The takeaways from the impeachment inquiry's closed-door phase

• In fact, instead of fighting that defiance in court, Democrats plan to use the refusals as evidence of obstruction for a likely article of impeachment.

Here are the common facts we learned from the six transcripts released this week:

• Career officials were disturbed by an irregular foreign policy channel toward Ukraine driven by Rudy Giuliani.
• They largely viewed the allegations that led to the ouster of Ukraine Ambassador Marie Yovanovitch as a baseless smear campaign promoted by Giuliani, his associates and members of the right-wing media.
• Witnesses acknowledge that there appeared to be a quid pro quo involving a White House visit for Ukraine’s president, conditioned on the announcement of investigations into President Trump's political opponents.
• They differ on whether military aid was also used as leverage. But key diplomats intimately involved in discussions with Ukraine believe it was.

Go deeper ... Trump-Ukraine scandal: The key players, dates and documents