Sondland "does not recall" Ukraine aid threat, lawyer tells WashPost

Sondland does not recall any conversation in Warsaw concerning the aid cutoff, although he understood that the Ukrainians were, by then, certainly aware of the cutoff and raised the issue directly with [Vice President Mike] Pence."

The big picture: Sondland appeared before investigating House committees last Thursday. The explosive testimony of Taylor, a career diplomat who's served in every administration since 1985, relies largely on his conversations with Sondland.

• Taylor testified that Sondland told him on June 28 "he did not wish to include most of the regular interagency participants in a call planned with President Zelenskyy later that day. … Ambassador Sondland said that he wanted to make sure no one was transcribing or monitoring as they added President Zelenskyy to the call."

What they're saying: Sondland's attorney Robert Luskin told WashPost in a statement that his client believes that this was "monitored routinely and that an appropriate file memo was prepared." "He never suggested otherwise," Luskin said.

Go deeper:

• EU ambassador: I was "disappointed" with Trump's Ukraine approach
• Trump calls Pompeo-appointed ambassador Bill Taylor a "Never Trumper"