Article snippet: House Democrats on Wednesday released the transcript of their interview with the top U.S. diplomat in Ukraine, who delivered dire warnings that MORE’s dealings with Ukraine “fundamentally undermined” U.S. interests in the country. Bill Taylor, who serves as the chargé d’affaires for Ukraine, had testified in meticulous detail last month about what he considered an effort by Trump and his allies to create a shadow foreign policy designed to pressure Ukraine into opening investigations that would benefit Trump politically. The contours of that Oct. 22 deposition have been known for weeks, since Taylor’s opening statement was widely disseminated at the time. But the 324-page blow-by-blow transcript provides new layers of detail about Trump’s efforts to find dirt on political rivals — and the extent to which it alarmed veterans in the State Department. “By mid-July, it was becoming clear to me that the [White House] meeting President Zelensky wanted was conditioned on investigations of Burisma and alleged Ukrainian influence in the 2016 elections,” Taylor testified. He told House investigators it was “clear” that this “irregular” foreign policy channel was led by MORE, the president’s personal lawyer, whom Taylor deemed to be operating on behalf of the president. Taylor, whose testimony is seen as key, is scheduled to be the first witness to testify in an open hearing next week, a sign that Democrats believe he can deliver damaging testimony when they plunge into ... Link to the full article to read more