He wouldn't finger Trump for saying directly to him that the aid to Ukraine was contingent upon announcing investigations into Biden/Burisma/2016 elections. He placed blame directly on Rudy Giuliani (the bus heading for Rudy is getting closer and larger) and the State Department for Sondland's earlier deposition lies and lack of recollection, because they will not permit him to access any notes or documents that might help him place things in chronology or job his memory. He also said the White House will not allow him to see a readout of the phone call between him and Trump on that 7/26 phone call Holmes reported. There's a reason they won't release documents.
One of the first statements in Sondland's opening statement was, "We did not want to work with Rudy Giuliani." While he denied that Trump ever said anything to him about the investigations, he said that Rudy's requests were definitely a quid pro quo and that Rudy was expressing the desires of the president.
Sondland also dragged Mike Pompeo into the path of that bus. He says they kept Pompeo (and a litany of other people, including Rick Perry and Mick Mulvaney) informed of everything. "They knew what we were doing and why....Everyone was in the loop." He said Pompeo often wanted emails from Sondland sent through Pompeo's executive secretary Lisa Kenna. Not a particularly good way to keep the heat off Pompeo - I assume Kenna will be questioned in some fashion.
He also said that Pompeo was still working with Rudy as late as September.
McClatchy already has an article up on this: Pompeo is directly implicated in Ukraine scandal by Sondland in impeachment testimony.
Sondland also dragged Mike Pence into the path. Or at least at the edge, and if the bus gets any larger, it will take him down with the others.
Yesterday, the Democrats took lots of heat from the Republicans for turning from using the term quid pro quo to bribery. At some point - maybe his closing remarks yesterday - Adam Schiff gave a definition of bribery to the effect it's withholding an official act for something of value. (I'm not sure why they don't just say, "What the fuck do you people think quid pro quo means?" Unless it's because the Constitutional provision for impeachment specifically includes bribery in the language.)
This morning, in his questioning of Sondland, Schiff asked a series of questions that were obviously meant to unequivocally make the case, without using the word bribery, but getting Sondland to say about certain things that they were "official acts." That little morsel is lying in wait. It'll come up again.
At one point in Sondland's opening statement he stressed there was something mysterious about the date August 26 when Bolton's office asked Sondland for Rudy Giuliani's contact information. I'm still waiting for someone to explain that.
At the end of his statement, Sondland said, "It's an honor to serve the people of the United States as ambassador." Nothing about serving Trump or this administration. That seems quite intentional. And he might not be serving for much longer after today.
Where we are in the hearing at this point (early into GOP counsel Castor's interrogation), Sondland is getting testy. ("I'm not going to say whether I believed him [Trump] or not.") He says he's just stating what he knows. Castor's approach is not working if he wants to get Sondland on record in their favor.
Before Sondland gave his statement, Nunes, in his opener, told him, "The Democrats are going to try to smear you." Sondland seemed pleased to think the Republicans had his back. I'm guessing he's getting the opposite picture now.
To be continued...
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