WASHINGTON, D.C.— Following today’s public impeachment hearings in the House Intelligence Committee, at which four separate witnesses testified, People For the American Way Senior Fellow Elliot Mincberg released the following statement:

“Particularly compelling was today’s direct testimony by Lt.Col. Alexander Vindman, who personally heard what he described as the ‘improper’ and ‘inappropriate’ push by President Trump that Ukraine investigate the Bidens, on the July 25 call. Vindman also heard Ambassador Gordon Sondland tell Ukrainian officials that they would need to agree to conduct the investigation in order to get the White House meeting they wanted. One really unusual turn of events, based on my Hill experience, was that even the two witnesses called at the request of the Republicans in the afternoon session provided important information corroborating much of Trump’s misconduct. That included former Ambassador Kurt Volker’s statement that the demands for a Ukrainian investigation, which he testified he did not know about at the time, were inappropriate. Meanwhile Republicans spent most of their time giving speeches criticizing the impeachment inquiry and trying to feed right-wing conspiracy theories about the whistleblower and other issues.”

Elliot Mincberg has researched and analyzed the Supreme Court, the Department of Justice, religious liberty and other civil rights/civil liberties issues for more than three decades. He is also a former chief counsel for oversight and investigations of the House Judiciary Committee, where he gained extensive  experience with impeachment proceedings.

About People For the American Way

People For the American Way is a progressive advocacy organization founded to fight right-wing extremism and build a democratic society that implements the ideals of freedom, equality, opportunity and justice for all. We encourage civic participation, defend fundamental rights, and fight to dismantle systemic barriers to equitable opportunity.  Learn more: https://www.pfaw.org.

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