| Judge signals Dems may get to see Mueller’s secrets Posted: 08 Oct 2019 12:49 PM PDT ![Judge signals Dems may get to see Mueller's secrets]( "Judge signals Dems may get to see Mueller's secrets") A federal judge signaled Tuesday that she might give House Democrats access to some of Robert Mueller's remaining secrets. During a two-plus hour hearing, Beryl Howell, the chief judge for the U.S. District Court, pointedly challenged the Justice Department to explain its "extraordinary position" of trying to block lawmakers from seeing the special counsel's grand jury materials, which include testimony and evidence that has been kept private since the Mueller probe ended in March. If Howell ultimately rules in Democrats' favor, it would represent a major legal victory for them that could help expand Congress's impeachment inquiry of President Donald Trump.
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| Giuliani Mulls Graham Invitation to Testify: Impeachment Update Posted: 08 Oct 2019 09:47 AM PDT  (Bloomberg) -- Gordon Sondland, the U.S. ambassador to the European Union, on Tuesday canceled his scheduled testimony before House impeachment investigators looking into President Donald Trump's activities involving Ukraine.Here are the latest developments:Giuliani Mulls Graham's Invitation to Testify (12:06 p.m.)Trump's personal lawyer Rudy Giuliani said he's not certain whether he'll take up Senate Judiciary Chairman Lindsey Graham's invitation to testify about Ukraine matters because his information may be privileged."Love Lindsey, but I am still a lawyer and I will have to deal with privilege," Giuliani told CNN. He added, "Given the nature of his invitation about my concerns I might be able to do it without discussing privileged information."House to Subpoena Envoy as Testimony Blocked (11:47 a.m.)Three House committees said they are subpoenaing one of Trump's top diplomats to provide documents and testimony after the State Department blocked him from appearing before the panels less than an hour before a closed-door hearing was to start.The Democratic chairmen said that among the things they're seeking from Gordon Sondland, the U.S. ambassador to the European Union, are "communications from his personal devices" that Sondland has turned over to the State Department.The State Department is withholding them from the committee, in defiance of a subpoena to Secretary Michael Pompeo, the chairmen said.Biden Spokesman Calls Giuliani a Liar (11:03 a.m.)Joe Biden's spokesman called Rudy Giuliani a "noted conspiracist and liar" and said calling him to testify before the Senate Judiciary Committee would "further discredit" the panel's reputation under Chairman Lindsey Graham.Biden spokesman Andrew Bates said in an emailed statement, "At this rate, all that comes out of Rudy Giuliani's mouth is just a noun, a verb, and a disproven lie about Joe Biden." -- Billy HouseGraham Invites Giuliani to Testify in Senate (10:19 a.m.)Senate Judiciary Chairman Lindsey Graham offered Trump's personal lawyer Rudy Giuliani the chance to appear before the panel to discuss his allegations related to Ukraine."Have heard on numerous occasions disturbing allegations by @RudyGiuliani about corruption in Ukraine," Graham tweeted in a veiled reference to allegations that Giuliani and Trump have made about Joe Biden and his son. -- Steven T. DennisSchiff Says Trump Team Obstructing Congress (9:45 a.m.)House Intelligence Chairman Adam Schiff said the Trump administration's decision to block testimony from a U.S. envoy central to an impeachment inquiry amounts to obstruction of Congress.Sondland's testimony to three panels leading the impeachment probe scheduled for Tuesday morning was abruptly canceled after the State Department ordered him not to appear.Schiff said the State Department also is withholding other records, including text messages.Republican Representative Jim Jordan said that the treatment of other witnesses by Democrats was part of the reason the administration pulled back from Sondland's appearance. He said the American people "have a right to know who the whistle-blower is." -- Billy HouseTrump Says Sondland Wouldn't Get Fair Hearing (9:30 a.m.)Trump said he "would love to send" Gordon Sondland to testify before the U.S. House in its impeachment inquiry but said the U.S. ambassador to the European Union wouldn't get a fair hearing from Congressional Democrats."Unfortunately he would be testifying before a totally compromised kangaroo court, where Republican's rights have been taken away, and true facts are not allowed out for the public," Trump tweeted Tuesday morning.Trump tweeted the statement hours after Sondland's lawyers issued a statement saying the State Department had blocked him from appearing. Sondland