Rudy Giuliani, President Donald Trump’s personal attorney, blasted House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff over his statement that the administration’s blocking of a key impeachment inquiry witness from testifying could help form an article of impeachment.
The California Democrat made the accusation after the State Department early Tuesday morning blocked testimony by U.S. Ambassador to the EU Gordon Sondland hours before his scheduled appearance at a closed-door session on Capitol Hill.
The Trump administration also refused to turn over text messages sent by Sondland related to concerns Trump was withholding security aid to Ukraine in an effort to get the government to investigate actions by Democrats during the 2016 election.
Giuiliani told the Washington Examiner that’s not a legitimate line of inquiry.
“Schiff is a great ground for challenging the legitimacy of the investigation as anything more than a partisan hearing to justify a partisan result he’s already decided and announced he wants,” Giuliani said. “Using taxpayer money is a fraud, and we will make sure he is held accountable for it. This should be paid by campaign funds.”
The former New York City mayor previously threatened a lawsuit against Schiff and demanded that the chairman of the intelligence committee be suspended from his post, over his handling of the investigation of the president.
Senate Judiciary Chairman Lindsey Graham criticized House members over their conduct related to their investigations into the Ukraine and invited Giuliani to testify before his committee to explain his involvement with the president’s conversation with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky back in July.
Giuliani declined to say if he has accepted Sen. Graham’s offer to testify before his committee.
