Lev Parnas Says Trump Knew Everything In Ukraine Scandal

Lev Parnas , an associate of Rudy Giuliani at the center of the Ukraine scandal that led to President Donald Trump s impeachment , said both men were fully aware of all my movements and that the president knew exactly what was going on as he waged a pressure campaign to dig up dirt on a presidential campaign rival.

President Trump knew exactly what was going on, Parnas told MSNBCs Rachel Maddow in an interview that aired Wednesday. He was aware of all my movements. I wouldnt do anything without the consent of Rudy Giuliani or the president. I have no intent, I have no reason to speak to any of these officials.

The explosive comments come the same day the House voted to send two articles of impeachment against the president to the Senate for trial. The House voted largely along party lines to impeach Trump on charges of abuse of power and obstruction of Congress last month. He is just the third American president to be impeached.

\"He lied,\" Parnas says of President Trump's denial that he knows him. \"He knew exactly who we were. He knew exactly who I was especially because I interacted with him at a lot of events... I was with Rudy when he would speak to the president plenty of times.\" pic.twitter.com/Y3D51xtSTi

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"He lied," Parnas says of President Trump's denial that he knows him. "He knew exactly who we were. He knew exactly who I was especially because I interacted with him at a lot of events... I was with Rudy when he would speak to the president plenty of times." pic.twitter.com/Y3D51xtSTi
MSNBC (@MSNBC) January 16, 2020

White House press secretary Stephanie Grisham on Thursday shrugged off the Parnas accusations, claiming once again that the president did nothing wrong.

These allegations are being made by a man who is currently out on bail for federal crimes and is desperate to reduce his exposure to prison, Grisham said in a statement to NBC News.

The facts havent changed the president did nothing wrong and this impeachment, which was manufactured and carried out by the Democrats has been a sham from the start, she added.

The pressure campaign in Ukraine was a central fixture of the House impeachment vote after a parade of current and former Trump administration officials detailed an effort by the White House to pressure Ukraine to announce an investigation into former Vice President Joe Biden and his son Hunter in exchange for political favors .

It was all about Joe Biden, Hunter Biden, Parnas said Wednesday. It was never about corruption.

Aside from Giuliani and the president, Parnas alluded that Vice President Mike Pence , Attorney General William Barr and former national security adviser John Bolton were involved in some way with the pressure campaign.

At one point, Parnas detailed efforts to pressure Ukraine to announce an investigation into the Bidens, saying Giuliani instructed him to threaten to withhold all aid to the country as well as a visit by Pence to Zelenskys inauguration.

At our meeting, I was very, very stern. It was a heated conversation basically telling him what needs to be done, Parnas said. At the end of the conversation, I told him that if he didnt announce an investigation, that Pence would not show up, nobody would show up to his inauguration.

When Maddow asked if Pence was aware of the campaign, Parnas responded that everybody was in the loop. He also said Bolton would be one of the most knowledgeable people about the episode who has not yet spoken publicly (although he has said he will testify if subpoenaed by the Senate).

Bolton, 100%, Parnas said. He knows what happened there.

Parnas emerged as a key figure in that effort during the House inquiry. He was indicted last fall on campaign finance charges and has since split with Giuliani, Trumps personal lawyer, pledging to speak openly about his efforts with Ukraine.

In the interview with Maddow, Parnas elaborated that members of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskys team were told to meet with him because he was on the ground as a representative of the Trump administration doing their work.

I mean they have no reason to speak to me, Parnas said. Why would President Zelenskys inner circle, or Minister [of Internal Affairs Arsen] Avakov, or all these people or [former] President Poroshenko meet with me? Who am I? They were told to meet with me.

Thats the secret that theyre trying to keep, he added.