U.S. Ambassador to the European Union Gordon Sondland conceded during his testimony Wednesday that he did not remember some key information until someone mentioned A$AP Rocky.
Democratic counsel Daniel Goldman began by asking Sondland about the fact that he was not a note-taker — a fact which has led to his testimony changing as his memory has been jogged by more recent conversations and documents that have been provided. (RELATED: Impeachment Witness Says A Dirty Word — Entire Hearing Erupts In Laughter)
WATCH:
“You are not a note taker,” Goldman said.
“Not a note taker, never have been,” Sondland confirmed.
“You agree people who take contemporaneous notes are more able to remember things than people who don’t?” Goldman pressed.
“Some, yes,” Sondland agreed.
Goldman continued to press, asking Sondland whether his recollection of certain events and meetings had changed as he was presented with the testimony, notes, and documents provided by others — Sondland confirmed that was the case.
“One of the things you now remember is the discussion you had with President Trump on July 26 in the that restaurant in Kiev, right?” Goldman asked.
“What triggered my memory was someone’s reference to A$AP Rocky, which was I believe the primary purpose of the phone call,” Sondland responded.
“Certainly. So that’s one way memory works, isn’t it? And you were sitting in a restaurant with David Holmes in Kiev, right, having lunch?” Goldman continued.
“I think I took the whole team out to lunch after the meeting, yes,” Sondland said. “Again, trying to reconstruct a very busy day without the benefit of notes, but if someone said I had a meeting and I went to the meeting, I’m not going to dispute that.”