Witnesses pointed their fingers at a number of figures close to President Trump who could help untangle the web around the administration’s dealings with Ukraine during the public impeachment hearings. But Democrats won’t be hearing from them.
The White House has prevented the president’s chief of staff, his former national security adviser, budget officials and two individuals named as part of the alleged rogue channel behind a push for investigations by Kyiv — his personal attorney and outgoing energy secretary — from testifying before Congress.
Democrats could go to court to try to force the officials to testify, but they don’t want to further delay their inquiry and so have decided to move forward without the additional testimony.
The stalemate highlights that even as much of the White House’s defense strategy has been criticized as flawed or disjointed, it has succeeded in keeping crucial witnesses from speaking with Congress.
