During a visit with Trump-worshiper Maria Bartiromo, Rudy Giuliani said, “I can’t tell you” if it’s “100 percent” false that Trump threatened to cut off aid to Ukraine.
Yesterday, Donald Trump acknowledged he accused Joe Biden of corruption during a July 25 phone call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. The Wall Street Journal has reported that Trump “repeatedly pressured” Zelensky to investigate Biden. However, despite the fact that Trump had blocked aid to Ukraine at the time, no explicit quid pro quo has been reported.
So you have to wonder why Giuliani didn’t fully deny it during this exchange with Bartiromo this morning:
BARTIROMO: Did the president threaten to cut off aid to Ukraine?
GIULIANI: No, no. That was a false story.
BARTIROMO: 100 percent?
GIULIANI: Well, I can't tell you if it's 100 percent.
Was this a Giuliani fumble or was he trying to take the sting out of a revelation to come? Lapdog Bartiromo could have just dropped the question once Giuliani said it was “a false story.” Since she almost surely knew in advance what Giuliani wanted to say in the interview, this may not be quite as accidental as it might seem. On the other hand, sometimes a Ukraine cigar is just a cigar.
Watch it below, from the September 23, 2019 Mornings with Maria, via Aaron Rupar.
BARTIROMO: Did the president threaten to cut off aid to Ukraine?
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) September 23, 2019
GIULIANI: No, no. That was a false story.
BARTIROMO: 100 percent?
GIULIANI: Well I can't tell you if it's 100% percent. pic.twitter.com/ApBGsK6kZz
Thank the gods for the total recall modern IT has brought us – nothing will be buried or deniable.
Does anyone really believe that the Orange Baboon didn’t say somehing to this effect: “Once you (Ukraine government) finish investigating Hunter Biden’s corruption, I can release those military aid dollars to you.”
Quoting UNIAN:
“’I know what the conversation was about and I think there was no pressure. There was talk, conversations are different, leaders have the right to discuss any problems that exist. This conversation was long, friendly, and it touched on a lot of questions, including those requiring serious answers,’ Prystaiko added.
As UNIAN reported, Zelensky’s press service said on July 25 that during a telephone conversation, Trump expressed his conviction that the new Ukrainian government would be able to quickly improve Ukraine’s image and complete an investigation into corruption cases that had hindered interaction between Ukraine and the United States."
Read more on UNIAN: https://www.unian.info/politics/10694958-fm-prystaiko-no-pressure-from-trump-on-zelensky-over-phone.html