the July phone
call between President Trump and his Ukrainian counterpart. The White
House Ukraine expert told the House panel that the release of a military
aid package to Ukraine was “contingent” on the Ukrainian government
investigating Joe Biden and his son Hunter.
“If Ukrainians took a partisan position, they would significantly
undermine the possibility of future bipartisan support,” stated Vindman.
“Losing bipartisan support, they would then lose access to potentially
hundreds of millions of dollars in security assistance funds.”
Former
National Security Council Director for European Affairs Lt. Col.
Alexander Vindman returns to the Capitol to review transcripts of his
testimony in the impeachment inquiry of President Donald Trump, in
Washington, Thursday, Nov. 7, 2019. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
The colonel went on to say that the call went well until a meeting
between the two presidents was suggested. Former EU Ambassador Gordon
Sondlond then “proceeded to discuss the deliverable required in order to
get the meeting and alluded to investigations.”
“The Ukrainians saw this meeting as critically important in order to
solidify the support for their most important international partner,”
said Vindman. “When Ambassador Sondland started to speak about Ukraine
delivering specific investigations in order to secure the meeting with
the President, Ambassador Bolton cut the meeting short.”
Ukrainian lawmakers have said impeachment proceedings in the U.S. may hurt bilateral ties.
“Of course, I see the risk of losing bipartisan support,” stated MP
Volodymyr Ariev. “But I suppose that American politicians are going to
be more wise than some Ukrainian leaders or politicians.”
Ukrainian officials also said anticorruption probes into energy
company Burisma never formally stopped and never had a connection to
U.S. military aid.
President Trump tore into House Democrats' ongoing impeachment inquiry Wednesday
during a press conference with Turkey President Recep Tayyip Erdogan,
decrying the hearsay-laden "witch hunt" and saying he hadn't watched
that day's public hearing "for one minute."
"This is a sham, and
shouldn't be allowed -- it was a situation that as caused by people who
couldn't have allowed it to happen. I want to find out who's the
whistleblower," the president said, claiming that the whistleblower
behind the impeachment inquiry has made provably inaccurate statements.
"I'm
going to be releasing, I think on Thursday, [another] transcript, which
actually was the first of the two [phone calls with Ukraine's leader],"
he said.
The White House has already released a transcript
of Trump's July 25 call with Ukraine's president, in which the two
discussed past U.S. "support" for Ukraine, as well as Ukraine's issues
with corruption. On the call, Trump asked Ukraine to investigate reports
that Ukraine was involved in 2016 election interference. The president
also mentioned Joe Biden's push to have Ukraine's chief prosecutor
fired, and suggested the country look into the matter.
Asked at
the press conference about acting ambassador to Ukraine Bill Taylor's
testimony about an alleged July 26 phone call between the president
and U.S. envoy to the European Union Gordon Sondland, Trump said: "I
know nothing about that -- first time I've heard it."
Taylor testified, for
the first time, that the president was overheard by a member of his
staff on July 26 asking Sondland about “the investigations,” to which
Sondland responded that “the Ukrainians were ready to move forward.”
Taylor said that following Sondland’s call with Trump, the member of his
staff asked what Trump thought about Ukraine.
“Ambassador
Sondland responded that President Trump cares more about the
investigations of Biden, which Giuliani was pressing for,” Taylor said,
revealing new information from his prior testimony last month. “At the
time I gave my deposition on October 22, I was not aware of this
information. I am including it for completeness.”
At
the press conference, the president pointed to Sondland's written
testimony: "The one thing I've seen that Sondland said, he did speak to
me for a brief moment, he did speak to me for a brief moment -- [he
testified previously that] I said, no 'quid pro quo,' under any
circumstances. And that's true. In any event, it's more second-hand
information. ... The only thing, and I guess Sondland has stayed with
his testimony, that there was no quid-pro-quo, pure and simple."
Trump
added that witnesses summoned by Democrats during the impeachment
hearings had produced "all third-hand information" and unreliable
hearsay. "This statement that I made, the whole call that I made with
the president of Ukraine, was a perfect one. ... I'd much rather focus
on peace in the Middle East."
Despite a BBC report that Erdogan
had recently thrown a letter from Trump in the trash, Erdogan began the
news conference by telling reporters Trump was a "good friend." Trump
reciprocated, calling the autocrat a "great president" and claiming that
Turkey had a "great relationship with the Kurds."
Erdogan announced
that between six months to two years from now, Turkey could repatriate
about one million refugees into a safe zone established in northern
Syria. Outside the White House, dozens of Kurds and their supporters
waved Kurdish and American flags in protest.
