Pence, Giuliani Will Not Cooperate in House Impeachment Inquiry

Vice President Mike Pence and President Donald Trump’s personal lawyer Rudy Giuliani said on Tuesday they will not cooperate with a House of Representatives impeachment inquiry into Trump’s efforts to pressure Ukraine to investigate a political rival.

The refusal to cooperate could be considered as evidence of obstruction of justice, which would substantiate suspicions about Trump’s misconduct, according to an official working on the inquiry who communicated on condition of anonymity.

But other U.S. government officials have not been as reluctant to cooperate.

Lawmakers were hearing closed-door testimony on Tuesday from a senior U.S. diplomat, George Kent, who is one of several officials involved in the Ukrainian matter who have complied with congressional subpoenas.

House Democrats are focusing on Trump’s request to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy in a July 25 phone call to look into allegations about Joe Biden, the former vice president and a leading contender to become the Democratic nominee to run against Trump in the 2020 presidential election.

Kent, who has spent much of his career fighting corruption in Ukraine and elsewhere, is the second career diplomat to testify as part of the probe after being subpoenaed. The White House and State Department had ordered them not to appear.

It was unclear what Kent, a deputy assistant secretary of state responsible for U.S. policy toward six former Soviet republics including Ukraine, was telling lawmakers.

According to the New York Times, Kent raised concerns with colleagues as far back as March about Giuliani pressuring Ukraine to pursue investigations into Trump’s political rivals.

If the Democratic-controlled House votes to approve articles of impeachment – formal charges – the Republican-controlled Senate would then hold a trial on whether to remove the president from office.