WASHINGTON — The Trump administration directed a top American diplomat involved in its pressure campaign on Ukraine not to appear Tuesday morning for a scheduled interview in the House’s impeachment inquiry.
The decision to block Gordon D. Sondland, the United States ambassador to the European Union, from speaking with investigators for three House committees is certain to provoke an immediate conflict with potentially profound consequences for the White House and President Trump. House Democrats have repeatedly warned that if the administration tries to interfere with their investigation, it will be construed as obstruction, a charge they see as potentially worthy of impeachment.
Democrats from the House Intelligence, Foreign Affairs and Oversight and Government Affairs committees did not immediately respond on Tuesday.
But in making the decision, hours before he was scheduled to sit for a deposition in the basement of the Capitol, the Trump administration appears to be calculating that it is better off risking the House’s ire than letting Mr. Sondland show up and set a precedent for cooperation with an inquiry they have strenuously argued is illegitimate.
Robert Luskin, Mr. Sondland’s lawyer, said in a statement that as a State Department employee, his client had no choice but to comply with the administration’s direction. He said Mr. Sondland had been prepared and happy to testify, and would do so in the future if allowed.
“Ambassador Sondland is profoundly disappointed that he will not be able to testify today,” Mr. Luskin said. “Ambassador Sondland believes strongly that he acted at all times in the best interests of the United States, and he stands ready to answer the committee’s questions fully and truthfully.”
Mr. Sondland has become enmeshed in the burgeoning scandal into how the president sought to push the Ukrainians to investigate his political rivals. Although Ukraine is not in the union, Mr. Trump instructed Mr. Sondland — a wealthy hotelier and campaign contributor — to take a lead in relations between the Trump administration and the country. Democrats consider him a key witness to what transpired between the two countries.
Mr. Sondland interacted directly with Mr. Trump, speaking with the president several times around key moments that House Democrats are now investigating, including before and after Mr. Trump’s July call with the new Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelensky. The president asked Mr. Zelensky on the call to do him “a favor” and investigate the business dealings of Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr.’s son and a conspiracy theory about Ukrainian meddling in the 2016 election.
Text messages provided to Congress last week showed that Mr. Sondland and another senior diplomat had worked on language for a statement they wanted the Ukrainian president to put out in August that would have committed him to the investigations sought by Mr. Trump. The diplomats consulted with Mr. Trump’s personal lawyer, Rudolph W. Giuliani, about the statement, believing they needed pacify him in order to allow the United States to normalize relations with the Ukrainians.
Mr. Sondland was also involved in a back and forth with top American diplomats to Ukraine over text last month demonstrating that some senior State Department officials believed that Mr. Trump may have been holding up $391 million in security aid for Ukraine as leverage for getting its leaders to conduct the investigations Mr. Trump wanted.
“As I said on the phone, I think it’s crazy to withhold security assistance for help with a political campaign,” William B. Taylor Jr., a top American official in Ukraine, wrote in one exchange in early September.
After receiving the text, Mr. Sondland called Mr. Trump, who asserted it was false.
“Bill, I believe you are incorrect about President Trump’s intentions,” Mr. Sondland wrote in the messages. “The President has been crystal clear no quid pro quo’s of any kind.”
Mr. Sondland added: “I suggest we stop the back and forth by text.”
There have been conflicting accounts of Mr. Sondland’s views, however. Senator Ron Johnson, Republican of Wisconsin, told The Wall Street Journal last week that Mr. Sondland had told him in August that the release of the aid was contingent upon Ukraine opening the investigations. Mr. Johnson was alarmed and asked Mr. Trump if there was a quid pro quo involved. The president adamantly denied it, he said.
The British government warned Tuesday that it will be “essentially impossible” to strike a Brexit deal with the European Union if the bloc continues to stand by a key trade demand involving Northern Ireland.
The grim assessment from Prime Minister Boris Johnson's office following a phone call between the British leader and German Chancellor Angela Merkel comes just weeks before an Oct. 31 deadline to leave the EU. The EU has been responding coolly to the U.K.'s plan for maintaining an open Irish border after Brexit, which has been the main stumbling block to a deal.
Downing St. said Merkel told the prime minister Tuesday morning that "a deal is overwhelmingly unlikely" unless Northern Ireland remains in a customs union with the EU — something the U.K. says it can't allow.
