Rudy Giuliani has doubled down on his claim that he spearheaded efforts to remove US Ambassador to Ukraine Marie Yovanovitch, admitting in a Fox News interview Monday night that he ‘forced her out.’
Trump’s personal lawyer revealed earlier on Monday that he was instrumental in ousting the ambassador, telling the New Yorker: ‘I believed that I needed Yovanovitch out of the way.
‘She was going to make the investigations difficult for everybody.’
Asked to explain what he meant during an interview with Laura Ingraham, Giuliani altered his reasoning, saying: ‘I didn’t need her out of the way. I forced her out because she’s corrupt.’
Rudy Giuliani doubled down on his admission that he led efforts to remove US Ambassador to Ukraine Marie Yovanovitch during a Fox News interview on Monday night
Giuliani revealed earlier in the day that he was instrumental in ousting Yovanovitch because he saw her as an obstacle to the president digging up dirt on Democratic 2020 frontrunner Joe Biden’s son’s dealings in the eastern European country
Asked why he needed Yovanovitch out during the interview with Fox News’ Laura Ingraham on Monday night, Giuliani said: ‘I forced her out because she’s corrupt’
Testifying in House impeachment proceedings, Yovanovitch described being the target of a months-long smear campaign by Giuliani and other Trump allies who accused her of bad-mouthing the president and protecting Biden and other Democratic interests.
Yovanovitch asserted that her termination in May of this year was based on ‘unfounded and false claims by people with questionable motives’.
During Monday’s Fox News interview, Giuliani claimed to have ‘documentary evidence’ that Yovanovitch committed perjury.
‘There is no question that she was acting corruptly in that position and had to be removed,’ he said.
‘She should have been fired if the State Department were not part of the “deep state”.’
Giuliani said he had four witnesses who are willing to testify that Yovanovitch personally rejected their visa applications to come to the United States and present evidence against Biden and the Democratic Party.
Giuliani claims to have ‘documentary evidence’ that Yovanovitch committed perjury while testifying during House impeachment proceedings (pictured)
In an interview with the New York Times on Monday, Giuliani revealed that he briefed Trump ‘a couple of times’ on accounts of how Yovanovitch was, in his view, impeding investigations that could benefit the president, including the Biden probe.
Giuliani said Trump responded by connecting him with Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, who soon launched the effort to remove the ambassador.
Trump spoke out in support of his personal lawyer after Giuliani confirmed his role in Yovanovitch’s removal, calling him ‘a great crime fighter’.
Giuliani briefed Trump last week on the findings of his recent trip to Ukraine – an effort he undertook as Democrats took final committee action following an impeachment inquiry that featured numerous national security officials who raised concerns about Giuliani’s back-channel efforts.
Asked on Monday about what Giuliani had told him, Trump told reporters in the Oval Office: ‘Not too much. But he’s a very great crime fighter He was probably the greatest crime fighter over the last 50 years. Very smart.
‘He was the best mayor in the history of the city of New York. He’s a great person who loves our country, he and does this out of love, believe me, he does it out of love. He sees what goes on. He sees what’s happening.’
Trump spoke out in support of his personal lawyer after Giuliani confirmed his role in Yovanovitch’s removal, calling him ‘a great crime fighter’ during a press briefing Monday
Then Trump went after the Democratic-run impeachment effort in his only live comments of the day.
‘He sees all of the hoax that happens when they talk about impeachment hoax or the Russian collusion delusion. And he sees it. He’s a great gentleman,’ Trump said.
Trump also said Giuliani – whose public comments have sometimes raised difficulties in Trump’s defense – ‘knows what he is doing.’
Two of Giuliani’s associates, Lev Parnas and Igor Fruman, have been indicted on campaign finance charges.
The New Yorker piece describes how Giuliani compiled a dossier on Joe Biden and his son Hunter, as well as Yovanovitch, whom he viewed as standing in the way of his efforts.
Trump praised Giuliani in his infamous July 25 phone call to the president of Ukraine, where he also runs down Yovanovitch.
Giuliani briefed Trump last week on the findings of his recent trip to Ukraine – an effort he undertook as Democrats took final committee action following an impeachment inquiry that featured numerous national security officials who raised concerns about Giuliani’s back-channel efforts. Giuliani is seen meeting with Ukrainian lawmaker Adriii Derkach in Kyiv on December 5