Oct 10, 2019 - Politics & Policy

Scoop: House Democrats want testimony from Trump's former Russia adviser

Fiona Hill. Photo: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

The House committees investigating President Trump and Ukraine have requested that Trump's former Russia adviser Fiona Hill appear for a deposition on Oct. 14, as well as turn over several documents dating back to January 2017.

Context: Hill left her role as Trump's top Russia aide in August, although she had wrapped up most of her work by mid-July. It's unclear how much she knew about the controversial July 25 call between Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, which is at the center of Democrats' impeachment inquiry.

  • Hill, a long-standing policy expert and critic of Russian President Vladimir Putin, served under both H.R. McMaster and John Bolton on the National Security Council.

What to watch: The White House made it clear in a letter to House Democratic leaders on Tuesday that it has no plans to cooperate with the committees' interview or document requests.

  • It was unclear as of Wednesday evening whether the Trump administration plans to block Hill from complying.

Hill could not immediately be reached for comment.

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