It added that "if this represents a new established position, then it means a deal is essentially impossible not just now but ever."
A European Union flag flies near Parliament in London on Tuesday. (AP)
Currently, goods and people flow freely between EU member Ireland and the U.K.'s Northern Ireland. The EU and the U.K. have agreed there must be no checks or infrastructure along that border, yet Britain wants to leave the EU's customs union so it can strike new trade deals around the world, making some sort of checks on goods crossing that border all but inevitable.
Under a proposed U.K. Brexit plan there would be customs checks, but Britain says they could be conducted away from Northern Ireland’s border.
However, EU officials oppose any customs checks and are skeptical of U.K. claims they could be achieved through largely untested technology. EU leaders also have been sharply critical of a proposal that would give Northern Ireland's legislature an effective veto on key elements of the Irish border arrangements in the future.
Johnson has urged European leaders to compromise and sit down for face-to-face talks. So far, the EU is resisting, saying the U.K. must show more "realism" in its proposals.
“At stake is the future of Europe and the UK, as well as the security and interests of our people,” European Council President Donald Tusk tweeted at Johnson on Tuesday, adding that “what’s at stake is not winning some stupid blame game.”
Britain's Prime Minister Boris Johnson speaks to mental health professionals during his visit to Watford General Hospital, in Watford, on Monday. (AP)
The last scheduled opportunity to reach a deal is Oct. 17-18, when all 28 EU leaders, including Johnson, are due to meet in Brussels. French President Emmanuel Macron has said the EU will decide by the end of this week whether a deal is possible, or whether the two sides should buckle up for a rocky no-deal departure.
Johnson insists the U.K. will leave the EU on Oct. 31 even without a deal. But many in the EU — and in Britain — are skeptical that Britain will leave the bloc that day, because the U.K. Parliament has passed a law compelling the government to ask the EU for a delay to Brexit if no deal is agreed upon by Oct. 19.
Keir Starmer, the Brexit spokesman for the main opposition Labour Party, said Downing St.’s statement Tuesday was "yet another cynical attempt by No. 10 to sabotage the negotiations."
"Boris Johnson will never take responsibility for his own failure to put forward a credible deal. His strategy from Day One has been for a no-deal Brexit," he said.
Boris Johnson, the embattled British prime minister, told Germany’s Angela Merkel that as long as the European Union insists Northern Ireland stays in the EU’s customs union, a Brexit deal is "essentially impossible," Bloomberg reported early Tuesday.
Last week, Johnson's government delivered a new proposal to the EU, focused on maintaining an open border between the U.K.’s Northern Ireland and EU member Ireland -- the key sticking point to a Brexit deal. The U.K. proposes to do that by keeping Northern Ireland closely aligned to EU rules for trade in goods, possibly for an extended period.
Johnson made the comment in a phone call with Merkel, Bloomberg reported.
The bloc says the proposals don't meet the U.K.'s commitment to a frictionless border, because there would have to be customs checks on some goods, and because the arrangement would be subject to review by politicians in Northern Ireland.
Johnson has urged EU leaders to compromise and sit down for face-to-face talks. So far, the EU is resisting, saying the U.K. must show more "realism" in its proposals.
Fox News' Greg Norman, Edmund DeMarche and the Associated Press contributed to this report
New whistleblower could blow up Trump's main argument
Key facts and latest news
The House committees leading the impeachment probe issued subpoenas to the Pentagon and White House budget office, demanding documents about freezing military aid to Ukraine.
"Multiple whistleblowers" have come forward, according to the attorneys representing the original whistleblower.
On a July call between President Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, Mr. Trump urged Ukraine to investigate Joe Biden. Before the call, the president instructed acting chief of staff Mick Mulvaney to hold off on releasing military aid to Ukraine that had been appropriated by Congress.
Soon after the July call, White House officials moved a record of the call to a highly classified computer system, severely restricting who could access it.
"The enclosed subpoena demands documents that are necessary for the Committees to examine this sequence of these events and the reasons behind the White House's decision to withhold critical military assistance to Ukraine that was appropriated by Congress to counter Russian aggression," the committees' chairmen said in a release.
