Trump says Sec. Rick Perry urged him to call Zelenskiy
By JERUSALEM POST STAFF
US President Donald Trump told House Republicans during a conference call on Friday that he made his now infamous phone call to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy at the urging of Energy Secretary Rick Perry, Axios reports."Not a lot of people know this but, I didn't even want to make the call. The only reason I made the call was because Rick asked me to. Something about an LNG [liquified natural gas] plant," one source said, recalling the president's comments. 2 other sources confirmed the first source's recollection.Perry, who is reportedly resigning by the end of this year, has become increasingly embroiled in congressional Democrats' impeachment inquiry.Perry's spokeswoman, Shaylyn Hynes, told Axios that “Secretary Perry absolutely supported and encouraged the president to speak to the new president of Ukraine to discuss matters related to their energy security and economic development." "He continues to believe that there is significant need for improved regional energy security—which is exactly why he is heading to Lithuania tonight to meet with nearly 2 dozen European energy leaders (including Ukraine) on these issues,” Haynes added.
