Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said the State Department intends to "follow the law" in the House impeachment investigation and vigorously defended President Donald Trump, dismissing questions about the president's attempts to push Ukraine and China to investigate a Democratic political rival.
The Trump administration and House Democrats often disagree about what the law requires, leaving open the question of how Pompeo may interpret Democrats' demands for key information about Trump's handling of Ukraine.
Pompeo, speaking in Greece, said the State Department sent a letter to Congress Friday night as its initial response to the document request and added, "We'll obviously do all the things that we're required to do by law."
Asked on Wednesday whether the White House intended to comply, Trump told reporters, "I always cooperate," even as he dismissed the inquiry as "a hoax."
A day later, however, Trump had a different answer for the same question, saying he would instead leave the matter to his lawyers. "That's up to them to decide," he said, "But the whole investigation is crumbling."
Trump, meanwhile, continued to seethe Saturday, denouncing the investigation as yet another "Witch Hunt!" and "a fraud against the American people!"
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