DNI did not threaten to resign over Trump-Zelensky call 'whistleblower' – but don't tell the WaPo that
by مخبر
DNI did not threaten to resign over Trump-Zelensky call ‘whistleblower’ – but don’t tell the WaPo that
Acting Director of National Intelligence Joseph Maguire says he did not threaten to resign over concerns the White House would try to silence his testimony regarding the Trump-Zelensky “whistleblower” as the WaPo reported it.
“At no time have I considered resigning my position since assuming this role on August 16, 2019,” Maguire said in a statement released on Wednesday after the Washington Post claimed he had threatened to do just that.
“I have never quit anything in my life and I am not about to start now.”
According to “current and former US officials familiar with the matter” cited by the Post, Maguire was prepared to quit in opposition to the White House attempts to stop him from testifying about what it called the “explosive” whistleblower complaint regarding President Donald Trump’s discussion with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, during which the president allegedly threatened to withhold military aid if Ukraine did not reopen an investigation into the corruption of former Vice President Joe Biden’s son’s company. Maguire is scheduled to testify in open and closed hearings before Congress about the complaint on Thursday.
White House Press Secretary Stephanie Grisham also denied Maguire had threatened to resign, noting in a tweet that “we would have gone on the record to say that if the Washington Post had given us more than 6 minutes (literally) to respond.”
This is actually not true. And we would have gone on the record to say that if the @washingtonpost had given us more than 6 minutes (literally) to respond. https://t.co/5EBnBlShbK
The Justice Department released a transcript of the fateful call on Wednesday morning, revealing the alleged quid-pro-quo was essentially a figment of the imagination of the “whistleblower” – who had not actually heard the call firsthand.
