Political Quotes

“Thank you. I send a question to the desk for the President's counsel. The CHIEF JUSTICE. Senator Capito's question is for counsel for the President: You said that Ukrainian officials didn't know about the pause on aid until August 28, 2019, when it was reported in POLITICO. But didn't Laura Cooper, the deputy assistant secretary of defense for Russia, say that members of her staff received queries about the aid from the Ukrainian Embassy on July 25? Does that mean that Ukrainian officials knew about the hold on aid earlier than the POLITICO article? Mr. Counsel PURPURA. Mr. Chief Justice, Members of the Senate, Senator, thank you for your question. It does not mean that. As we explained on Saturday, the overwhelming body of evidence indicates that the Ukrainians, at the very highest levels--President Zelensky and his top advisers--only became aware of the pause in the security assistance through the August 28 POLITICO article. I addressed this on Saturday--and so those comments will stand--the emails that Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense Laura Cooper testified about previously. What she had said was that she--her staff-- had gotten emails from someone at the State Department who had had some sort of conversation with Ukrainian officials here that somehow related to the aid at a time prior to August 28. She did not know the substance of the emails or whether they mention ``hold,'' ``pause,'' ``review,'' or anything of that nature.…”