The
press conference came after the two leaders met in the White House, and
followed a meeting with five Republican senators, including Ted Cruz of
Texas and Lindsey Graham of South Carolina. (After Trump urged his
Erdogan to call on “a friendly reporter from Turkey," Graham reportedly turned to an ABC News reporter to
remark, “There aren’t any others left.” The president joked afterward
that the Turkish reporter Erdogan called on appeared to work for the
Turkish government.)
Trump and Erdogan in the Oval Office. (AP Photo/ Evan Vucci)
In a statement late Wednesday, Graham vowed that
the United States "cannot and will not abandon our Syrian Democratic
Forces (SDF) allies," and added: "I realize Turkey has legitimate
national security concerns regarding certain Kurdish elements of the
U.S.-led counter-ISIS coalition, but Turkey’s incursion into Syria has
been incredibly disruptive. I believe it is possible to deal with
Turkey’s national security concerns by creating a Safe Zone, but Turkey
cannot do it through force of arms.
“As to Turkey’s purchase of
the S-400 Russian missile system: it is almost a universally held
position in Congress that the S-400 is incompatible with the F-35
fighter," Graham continued. "Turkey’s activation of the Russian S-400
will require the U.S. to keep Turkey from the F-35 program and issue
sanctions. I’m hopeful we can find a way forward with the S-400 where
Turkey’s national security needs can be met without compromising the
F-35 program."
Erdogan and Trump had a difficult agenda for their
talks, which included Turkey's decision to buy a Russian air defense
system despite Ankara's membership in NATO and its incursion into
neighboring Syria to attack Kurdish forces that have fought with the
U.S. against the Islamic State (ISIS) group.
Despite those
disputes, Trump said the two countries were poised to agree to increase
U.S. goods and services trade with Turkey, which totaled about $24
billion in 2017.
Trump defended his decision to invite Erdogan
despite Turkey’s widely denounced advance into Syria. He said that he
and Turkey’s president have been “very good friends” for a long time and
understand each other’s country.
“We’re
going to be expanding,” Trump said. “We think we can bring trade up
very quickly to about $100 billion between our countries.”
The
president was "pleased" that Turkey was increasing spending on its own
defense, and noted that other NATO allies have been lagging behind.
"I
know that the ceasefire, while complicated, is moving forward -- and
moving forward at a very rapid clip," Trump said, later adding
that Turkey's acquisition of advanced Russian military equipment
presents "serious challenges."
Demonstrators hold Kurdistan flags in front of the White House as
thy protest Erdogan's visit Wednesday. (AP Photo/Steve Helber)
Republican lawmakers have pressed Erdogan about why
Turkey bought the S-400 Russian air defense missile system. The U.S. and
fellow NATO nations say the S-400 would aid Russian intelligence and
compromise a U.S.-led fighter jet program.
The U.S. has since
kicked Erdogan out of a multinational program producing components of
America's high-tech F-35 fighter jet. In response, Erdogan attended an
air show this summer in Moscow and expressed interest in buying the
latest Russian Su-35 fighter jets.
"We have a lot of trade with
Turkey, but it could be many times higher ... We intend to bring it up
to about $100 billion, which would be about four times what it is now,"
Trump said.
Trump also said Turkey has been helping the U.S. "a lot" in fighting ISIS.
Meanwhile,
in the Senate, two Democrats introduced legislation denouncing Turkey's
targeting of journalists, political opponents, dissidents, minorities
and others. They said the Turkish government has imprisoned more than
80,000 Turkish citizens, closed more than 1,500 nongovernmental
organizations on terrorism-related grounds and dismissed or suspended
more than 130,000 civil servants from their jobs.
In October,
Trump moved U.S. forces out of the way of invading Turkish troops, a
decision that critics said amounted to abandoning America's Kurdish
allies, but that Trump defended as an important end to an otherwise
"endless" military engagement in the Middle East.
Trump
administration officials have said Trump told Turkey not to invade
Syria. But when Erdogan insisted, they say, Trump decided to move 28
Green Berets operating on the Turkey-Syria border so they wouldn't be
caught in a crossfire between Turkish-backed forces and the Kurds.
"I think a tremendous amount of progress is being made," Trump said. Fox News' Chad Pergram and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Rep. Rashida Tlaib, D-Mich., once vowed to impeach 'the
motherf---er' -- and now is the subject of an Ethics Committee probe.
(AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)
Rep. Alcee Hastings, D-Fla. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)
Trump and Erdogan in the Oval Office. (AP Photo/ Evan Vucci)
Demonstrators hold Kurdistan flags in front of the White House as
thy protest Erdogan's visit Wednesday. (AP Photo/Steve Helber)
