President Donald Trump denied sending lawyer Rudy Giuliani on a mission to get Ukraine to investigate former Vice President Joe Biden and his son, Hunter Biden, during a Tuesday interview with radio host Bill O’Reilly.
“No, I didn’t direct him, but he is a warrior, he is a warrior,” Trump said after O’Reilly asked him if Giuliani was acting on his behalf in Ukraine.
“I know that he was going to go to Ukraine and I think he cancelled the trip. But Rudy has other clients, other than me. He’s done a lot of work in Ukraine over the years,” the president explained during the interview.
WATCH:
LISTEN: President Trump is now distancing himself more than ever from lawyer Rudy Giuliani, claiming he did not direct Giuliani to act on his behalf in Ukraine in a new interview with Bill O’Reilly. pic.twitter.com/6JaP9oOLMI
— TheBeat w/Ari Melber (@TheBeatWithAri) November 26, 2019
Trump was aware that Giuliani was trying to dig up dirt on the Bidens in Ukraine, as he referenced his personal attorney and the former mayor of New York City during a July 25 phone conversation with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
“Mr. Giuliani is a highly respected man. He was the mayor of New York City, a great mayor, and I would like him to call you. I will ask him to call you along with the Attorney General,” Trump told Zelensky. “Rudy very much knows what’s happening and he is a very capable guy. If you could speak to him that would be great.”
The president added later in the conversation, which was the impetus for a whistleblower complaint, “I will have Mr. Giuliani give you a call … and we will get to the bottom of it.”
Giuliani explained in May that he wanted Ukraine to continue an investigation into Burisma, a Ukrainian energy company which paid Hunter Biden a significant amount of money to sit on its board while Joe Biden was serving as vice president. Giuliani is now reportedly under investigation for his actions in Ukraine. (RELATED: ‘I Don’t Know’ – Trump Dodges Questions About Giuliani’s Alleged ‘Insurance,’ Work On Ukraine)
“Somebody could say it’s improper. And this isn’t foreign policy — I’m asking them to do an investigation that they’re doing already and that other people are telling them to stop,” Giuliani said. “I’m going to give them reasons why they shouldn’t stop it because that information will be very, very helpful to my client, and may turn out to be helpful to my government.”