WASHINGTON, Oct. 2 (Xinhua) -- Tensions between U.S. President Donald Trump and congressional Democrats escalated as the Democratic-controlled House continued Wednesday to proceed with the impeachment inquiry against the president.
The impeachment inquiry, announced by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Sept. 24, stemmed from a whistleblower complaint alleging that Trump pressured Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky during a July 25 phone call to investigate Joe Biden, Democratic presidential candidate for the 2020 election, as well as issues related to alleged Russian interference in the 2016 election.
TRUMP DENIES IMPEACHMENT ALLEGATIONS
Increasingly under pressure, Trump told reporters Wednesday at the White House that the Democrats' effort to impeach him over his alleged inappropriate interactions with Zelensky was "the greatest hoax."
With visiting Finnish President Sauli Niinisto standing next to him and listening, Trump vented his fury, saying the impeachment inquiry "is a fraudulent crime on the American people."
The president's press conference was preceded by one featuring Pelosi and House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff.
Pelosi said her chamber had "no choice but to go forward" with the impeachment proceedings, while Schiff warned the White House against attempting to "stonewall" ongoing investigations by House committees into the matter, adding such actions "will be considered further evidence of obstruction of justice."
In a show of confidence, Trump said he will work with "shifty Schiff and Pelosi and all of them."
Trump asked Zelensky on the phone to cooperate with his personal attorney Rudy Giuliani and Attorney General William Barr to investigate a Ukrainian gas company that might be related to Biden, the former vice president of the United States, and his son, Hunter Biden, according to a rough transcript of the call released Sept. 25 by the White House.
The president also requested that his Ukrainian counterpart turn over the computer servers owned by the Democratic National Committee that investigators probing alleged Russian interference in the 2016 election said were hacked by Russia, according to a redacted version of the whistleblower complaint released Sept. 26 by the House intelligence panel.
Holding in his hands a copy of a New York Times report on Wednesday saying Schiff got an early account of the whistleblower's accusations, Trump said at the press conference that it was a "scandal" that Schiff knew the whistleblower complaint before it was filed. "I'd go a step further -- I think he probably helped write it. OK? That's what the word is," he added.
"SCHIFF IS A FRAUD!" Trump claimed in a tweet embedded with a video clip of his press conference with Niinisto. He wrote in an earlier tweet that Schiff "completely fabricated my words (with Zelensky) and read them to Congress as though they were said by me."
IMPEACHMENT INQUIRY GRINDS ON
Schiff's spokesperson, Patrick Boland, confirmed that the whistleblower had contacted the Intelligence committee "for guidance on how to report possible wrongdoing within the jurisdiction of the intelligence community," according to the Times report. The spokesperson insisted that Schiff didn't get the whistleblower complaint in advance.
House Oversight and Reform Committee Chairman Elijah Cummings in a memo notified committee members Wednesday that the panel, in consultation with the Intelligence and Foreign Affairs committees, will issue a subpoena to the White House on Friday, requesting Ukraine-related records.
The three committees have already subpoenaed Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Giuliani, who the whistleblower complaint claimed has been a central figure in the administration's dealings with Ukraine. The two were asked to submit related documents.
Speaking at a press conference in Rome on Wednesday, Pompeo admitted that he was on the July 25 phone call between Trump and Zelensky. "I was on the phone call... I know precisely what the American policy is with respect to Ukraine. It's been remarkably consistent, and we will continue to try to drive those set of outcomes," he said.
The secretary later said in an interview with Italy's Sky TG24 that the State Department would "try and cooperate" with Congress and its impeachment inquiry.
Also on Wednesday, State Department Inspector General Steve Linick requested an "urgent" private briefing on Capitol Hill, during which he reportedly provided documents containing allegations against the Bidens that are similar to those claimed by Giuliani.
Giuliani said Wednesday that some information contained in the documents originated from him, according to a report by the CNN.
"The briefing and documents raise troubling questions about apparent efforts inside and outside the Trump Administration to target specific officials," said a statement issued jointly by Schiff, Cummings and House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Eliot Engel.
"The documents provided by the Inspector General included a package of disinformation, debunked conspiracy theories, and baseless allegations in an envelope marked 'White House' and containing folders labeled 'Trump Hotel.' These documents also reinforce concern that the president and his allies sought to use the machinery of the State Department to further the president's personal political interest," the three chairmen said in the statement.
In a statement issued Tuesday, they warned Pompeo to "immediately cease intimidating Department witnesses in order to protect himself and the President."
