2020 Democrats seize on Trump, Ukraine transcript: ‘This is a smoking gun’

Several 2020 Democratic presidential candidates on Wednesday seized on a newly released memorandum of a July phone call showing President Trump expressed hope that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky could “look into” former Vice President Joe Biden. 

Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), one of the primary field’s front-runners and a fierce supporter of impeachment, called the transcript a “smoking gun,” adding that Trump “is in very deep jeopardy.”

This “transcript” itself is a smoking gun. If this is the version of events the president’s team thinks is most favorable, he is in very deep jeopardy. We need to see the full whistleblower complaint and the administration needs to follow the law. Now. https://t.co/b56nLZZpRi

— Elizabeth Warren (@ewarren) September 25, 2019

“They admit it: Trump pressured the Ukrainian president to work with the U.S. Attorney General to investigate a political opponent. He must be impeached,” added Sen. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.).

They admit it: Trump pressured the Ukrainian president to work with the U.S. Attorney General to investigate a political opponent. He must be impeached. pic.twitter.com/JCjTbaQI8w

— Kamala Harris (@KamalaHarris) September 25, 2019

“This is the smoking gun,” echoed former Housing and Urban Development Secretary Julián Castro, adding that Congress should cancel its upcoming recess to begin impeachment proceedings. 

This is the smoking gun.

Donald Trump pressured a foreign government to work with his Justice Department to investigate a political opponent.

Congress should cancel recess and begin impeachment proceedings immediately. #TrumpImpeachment pic.twitter.com/yUC0fJW40l

— Julián Castro (@JulianCastro) September 25, 2019

Other 2020 Democrats also weighed in on the document, with entrepreneur Tom Steyer labeling Trump a “traitor” over his request to Zelensky.

There it is. He did it. Donald Trump is a traitor. https://t.co/KcJrK0eQLy

— Tom Steyer (@TomSteyer) September 25, 2019

This confirms what we already knew: President Trump asked a foreign power to investigate a political rival. He’s unfit for office and needs to be impeached. https://t.co/2px07X8N7K

— Beto O’Rourke (@BetoORourke) September 25, 2019

This is how an incompetent mobster does business. https://t.co/KXXLLOUGwG

— Steve Bullock (@GovernorBullock) September 25, 2019

Donald Trump is the most corrupt president in the modern history of this country.

— Bernie Sanders (@BernieSanders) September 25, 2019

We said he’s been corrupting the office since the beginning. Today the White House agreed.

— Cory Booker (@CoryBooker) September 25, 2019

{mosads}The five-page memorandum shows Trump asked Zelensky to look into Biden’s role in the firing of a Ukrainian prosecutor who was investigating a natural gas company on whose board Biden’s son sat. No evidence has emerged that Biden, who is also a 2020 White House hopeful, was working with his son’s interests in mind.

“There’s a lot of talk about Biden’s son, that Biden stopped the prosecution and a lot of people want to find out about that so whatever you can do with the Attorney General would be great,” Trump said on the July 25 call with his Ukrainian counterpart. “Biden went around bragging that he stopped the prosecution so if you can look into it. … It sounds horrible to me.” 

The memorandum, which is not a verbatim transcript of the conversation, was released a day after Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) announced the House was launching a formal impeachment investigation that was triggered by Trump’s dealings with Ukraine. Democrats have expressed concerns that Trump pressured Kiev into opening a probe into Biden and may have leveraged military aid to do so. 

The conversation also led to a whistleblower complaint that expressed alarm over a “promise” Trump made. The White House will provided a copy of the complaint to Congress.