A Pentagon spokesman said the department "proactively issued an internal directive to retain documents related to this issue. As we've stated previously, we are prepared to work with Congress and other relevant parties on questions related to the issue of Ukrainian aid as appropriate."
On Sunday, the attorneys representing the whistleblower who filed a complaint about President Trump's dealings with Ukraine said they are representing "multiple whistleblowers" in connection to the case, including one with "first hand knowledge" of events.
"I can confirm that my firm and my team represent multiple whistleblowers in connection to the underlying August 12, 2019, disclosure to the Intelligence Community Inspector General," attorney Andrew Bakaj tweeted Sunday. "No further comment at this time."
Mark Zaid, another member of the first whistleblower's legal team, also said the team is representing a second official with first-hand knowledge of events, as first reported by ABC News. The original whistleblower had not heard or seen a transcript of the phone call between Mr. Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky at the center of the August 12 complaint.
"I can confirm this report of a second #whistleblower being represented by our legal team," Zaid tweeted. "They also made a protected disclosure under the law and cannot be retaliated against. This WBer has first hand knowledge." -- Stefan Becket
Democrats considering "extraordinary" steps to protect whistleblower's identity
6:08 p.m.: In an interview on CNN, Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi, a Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, confirmed the committee is considering "extraordinary moves" to protect the whistleblower's identity in a still-unscheduled upcoming interview.
"We have to take all precautions, because we cannot burn his or her identity," Krishnamoorthi told CBS News.
The potential measures -- including obscuring the whistleblower's appearance and voice -- were first reported by The Washington Post on Monday.
The measures the committee is considering are extremely rare. A Senate Intelligence Committee aide said they could not think of a time when their committee has taken such steps to protect an interviewee's identity. The person said the closest parallel they could think of was when the chair and vice chair offered to fly to London to interview Christopher Steele, the author of a dossier detailing ties between the Trump campaign and Russia who had legal concerns about traveling to the U.S.
The measures the House committee is considering, this aide said, "speak to concerns about the ranking member and his intentions." In other words, Democrats are worried that Devin Nunes, the top Republican on the committee, will share the whistleblower's identity with the White House.
On the Senate side, "I can't think of a time when we needed to conceal someone's identity from the other party," the aide said.
Nunes relinquished his leadership of the House committee's Russia probe after he was accused of coordinating with the White House to disclose classified information aimed at embarrassing the previous administration. -- Nancy Cordes
Trump calls impeachment inquiry a "scam"
President Trump speaks after a signing ceremony for a trade agreement with Japan in the Roosevelt Room of the White House, Monday, October 7, 2019, in Washington.
Evan Vucci / AP
4:54 p.m.: After signing a pair of trade deals with Japan at the White House, the president took questions from reporters and called the impeachment probe a "scam."
"The impeachment inquiry is a scam. The conversation that I had with the Ukrainian president, Zelensky, was a very good, it was a very cordial conversation," Mr. Trump said.
He again criticized House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff for paraphrasing his remarks on the call during a congressional hearing last week, calling him a "fraud." -- Stefan Becket
GOP senator says Trump "should not have raised the Biden issue" on Ukraine call
Senator Rob Portman speaks to reporters outside Wyoming High School in Wyoming, Ohio, on June 22, 2017.
Afp Contributor / AFP/Getty Images
4:21 p.m.: Republican Senator Rob Portman of Ohio said the president raising the prospect of investigating the Bidens on the July 25 call with the president of Ukraine was "not appropriate" but said he doesn't think it rises to the level of an impeachable offense.
"The president should not have raised the Biden issue on that call, period. It's not appropriate for a president to engage a foreign government in an investigation of a political opponent," Portman said in an interview with The Columbus Dispatch published Monday. "I don't view it as an impeachable offense. I think the House frankly rushed to impeachment assuming certain things."
The president called Portman "honorable" last week after Portman said he was given a "consistent reason" for the delay in releasing Ukraine aid. -- Stefan Becket
Trump to speak at trade agreement signing
3:12 p.m.: The president is expected to speak at a signing of two trade agreements with Japan in the Roosevelt Room at the White House. Watch live here.
Pentagon and Office of Management and Budget subpoenaed
12:39 p.m.: The Pentagon and the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) have been subpoenaed for documents in House Democrats' impeachment inquiry.
