Jimmy Carter calls out Trump administration for ‘trying to stonewall’ impeachment inquiry

by Justin Wise - 10/08/19 2:41 PM ET

Former President Jimmy Carter (D) on Tuesday called out the White House for “trying to stonewall” the House Democrats’ impeachment inquiry, saying that blocking administration officials’ testimony would only serve as more evidence against President Trump.

Carter, who served as president between 1977 and 1981, was asked on MSNBC if the White House was right to block key officials’ testimony.

He replied that he thinks the “fact that the White House is trying to stonewall and not provide adequate information” is a “departure from custom and … what American people expect.”

{mosads}“I think that’s going to be another item of evidence used against [Trump] if he continues to stonewall and prevent evidence to be put forward to the House and Senate to consider,” Carter added, before advising Trump to “tell the truth” and “cut back on his Twitter feed” amid the congressional inquiry.

A wave of revelations regarding Trump’s interactions with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky led Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) to announce a formal impeachment inquiry last month. As part of the inquiry, chairmen of multiple House committees have called for testimony and documents from several officials with ties to the president’s dealings with Ukraine, setting up a contentious battle with the administration.

European Union Ambassador Gordon Sondland was expected to privately testify before Congress on Tuesday. Just hours before his scheduled deposition, the State Department ordered Sondland not to appear.

Democrats are interested in speaking with Sondland about his role in the president’s effort to encourage Ukraine to investigate former Vice President Joe Biden and his son over unfounded allegations of corruption.

“Not only is the Congress being deprived of his testimony, and the American people are being deprived of his testimony today, but we are also aware that the ambassador has text messages or emails on a personal device which have been provided to the State Department,” House Intelligence Committee chairman Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) told reporters shortly after the State Department blocked Sondland’s testimony, adding that the State Department was withholding those messages as well.

Schiff claimed that the messages were “deeply relevant” to the impeachment inquiry and that the Trump administration’s failure to allow the witnesses to testify was “strong evidence of obstruction.”

Trump has, meanwhile, fiercely defended his administration’s decision, saying that Sondland’s testimony would have appeared before a “totally compromised kangaroo court.”

Tags Adam Schiff Donald Trump Jimmy Carter Joe Biden Nancy Pelosi