What Went Down On Day 3 Of The Trump Impeachment Hearings

When is a “favor” a “demand”? “The power disparity between the two leaders” makes it so, Vindman says. That echoes testimony last week that Ukraine needs the U.S. as an ally so much that a polite request would reasonably be read as more than that.

“Without hesitation I knew that I had to report this to the White House counsel. It was my duty to report to the proper people in the chain of command. As I said in my statement, it was inappropriate, improper, for the president to demand an investigation into a political opponent, especially a foreign power,” says Vindman about the July 25 call.

Vindman reported his concerns about the request for investigations to the NSC’s legal counsel twice — first after the July 10 meeting where he and other witnesses say Sondland tied a White House meeting to investigations, and again after the July 25 call.