President Trump released the transcript of his first call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, which revealed the two exchanged pleasantries about food and the Miss Universe Pageant.
On Friday, the White House published the transcript from his first call with Zelensky, which Trump, 73, had touted as the “more important” call between the two. Trump appeared unafraid to release the transcript, which is likely because the conversation was entirely surface level.
I will be releasing the transcript of the first, and therefore more important, phone call with the Ukrainian President before week’s end!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 12, 2019
During the conversation, Trump congratulated Zelensky on his recent election, saying, “I have no doubt you will be a fantastic president.” Zelensky responded by inviting him to Ukraine for a visit.
“There’s no word that can describe our wonderful country,” Zelensky told Trump. “How nice, warm, and friendly our people are, how tasty and delicious our food is, and how wonderful Ukraine is. Words cannot describe our country, so it would be nice for you to see it yourself.”
Trump replied by complementing Ukraine’s delegation to the Miss Universe pageant, which he owned until 2015. The pageant aired on NBC, the same network as Trump’s show The Apprentice.
“I agree with you about your country, and I look forward to it. When I owned Miss Universe, they always had great people,” the president said. “Ukraine was always very well represented.”
Trump returned the invitation to Zelenzky and suggested that he visit the White House when he was “settled in and ready.”
Trump may have sold this as the more important call, but not a lot was said relating to the allegations in the House’s impeachment. Democrats alleged that Trump denied military aid to Ukraine unless Zelensky would announce an investigation into Joe Biden and his son, Hunter Biden.
Zelensky denied that he felt pressured by Trump during the second phone call.