House Intelligence Chairman Adam Schiff, Oversight and Reform Committee Chairman Elijah Cummings and Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Eliot Engel wrote to Defense Secretary Mark Esper and OMB Acting Director Russell Vought on Monday informing them of the subpoenas.
"Pursuant to the House of Representatives' impeachment inquiry, we are hereby transmitting a subpoena that compels you to produce the documents set forth in the accompanying schedule by October 15, 2019," the chairmen wrote in their letter.
The White House was also subpoenaed for documents late Friday.
At least one week before Mr. Trump spoke by phone with the Ukrainian president in late July, he instructed his acting chief of staff, Mick Mulvaney, to hold off on releasing nearly $400 million in military aid for Ukraine that had already been appropriated by Congress. A senior administration official with direct knowledge of the Trump administration's actions regarding the funds previously confirmed to CBS News the delay in military aid.
Larry Kudlow says he doesn't know if Trump was joking about China investigating Bidens
11:57 a.m.: Top Trump adviser Larry Kudlow, asked if the president was joking when he said the Chinese should investigate the Bidens, as some Republicans have suggested, responded, "I don't honestly know, I don't honestly know."
Kudlow made the comments to reporters on the White House driveway after a television hit.
Senator Marco Rubio said he believed the president was just trying to rile up journalists by suggesting China investigate the Bidens. House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy said on "Fox and Friends" Monday the president did not mean for China to investigate the Bidens.
"Well I would think that if they were honest about it they'd start a major investigation into the Bidens," Mr. Trump said on the South Lawn Friday. "It's a very simple answer. They should investigate the Bidens because how does a company that's newly formed -- and all these companies if you look at, and by the way likewise, China -- should start an investigation into the Bidens."
Trump tweets to bring "another whistleblower from the bench"
8:11 a.m. President Trump weighed in on revelations that a second whistleblower has stepped forward with details of his call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
"IG: DECLASSIFIED INFORMATION CONTRADICTS THE WHISTLEBLOWER." @foxandfriends But why are people surprised? The "partisan" Whistleblower was very wrong on what was said on my perfect, "no pressure," call with the Ukrainian President. Bring in another Whistleblower from the bench!
Mr. Trump, quoting a "Fox and Friends" segment, slammed the original whistleblower as "partisan," and then dared another whistleblower to come forward "from the bench."
Defending Trump against impeachment is getting harder for GOP
7:12 a.m. If the House does move to impeach Mr. Trump, it would be up to the Republican-controlled Senate to hold his trial.
Just a handful of Republicans have raised concerns over the president's contacts with foreign leaders, but there does not seem to be a unified defense of the president. Privately, some Republicans say it just isn't worth it to take him on, even if they disapprove of his actions.
One reason why? The president hits back, and his approval rating within the Republican Party remains strong. The latest Gallup Poll, which was taken as reports of the president's call to Ukraine unfolded, shows his approvals at 87% among Republicans.
Maine Senator Susan Collins is one of the few Republicans willing to call the president out. She told the Bangor Daily News, "I thought the president made a big mistake by asking China to get involved in investigating a political opponent."
Nebraska Senator Ben Sasse said in a statement to the Omaha World-Herald that "Americans don't look to Chinese commies for truth." And Utah Senator Mitt Romney called the president's plea "wrong and appalling."
Still, most Republicans have downplayed Mr. Trump's actions or kept quiet, as defending him has become more difficult.
"I doubt if the China comment was serious, to tell you the truth," Republican Senator Roy Blunt said on "Face the Nation" this Sunday.
Blunt says not to take Trump's request for Biden probes seriously
Asked if he doesn't take the president at his word, Blunt said, "The president was -- no, the president loves to go out on the White House driveway. I haven't talked to him about this. I don't know what the president was thinking. But I know he loves to bait the press." -- Nancy Cordes
New whisleblower doesn't change White House strategy, Trump attorney says
6:20 a.m.: Mr. Trump's personal attorney Jay Sekulow told CBS News that the latest whistleblower in the Ukraine call controversy does not change the president's legal strategy going forward.
"We already released the transcript of the call. So this person has an opinion that they don't like what the President said?" Sekulow said.
He went on to say that he believes the fact that the second whistleblower is represented by the same law firm as the original whistleblower helps the president's political strategy because it "shows this firm is in the business of attacking the President."
