Texas Rep. John Ratcliffe “destroyed” a key U.S. diplomat during a closed-door deposition, according to a fellow Republican congressman who was present.
William Taylor, the top U.S. diplomat in Ukraine, appeared before House investigators on Tuesday as part of an impeachment inquiry.
Rep. Devin Nunes, the top Republican on the House Intelligence Committee, said leaks that led to headlines about how the diplomat said President Trump tied security aid for Ukraine to investigations into the Biden family are misleading.
“The truth is, in two minutes, John Ratcliffe destroyed this witness. There is no quid pro quo,” Nunes told Fox News host Sean Hannity.
Nunes did not disclose what exactly was said in the exchange, but in a Fox News appearance earlier in the day, Ratcliffe denied that Taylor or any other witness has given testimony about Ukraine being aware of a quid pro quo.
“I found [Taylor] to be very forthright. He had very strong opinions about Donald Trump’s approach to foreign policy,” Ratcliffe said. “But again, the mainstream media reporting that he provided evidence of a quid pro quo involving military aid is false. I questioned him directly on that. And under [House Intelligence Chairman] Adam Schiff’s rules I can’t tell you what he said, but I can tell you what he didn’t say. And neither he or any other witness has provided testimony that the Ukrainians were aware that military aid was being withheld. You can’t have a quid pro quo with no quo.”
Media reports on Taylor’s closed-door deposition centered on the leak of his opening statement which said Gordon Sondland, Trump’s envoy to the European Union, informed Ukrainian officials they would not receive security assistance unless they investigated a company that hired Joe Biden’s son. “Ambassador Sondland told Mr. Yermak that the security assistance money would not come until President Zelensky committed to pursue the Burisma investigation,” Taylor said, referring to Andrey Yermak, an adviser to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
House Democrats who are leading the impeachment proceeding described Taylor’s interview as “disturbing” and a “sea change” that “could accelerate matters.” Democrats also said there were inconsistencies between Taylor’s and Sondland’s testimonies and may move to bring the latter back in for questioning.
Their GOP colleagues dismissed there being a watershed moment on Tuesday. Rep. Mark Meadows of North Carolina said the leaks from Taylor’s deposition “have been laughably overblown and don’t tell the full story.”
“Still no evidence of quid pro quo. Much of the statement and hearsay allegations didn’t hold up against any real scrutiny. The FULL transcript should be released immediately,” he added on Twitter.
