Trump impeachment news: President considers testifying over Ukraine scandal, as Supreme Court puts hold on release of his tax returns
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Your support makes all the difference.Donald Trump has said he is “strongly considering” taking up House speaker Nancy Pelosi’s invitation for him to testify to the impeachment inquiry and “speak all the truth he wants”, a welcome also extended by Senate minority leader Chuck Schumer, who said the president should give his side of the story on Ukraine rather than grumble about the proceedings on Twitter.
The White House has meanwhile scrambled to deny speculation the Mr Trump’s sudden visit to a Maryland hospital on Saturday for a medical check-up was initiated in response to a more serious health complaint.
The president otherwise spent his weekend hitting out at Fox News host Chris Wallace over his treatment of GOP representative Steve Scalise, as his acting chief of staff Mick Mulvaney in turn comes under fire from House Intelligence Committee chairman Adam Schiff for snubbing a subpoena and obstructing the investigation.
Meanwhile, secretary of State Mike Pompeo announced that the US was changing decades-old policy identifying Israeli settlements as illegal under international law, drawing criticism from human rights activists.
Mr Pompeo also refused to defend former Ukraine ambassador Marie Yovanovitch, after she was attacked by Mr Trump during her testimony last week.
We are expecting a packed week of impeachment hearings this week, with testimony Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday.
Democrats will meanwhile hold their next debate on Wednesday in Georgia.
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Also, more breaking news from Washington DC, via the AP: Secretary of state Mike Pompeo is expected to announce the US is softening its position on Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank, the latest in a series of Trump administration moves that weaken Palestinian claims to statehood.
According to the AP, Pompeo plans to repudiate a 1978 state department legal opinion that held civilian settlements in the occupied territories are “inconsistent with international law”. The move will likely anger Palestinians and put the US at odds with other nations working to end the conflict
Meanwhile, there's news regarding one of the president's potential challengers - Joe Biden, who has received the endorsement of "Gold Star" parent Khizr Khan. You'll recall Mr Khan speaking at the 2016 Democratic Convention in Minneapolis about how his son, 27-year-old son, an Army captain, died in a car bombing in 2004 in Iraq as he tried to save other troops. He criticised Mr Trump, saying he “consistently smears the character of Muslims”.
Mr Trump belittled the Khans and suggested in an ABC News interview Mrs Khan was not allowed to speak. In a statement issued on Monday, backing Mr Biden, Mr Khan said: "I’m supporting Joe Biden for President because of the America he stands for and the one he will fight for — the country that my son, Humayun Khan, believed in and fought for so bravely.
“Hate has no place in this country. Beating Donald Trump and the hatred he promotes is the top priority in this election. But after Trump is gone, we need someone to help unite us and help us heal. I trust Joe Biden to be that person because I know his heart like I know my own."
Amid the ongoing dramas in Washington, we have learned today that Democrats are looking into the possibility that Donald Trump lied to former special counsel Robert Mueller in written testimony, the House Judiciary Committee counsel has told a panel of federal circuit court judges.
The lawyers cited the grand jury testimony of former campaign chairman Paul Manafort, whose testimony may shed a light on Mr Trump's written responses to the special counsel investigation, according to attorney Douglas Letter.
We've learned from the trial of Roger Stone — who was convicted last week of lying to Congress — that, in spite of Mr Trump's written response that he did not recall having a conversation with Stone about WikiLeaks, former aide Rick Gates had a clear recollection of such a conversation.
BREAKING NEWS: Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has announced that the Trump administration has reversed decades old policy, and that the United States no longer believes that Israeli settlements in the West Bank are inconsistent with international law.
Read more on the announcement today from Mr Pompeo, and what it ultimately means:
North Korea says that it is not "interested" in any further meetings with the US, just a day after Donald Trump tweeted a message saying "See you soon!" to Kim Jong Un.
A statement from a foreign ministry adviser to the country, posted by state news, said: "I interpret president Trump's tweet on the 17th to signify a new DPRK-US summit" but "we are no longer interested in these meetings that are useless to us."
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