Trump impeachment: State department official accuses Giuliani of 'lies and deceit'
Donald Trump’s personal lawyer Rudy Giuliani led a campaign of “lies and deceit” against a US diplomat the president had taken against, a senior state department official has told impeachment investigators.
George Kent, who has served as the top US diplomat for Ukraine, said Mr Giuliani sought to undermine Marie Yovanovitch, a US ambassador to the Kiev was who recalled from her post months earlier than scheduled.
In her own deposition last month to investigators, Ms Yovanovitch said she felt threatened by Mr Trump, and was aware that Mr Giuliani was trying to persuade Ukraine to launch an investigation into Joe Biden, his son, Hunter, and Burisma, the energy company that employed the younger Biden.
She said was told by an official in Ukraine that Mr Giuliani, and Yuriy Lutsenko, who at the time was Ukraine’s prosecutor general, were planning to “do things, including to me”.
In his deposition, Mr Kent said the campaign Mr Giuliani carried out against his fellow diplomat was based on untruths.
“His assertions and allegations against former ambassador Yovanovitch were without basis, untrue, period,” Mr Kent, told congressional investigators during a closed door session last month, the details of which were released on Thursday.
He said he learned about an interview Mr Giuliani gave to Ukrainian journalists in which we suggested Ms Yovanovitch was working against Mr Trump.
“Mr Giuliani, at that point, had been carrying on a campaign for several months full of lies and incorrect information about ambassador Yovanovitch, so this was a continuation of his campaign of lies,” he said.
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