"60 Minutes" on the impeachment probe
This week's new developments in the Trump impeachment inquiry
Last week, members of Congress went home to hear from their constituents. "60 Minutes" traveled with two members who are now facing some of the most consequential decisions of their careers.
Their congressional districts are 1,700 miles and worlds apart. New Jersey's 11th Congressional District is white, suburban and wealthy. Texas' 23rd Congressional District is wide open and 70% Latino.
Pompeo not complying with probe, Dem chairman says
Rep. Eliot Engel says Mike Pompeo is not complying with impeachment inquiry
New York Congressman Eliot Engel, one of the high-ranking House Democrats leading the impeachment inquiry into Mr. Trump's dealings with the Ukrainian government, said Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is not cooperating with the congressional investigation.
"He is not complying with the inquiry so far," Engel said on "Face the Nation" Sunday. "There are discussions that are ongoing and we're hoping that he will comply."
Engel, a longtime congressman from the Bronx, is chairman of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, which has oversight over the State Department. The panel is one of several high-profile committees -- including the Intelligence, Oversight and Judiciary panels -- spearheading the impeachment probe into Mr. Trump's efforts to pressure the Ukrainian government to conduct politically motivated investigations, including one into former Vice President Joe Biden and his son, Hunter.
ISTANBUL (Reuters) - Turkey said on Tuesday it had completed preparations for a military operation in northeast Syria after the United States began pulling back troops, opening the way for a Turkish attack on Kurdish-led forces long allied to Washington.
But U.S. President Donald Trump warned he would “obliterate” the NATO ally’s economy if it took action in Syria that he considered “off limits” following his decision on Sunday to pull 50 American special forces troops from the border region.
The U.S. withdrawal will leave its Kurdish-led partner forces in Syria vulnerable to an incursion by the Turkish Armed Forces (TSK), which brands them terrorists because of their links to Kurdish militants who have waged a long insurgency inside Turkey.
“The TSK will never tolerate the establishment of a terror corridor on our borders. All preparations for the operation have been completed,” the Turkish Defence Ministry said on Twitter early on Tuesday.
“It is essential to establish a safe zone/peace corridor to contribute to our region’s peace and stability, and for Syrians to achieve a safe life,” it said.
Trump’s warning on Turkey’s economy appeared aimed at placating critics who accused him of abandoning the Syrian Kurds by pulling out U.S. forces. The decision drew criticism from Democrats and a rebuke from some of Trump’s fellow Republicans in Congress, including Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell.
“As I have stated strongly before, and just to reiterate, if Turkey does anything that I, in my great and unmatched wisdom, consider to be off limits, I will totally destroy and obliterate the Economy of Turkey (I’ve done before!)” Trump tweeted.
Turkey does not appear “as of now” to have begun its expected incursion into northern Syria, a senior Trump administration official said on Monday.
Turkish Foreign Ministry spokesman Hami Aksoy said overnight it was Turkey’s fundamental right to take necessary measures for its national security against terrorism threats from Syria.
“Turkey is determined to clear terrorists from the east of the Euphrates and protect its own security and survival while implementing a secure zone in order to achieve peace and stability,” Aksoy said in a written statement.
Slideshow (2 Images)
President Tayyip Erdogan has said Turkey plans to resettle two million refugees in northern Syria and Turkish media has said the draft resettlement plan involves a 151 billion lira ($26 billion) construction project. Turkey hosts 3.6 million Syrian refugees.
The Trump administration official, briefing reporters on a conference call, said 50 U.S. troops in the region that Turkey has targeted would be redeployed elsewhere in Syria “where they aren’t in the crossfire.” The United States has about 1,000 troops in Syria.
Turkey's lira TRYTOM=D3 lost 2% of its value against the dollar to hit its weakest level since early September. It stood at 5.8385 early on Tuesday.
Reporting by Daren Butler; Editing by Dominic Evans
House Democrats are reportedly considering steps to keep the whistleblower's identity from their Republican colleagues in order to prevent a loyalist to President Trump from leaking the whistleblower's identity to the public.
The Washington Post, citing three officials familiar with the discussions, reported that Democrats are considering the "extraordinary steps" that illustrate the toxic relationship between the country's two main political parties.
