Giuliani associate Lev Parnas claims Trump attorney John Dowd visited him in jail
Lev Parnas says ex-Trump attorney visited him in jail, told him to cooperate and sacrifice himself for the President; former House Oversight chairman Trey Gowdy weighs in.
The damning allegations from Lev Parnas, the indicted former associate of Rudy Giuliani, against President Trump in his handling of Ukraine may be good for headlines but would not hold up in a court of law, former Rep. Trey Gowdy said Friday.
Appearing on "America's Newsroom" with hosts Bill Hemmer and Sandra Smith, the Fox News contributor said that he would encourage viewers to listen to Parnas and Igor Fruman's full interview with MSNBC host Rachel Maddow and "not just the snippets."
"Remember, Parnas was upset because he expected Giuliani and Trump to come to his defense," said Gowdy. "This is a guy charged with falsifying records, making a false statement, conspiracy to defraud the FEC."
KELLYANNE CONWAY: LEV PARNAS IS A 'PROVEN LIAR,' 'NOBODY NEEDS ANY HELP BEATING JOE BIDEN'
Parnas and his business partner Igor Fruman – both U.S. citizens who emigrated from the former Soviet bloc – have been indicted by federal prosecutors on charges of conspiracy, making false statements and falsification of records related to allegations that they made outsized campaign donations to Republican causes after receiving millions of dollars originating from Russia.
In addition, Parnas has previously sought to testify in the impeachment probe.
FILE - In this Dec. 2, 2019, file photo, Lev Parnas arrives at court in New York. Parnas, a close associate of President Donald Trump's personal lawyer, Rudy Giuliani, has provided a trove of text messages and photos to the House committee leading the impeachment inquiry. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig, File)
During Wednesday's interview -- just a day after he provided a slew of new documents and text messages to House investigators -- Parnas told Maddow that the president was contemplating cutting all forms of financial assistance to Ukraine in exchange for an investigation into Joe Biden, not just military aid — and, he said, the plot had a clear political motivation.
Parnas said Giuliani instructed him to deliver a "harsh" message to Ukraine that "all aid" to the country would be halted unless "there was an announcement of the Biden investigation," among other demands.
"He was aware of all of my movements," Parnas said, referring to Trump. "I wouldn't 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. I mean, they have no reason to speak with me."
Parnas also claimed Vice President Mike Pence wouldn't show up to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky's inauguration unless an investigation was announced.
Gowdy pointed out that, when asked the same question about Pence, Parnas "gave three different answers to the same question."
"His first answer is, 'I'm absolutely certain Pence knew about.' And then, about three seconds later, he said, 'Well, he had to have, right?' And then, the last answer was: 'Well, it's possible,'" he continued.
"Those three answers don't do you well in the courtroom. They do great if you're writing headlines; they do not do well in the courtroom," Gowdy said.
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"You know," Gowdy directed at Hemmer, "what I didn't hear was the follow-up."
"Okay, with total certitude you say President Trump knew what we were doing. Convince us of that. Give us the evidence," Gowdy prompted. "Remember, he also said Bill Barr was in the loop and then -- when cited for evidence -- he said, 'Well, he's friends with Joseph DiGenova and Victoria Toensing and his name was mentioned in the transcript.'"
"If that's the only evidence you have that Bill Barr is part of a conspiracy to defraud the United States and get a foreign government to investigate a political opponent...that ain't much evidence, Bill," Gowdy said.
Fox News' Jake Gibson, Gregg Re, and Edmund DeMarche contributed to this report.
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