Trump news: President abruptly drops sanctions on Turkey, as Republicans storm impeachment hearings
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Donald Trump continues to froth over the impeachment inquiry on Twitter as Laura Cooper, deputy assistant US secretary of defence for Russia, Ukraine and Eurasia, becomes the latest senior official to appear before the House panel on Capitol Hill to testify about the conduct of diplomatic relations with Ukraine.
On Tuesday, Bill Taylor, acting US ambassador to Ukraine, told the inquiry he was informed military aid to the country was “dependent” on president Volodymyr Zelensky agreeing to publicly announce a corruption probe into Donald Trump’s 2020 rival Joe Biden, confirming the existence of the suspected quid pro quo at the heart of the Democratic-led investigation.
Mr Biden’s polling lead in the Democratic 2020 primary race is meanwhile at its widest margin since April. The former vice president has won the support of 34 per cent of voters registered with the party, according to a new CNN survey.
There as quite a scuffle in Washington on Wednesday, however, after Republicans staged a sit in during a secured briefing as a part of the impeachment inquiry.
During that time, the Republicans reportedly ordered pizza and joked about as they successfully pulled off their publicity stunt.
Mr Trump also announced that he would be pulling back on Turkish sanctions, claiming that the cease fire his administration claims existed between Kurds and the Turkish military had succeeded.
He later claimed that the US was building a wall in Colorado, during a speech in Pittsburgh, even though the state is landlocked.
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Even Fox News are worried about Trump's attacks on the "Fake News" media, with anchor Brett Baier telling This Morning on CBS that the president's frequent criticism is "a problem".
Baier skirmed uncomfortably when the hosts asked him about the significance of his departing colleague Shep Smith's final words on air: "The truth will always matter".
Two associates of Rudy Giuliani are to be arraigned on Wednesday on charges they used straw donors to make illegal campaign contributions to politicians and committees to advance their business interests.
Lev Parnas and Igor Fruman were expected to plead not guilty in federal court in Manhattan in a case that's cast a harsh light on the business dealings of Trump's personal lawyer.
Prosecutors say Parnas and Fruman made donations while lobbying US politicians to oust the country's ambassador to Ukraine. Giuliani - who at the time was lobbying local officials to investigate the Bidens - has said he knew nothing about the donations.
Prosecutors say Parnas and Fruman worked with two other men, David Correia and Andrey Kukushkin, in a separate scheme to make illegal campaign donations to politicians in several states in an attempt to get support for a new recreational marijuana business.
Correia and Kukushkin pleaded not guilty last week at a hearing where prosecutor said evidence includes data from over 50 bank accounts and information gathered through 10 search warrants. The prosecutor told the judge that the government's investigation is ongoing.
All the defendants are US citizens, but Kukushkin and Parnas were born in Ukraine and Fruman in Belarus. All are currently free on bail.
In case you missed it, Negar Mortazavi has this delve through the riches revealed by Parnas's private Instagram account.
Trump's own lawyers will meanwhile appear before the 2nd US Circuit Court of Appeals in New York on Wednesday morning to urge a three-judge panel to reject a lower court justice's ruling that the president cannot stand in the way of a request from the office of Manhattan district attorney Cyrus Vance for his long-withheld tax returns.
Vance, a Democrat, has sought tax records since 2011 from Trump's longtime accountant Mazars for a criminal probe stemming in part from payments made to buy the silence of two women who claim affairs with the president before the 2016 presidential election. The payments were made to porn star Stormy Daniels and Karen McDougal, a one-time Playboy centerfold. Both have spoken publicly since Trump took office in early 2017.
Trump's lawyers say the Constitution prohibits states from subjecting the US president to criminal process while he's in office. Vance's attorneys counter that no one is above the law. They also say the records would remain secret because they are sought for a grand jury. But both sides have agreed that no tax records will be demanded until court appeals are finished. It is unclear how quickly the court may rule.
Vance says he's seeking financial and tax records of entities and individuals, including Trump, who engaged in business transactions in Manhattan while Trump's lawyers insist the request is unusual and requires more specific information. "Tellingly, until now, no state or local prosecutor has ever initiated criminal process against a sitting president," they wrote.
Seven retweets from Trump so far this morning, mostly Fox and White House content and only one of which contains an original line from the man himself.
@realDonaldTrump is basically becoming a Ronna McDaniel fan account, so frequently does he retweet the Republican Party's chairwoman.
He's now, inevitably, quoting a friendly Republican on Fox and Friends in a bid to discredit Taylor.
God this is desperate stuff. The Democrats are actually working overtime, busier than ever on the impeachment inquiry.
Here's what's going on with impeachment today.
We were supposed to be hearing from Philip Reeker, acting assistant secretary of state for Europe and Eurasian affairs, but that has been postponed to make way for memorial services honouring the late head of the House Oversight Committee, Baltimore congressman Elijah Cummings.
All depositions scheduled for Thursday and Friday are also being suspended to make way for events honouring Cummings.
Another new poll, this one from Quinnipiac University, finds an even higher percentage of respondents in favour of Trump's impeachment.
Trump's former secretary for Homeland Security Kirstjen Nielsen appeared at the Fortune Most Powerful Women Summit in DC yesterday - despite Hillary Clinton, singer Brandi Carlile and filmmaker dream hampton pulling out in opposition to her appearance - and insisted she had no regrets for enforcing the law, despite being made the face of the administration's brutal treatment of migrant families at the Mexican border.
“Under previous administrations, they also enforced this exact law,” Nielsen told interviewer Amna Nawaz. “What is different is the numbers of people have greatly increased over the last few years.”
She also said her reason for resigning in April was because "it became clear that saying no and refusing to do it myself was not going to be enough."
Her appearance did not go unprotested.
A year on from the murder of Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi in the Saudi consulate in Istanbul, a team of Trump advisers including his son-in-law Jared Kushner and treasury secretary Steve Mnuchin are attending the Future Investment Initiative in Riyadh as though nothing ever happened.
The State Department's Iran adviser Brian Hook and Kushner associate Avi Berkowitz will also attend the conference nicknamed "Davos in the desert", along with outgoing energy secretary Rick Perry.
In case you need reminding, Trump quickly disavowed the CIA's conclusion that Saudi Arabia's crown prince Mohammed bin Salman had ordered the killing last year. "It could very well be that the crown prince had knowledge of this tragic event - maybe he did and maybe he didn't," he said in an utterly worthless statement last November before entirely failing to mention the case when the men met in person in June.
The Senate passed a unanimous resolution holding Bin Salman responsible back in December - but why let a small matter like the political murder of a dissident reporter stand in the way of fruitful business ties?
The Trump Organization has begun removing his name from two ice rinks he owns in Central Park, New York City, so toxic is the brand becoming in his old hometown.
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