had been scheduled to give a deposition Tuesday morning. -- Nick WadhamsState Department Blocks Ambassador Testimony (8:36 a.m.)The State Department directed Sondland to cancel his scheduled testimony Tuesday, according to a letter from his attorney.Robert Luskin, the lawyer representing Sondland, said his client was ready to appear voluntarily to respond to the committee's questions behind closed doors, but the the State Department instructed the U.S. ambassador to the European Union to not show up. Luskin said Sondland had already worked out the logistics of his testimony with committee staff."Ambassador Sondland is profoundly disappointed that he will not be able to testify today," Luskin's letter said. "Ambassador Sondland hopes that the issues raised by the State Department that preclude his testimony will be resolved promptly. He stands ready to testify on short notice, whenever he is permitted to appear."Sondland, a hotel executive who donated $1 million to Trump's inaugural committee, came under increased scrutiny last week after Kurt Volker, the former special envoy to Ukraine, turned over text messages in his closed deposition that detailed Sondland's involvement in Ukraine issues. The texts show Sondland defending the efforts of Trump's personal attorney, Rudy Giuliani, to get Ukraine to look into Joe Biden and his son, even over concerns raised by other diplomats.House Intelligence Chairman Adam Schiff said he will make a statement at 9:30 a.m. on Sondland's cancellation. -- Billy HousePoll Shows Approval of Democrats' Inquiry (7:16 a.m.)A Washington Post poll showed 61% of respondents believe Democrats are "making a necessary stand against Trump's actions" by opening an impeachment inquiry, and 53% said Democrats are "acting to uphold their constitutional duties."That result is good news for Democrats who are trying to present the impeachment process as a serious responsibility for elected officials confronting allegations of presidential wrongdoing.Approval of how Democrats have handled the inquiry is split, with 49% of respondents saying they approve and 44% saying they disapprove. Republicans receive lower marks for their handling of the situation, with 33% of respondents approving and 56% disapproving.Overall support for beginning the impeachment probe is at 58%, while 49% say the House should actually impeach Trump and recommend that the Senate remove him from office.The poll was conducted Oct. 1-6 by the Schar School of Policy and Government at George Mason University and has a margin of error of 3.5 percentage points.Key EventsTrump said Monday that the whistle-blower report is "so off" and that the House impeachment inquiry is "a scam." He added: "You can't impeach a president for doing a good job."Three House committees subpoenaed documents from the Defense Department and White House Office of Management and Budget, including records of Trump's phone calls with the Ukraine president, opinions on the legality of withholding security aid from Ukraine and records on any efforts to ask that country to investigate Joe Biden and Hillary Clinton.Kurt Volker, the former U.S. envoy to Ukraine, said he'll step down as head of the McCain Institute, citing the "media focus" on his work in Ukraine. The institute named for late Senator John McCain is based at Arizona State University.(An earlier version corrected timing of subpoena and Schiff's title)\--With assistance from Nick Wadhams.To contact the reporters on this story: Billy House in Washington at bhouse5@bloomberg.net;Steven T. Dennis in Washington at sdennis17@bloomberg.netTo contact the editors responsible for this story: Joe Sobczyk at jsobczyk@bloomberg.net, Elizabeth Wasserman, Anna EdgertonFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
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| Ex-U.S. envoy Huntsman urges rethink of Russia sanctions in WSJ op-ed Posted: 08 Oct 2019 06:44 AM PDT  Days after ending his term in Moscow, former United States ambassador to Russia Jon Huntsman has urged Washington to review its sanctions-dominated approach to Russia, questioning its efficiency and calling for dialogue. The U.S. has placed multiple layers of sanctions on Russia, its senior officials and largest companies, as well as businessmen it views as connected to the Kremlin, the bulk of them linked to Moscow's role in the Ukrainian crisis which began in 2014 and has yet to be resolved. In a column https://www.wsj.com/articles/america-needs-dialogue-with-moscow-11570488054 for the Wall Street Journal published on Monday, Huntsman argued that "sanctions have become our go-to foreign policy tool to admonish misbehavior" but not all of them are having the desired effect.
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