State Department staffer David Holmes, the aide who claims to have overheard President Donald Trump talking to U.S. Ambassador to the E.U. Gordon Sondland the day after his July 25 conversations with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, testified in a closed-door impeachment inquiry hearing at the House Intelligence Committee Friday afternoon that he overheard Sondland telling President Trump that President Zelensky “loves your ass.”
The fact that Holmes claimed to have overheard the conversation was revealed on Wednesday, during the first public hearing in the impeachment inquiry, when Charge d’affaires William Taylor updated his own closed-door testimony from last month. The testimony added little, but confirmed Trump was interested in Ukraine undertaking “investigations” into 2016 election interference and the circumstances in which former Vice President Joe Biden forced the ouster of a prosecutor overseeing a probe into Burisma, where his son Hunter was a board member. (The testimony may also, as Breitbart News noted, have violated rules around classified and privileged communications.)
Trump’s spy chiefs put Republican leaders on the clock over ‘huge priority’ as power shift looms over Congress
The mistake newly-elected Dems admit they can’t afford to make with Trump after sweeping 2026 wins
Mamdani Set to Disband NYPD’s Counterterrorism and Protest Response Unit: Report
Fact Check: No, Guard Did Not Yell at Hegseth at Tomb of the Unknown Soldier – Just Watch Raw Video and Listen
Rubio’s next move? Lawyers eye speech of ‘visionary’ leader for 2028 clues after GOP’s midterm wipeout
Empire State Building climbers face deportation fears after attorney claims plea deal fell apart
Schumer’s Senate leadership fight intensifies as key progressive backs challenger and more top headlines
Tough Guy Viciously Attacks Family Over Christian Tract in Halloween Candy, Then Becomes Total Coward When Internet Tracks Him Down
Huge GOP election losses spur debates about populist economics
Jeffries shredded over Hegseth impeachment snafu as Dem jockeys for speaker’s gavel
Three-quarters of House members seeking statewide office lost
In Haiti, Bukele cracks down where UN failed
Pence leaves door open to 2028 White House run, issues stark warning to GOP after midterm disaster
Couple accused of killing registered sex offender in pre-planned stabbing in Arizona desert
Newsom reveals when he’ll decide on 2028 White House bid amid growing speculation
Though Holmes’s hearing was meant to be behind closed doors, a copy of his prepared statement was leaked — as many statements have been, when Democrats believe witnesses will help their case against the president. He said (via CNN):
While Ambassador Sondland’s phone was not on speakerphone, I could hear President Trump’s voice through the earpiece of the phone. The President’s voice was very loud and recognizable, and Ambassador Sondland held the phone away from his ear for a period of time, primarily because of the loud volume.
I heard Ambassador Sondland greet the President and explain that he was calling from Kyiv. I heard President Trump then clarify that Ambassador Sondland was in Ukraine. Ambassador Sondland replied, yes, he was in Ukraine, and went on to state that President Zelenskyy “loves your ass.” I then heard President Trump ask, “So, he’s gonna do the investigation?” Ambassador Sondland replied that “he’s gonna do it,” adding that President Zelenskyy will do “anything you ask him to.” Even though I did not take notes of these statements, I have a clear recollection that these statements were made.
It is not yet clear whether Homes will be called to testify in public.
Story cited here.
