By all available accounts, President Trump treated since-ousted Ambassador to Ukraine Marie Yovanovitch abysmally. Lev Parnas likely lied to Trump that Yovanovitch disliked the president and wouldn’t advance his administration’s interests because Parnas saw some financial opportunity in her exit.

Rather than simply fire Yovanovitch, a consummate career diplomat who served at the pleasure of the president, Trump then enlisted his personal attorney Rudy Giuliani and son Don Jr. to orchestrate a prime-time smear campaign against her for months. Only after months of publicly humiliating her did Trump finally use his presidential power to fire her.