Fox Anchor Grills White House Spox on Impeachment, Trump’s Ukraine Call: ‘Why Would He Do That?!’
Fox News anchor Martha MacCallum questioned White House spokesman Hogan Gidley over President Donald Trump’s contacts with Ukraine after House Speaker Nancy Pelosi announced that Democrats would more forward with a formal impeachment inquiry.
Gidley kicked off the interview by confirming that a transcript of Trump’s call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky — on which Trump allegedly pressured Zelensky to investigate Joe Biden, leading to a whistleblower complaint against the U.S. president — will be released “unredacted and in totality.”
MacCallum questioned Gidley on comments from her prior guest, Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-CA), who said that even without evidence of a quid pro quo, Trump pressuring a foreign leader to investigate his political opponent is an impeachable offense.
“He is absolutely putting a little bit more meat on the bone compared to what Trump actually said,” Gidley said.
Gidley said he has read the transcript — which is set to be released tomorrow — but they he cannot speak of its contents while it is still classified.
“What the world will see tomorrow is what Donald Trump said today in his tweet,” Gidley said. “There was no pressure, there was not quid pro quo.”
MacCallum continued to press Gidley for details of the call — which the Wall Street Journal and others reported included Trump repeatedly pressing Zelensky to investigate Hunter Biden, the son of Joe Biden, who was on the chair of a Ukrainian energy country — and whether the administration withheld aid from Ukraine over that attempt to spur an investigation.
At the end of the interview, MacCallum expressed shock that Trump would make such a controversial demand from Ukraine’s president just ONE DAY after the end of the Mueller investigation into whether Trump’s campaign coordinated with Russia to interfere in the 2016 election.
“Why, one day after the Mueller albatross is lifted off the president’s back, and he’s free to move on with the rest of his presidency, does he get on the phone with the president of Ukraine, and start talking about Biden, about the next election?” MacCallum asked, seeming exasperated. “Why? Why would he do that?! It just seems to fly in the face of any good sense whatsoever.”
Gidley countered that the transcript of the call will vindicate the president.
Watch the full via above, via Fox News.
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