It was unclear how the whistleblower's identity would be kept from Republicans during the testimony. The whistleblower may testify from an undisclosed location and editing may be used to alter their face and voice.
"[Rep. Adam] Schiff does not want to burn his identity," a senior congressional official told the paper.
Protecting the whistleblower's identity has been a key issue in the impeachment investigation. Trump has been accused of withholding about $400 million in military aid from Ukraine in a pressure campaign to get Kiev to investigate the Bidens.
Trump has denied the allegations and released a reconstructed transcript of his July 25 phone call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. Trump and his lawyers claim the transcript offers vindication, but Democrats seized on the part where Trump tells Zelensky, “I would like you to do us a favor though.”
Trump has said he wants to meet the whistleblower. The whistleblower raised Republican suspicions when the person did not disclose contact with House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff’s staff to the intelligence committee inspector general, sources told Fox News.
Sources told Fox News that ICIG Michael Atkinson revealed that the whistleblower voluntarily shared that he or she was a registered Democrat and had a prior working relationship with a prominent Democratic politician.
Schiff’s office later acknowledged that the whistleblower had reached out to them before filing a complaint in mid-August, giving Democrats advance warning of the accusations that would lead them to launch an impeachment inquiry days later.
Schiff previously said that “we have not spoken directly to the whistleblower,” although his office later narrowed the claim, saying that Schiff himself "does not know the identity of the whistleblower, and has not met with or spoken with the whistleblower or their counsel" for any reason.
On Sept. 28, the law group representing the whistleblower—Compass Rose Legal Group—sent a letter to the acting Director of National Intelligence Joseph Maguire about the need to protect their client.
The letter said, in part, "The purpose of this letter is to formally notify you of serious concerns we have regarding our client’s personal safety. We appreciate your office’s support thus far to activate appropriate resources to ensure their safety."
The letter did not specify the "support" or "resources" that were offered.
The letter claimed that there's a $50,000 bounty for information about the client. The letter was signed by Andrew P. Bakaj, the lead attorney in the case.
An after-hours email from Fox News to Mark Zaid, another lawyer representing the whistleblower, was not immediately returned.
"As far as we are concerned, any meetings with the whistleblower and the intelligence oversight committees will have the same conditions from us for both Republicans and Democrats. We are not playing partisan games, and our primary concern is the protection of our client," Zaid told the paper earlier.
Fox News' Gregg Re and Catherine Herridge contributed to this report
“If you are facing the biggest crisis of your presidency, what would you do? Probably lay low and focus on putting out this fire. But you see, you’re not Donald Trump, because if you were Donald Trump, you would start a whole new fire,” said Trevor Noah.
The Daily Show host dedicated a big segment of his program Monday night to the latest controversy surrounding President Trump: At 11 p.m. Sunday night, he took it upon himself to announce that the U.S. would be withdrawing its troops from northern Syria in order to pave the way for a Turkish invasion, thereby abandoning the Kurdish allies who’ve fought alongside American soldiers to vanquish ISIS, and appealing to the desires of despots Erdogan and Assad (and, by extension, Putin).
If that weren’t enough, Kurdish forces are currently holding many of the 10,000 captured ISIS fighters, so leaving the Kurds to the slaughter is not only unconscionable, but could also allow ISIS to rebuild. Officials at the Pentagon reported being “blindsided” by the move.
“OK, this is just insane. At 11 p.m. last night President Trump announced—at 11 p.m.—that the U.S. would be pulling its troops out of a key part of Syria. Even crazier is that he didn’t tell the Pentagon,” offered Noah.
After receiving blowback from those who routinely kiss his tuchis—including former U.N. ambassador Nikki Haley, Republican Sens. Lindsey Graham and Mitch McConnell, and even his beloved Fox News, Trump issued the following message (via Twitter, of course):
“OK, OK! No, no, no! Before you judge Trump, he is technically correct: There is nobody who matches his wisdom,” joked Noah, adding, “No other person had the wisdom to stare directly into a solar eclipse.”
The comedian did, however, have some advice for the Kurds to get on Trump’s good side: “Kurdish forces, you need to phone Trump, and you need to tell him you have dirt on Joe Biden—but if he wants it, he’s going to have to give you military aid, or as I like to call it, a kurd pro quo.”
