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Home , Andrii Derkach, Bob Corker, Mykola Zlochevsky, Operation Legend

September 16, 2020 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — SENATE S5627 their ability to pay their bills and to week—merely a month before election ceiving information from the par- receive medications, and that small day. There is a dark similarity here to ticular Russian agent that I have men- businesses are not able to complete the Republican effort in the House in tioned, Mr. Derkach, but Chairman their transactions. Congress has a re- the previous election to discredit the JOHNSON has never provided a full ac- sponsibility to enact legislation that Democratic Presidential candidate counting of all the Russian- and will restore timely delivery and fully with the Select Committee on Ukrainian-linked individuals he sought fund the Postal Service. Benghazi. information from. One of the chair- Finally, we need to ensure that the You may remember the now-minor- man’s subpoenas, for example, targeted Census Bureau has the time necessary ity leader of the House Republican cau- a Ukrainian national who is an asso- to execute a complete and accurate cus bragging that the Republicans cre- ciate of Mr. Derkach. 2020 count. You know, it has been in- ated the committee to bring down Hil- So anticipating his objection to this teresting to me to see the efforts of lary’s poll numbers. You know what resolution, I would simply ask the this administration to try and politi- they say about a political gaffe: It is chairman to provide a full accounting cize the census, because this is no red when politicians tell the truth. of whom he sought information from, State or blue State problem. The Well, it seems like the Republican so we can know who they are, what States with the lowest percentage of chairman of the Homeland Security their motives are, and, therefore, the households that have been counted dur- and Governmental Affairs Committee Senate can see if they are trying to ing the census are Alabama, Montana, has made the same gaffe that Minority interfere with our elections. Mississippi, Louisiana, Georgia, and Leader MCCARTHY made in 2016. In a The chairman should have no issue South Carolina. They are mostly in the little-noticed interview with a Wis- furthering a complete accounting of his South, but not all. We must give the consin radio station last month, Sen- contacts with Russian and Ukrainian Census Bureau time to make a com- ator JOHNSON said that his probe would sources. The American people ought to plete and accurate count by including a ‘‘help win reelection,’’ know whether the U.S. Senate has been statutory delay for the apportionment and yet somehow the current activities sullied by potentially receiving infor- and redistricting count that is part of of the Republican majority in the mation from discredited Russian any package before we go home. This is Homeland Security committee are agents. The American people should ex- something that the Census Bureau even worse than what the House Re- pect the Senate to pass this resolution asked us for last spring, and it is some- publicans did in 2016, because in the today. What were our Founding Fathers thing that we should make sure they rush to find scraps of information for most worried about? One of the top receive, even though under political these investigations, Senate Repub- things—top things—was interference pressure they changed their request. licans may have collected and propa- Bipartisanship on these priorities is gated disinformation that came from by foreign powers in our elections. Back then, their concerns were about possible. We were able to negotiate the Putin’s intelligence agents. Some of the allegations that the bribery or treason or a foreign actor CARES Act legislation that passed the Homeland Security chairman is now who infiltrated our government. Senate by a vote of 96 to 0. We did it pursuing are the same ones pushed by Today, in our information age, the before. We can do this again because Andriy Derkach, a known Russian methods of foreign interference are dif- that is how government is supposed to agent who was sanctioned by President ferent, but the risks are the same. work. We are supposed to come to- Trump’s own Treasury Department for Our chief adversaries—, , gether and negotiate and deliver for interfering in our elections. Iran, —have found that the American people. Powerful Senate Republicans are disinformation and misinformation are Probably the most often heard re- echoing the same claims that the Rus- a weak point in open societies like mark that I hear in New Hampshire is sians are pushing, the same nonsense ours. That makes it incumbent on us— this: Why can’t you just all work to- that interfered in the 2016 all of us—here in the Congress to be gether to address the needs of this elections and not just Putin. careful about the information we re- country? We have all become so inured to ceive and repeat. That is what we should be doing scandal during this scandalous admin- In the zeal for partisan advantage, we around everything, and it is what we istration, but the fact that a powerful hope the Republican majority on the should be doing around responding to Senate committee may have fallen vic- Homeland Security Committee has not this coronavirus. tim to misinformation from Moscow is become a sympathetic audience and a We should not recess until we can get appalling. potential entrance point to foreign in- a bill to the President’s desk. We were The PRESIDING OFFICER. Would fluence campaigns, wittingly or unwit- sent here to do a job. We have an obli- the Democratic leader yield? tingly. What a disastrous and disgrace- gation to get it done. The foot dragging Mr. SCHUMER. I will yield. ful state of affairs. The Senate should has gone on for far too long. The PRESIDING OFFICER. The pass this resolution today. Brinksmanship should end because chair will remind Senators that Rule I yield the floor to my colleague from time is running out on the needs of the XIX provides that ‘‘No Senator in de- Oregon. American people. bate shall, directly or indirectly, by The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Sen- I yield the floor. any form of words impute to another ator from Oregon. The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator or to other Senators any con- Mr. WYDEN. Mr. President, I rise in Democratic leader. duct or motive unworthy or unbecom- support of this resolution offered by UNANIMOUS CONSENT REQUEST ing a Senator.’’ the Democratic leader. We are calling Mr. SCHUMER. Mr. President, this Mr. SCHUMER. I am aware of it. Ev- for an end to a horribly flawed congres- morning the Republican majority of erything I have stated here is factual— sional investigation. The foreign the Homeland Security and Govern- everything, every single thing. threats to our democracy—attempts to mental Affairs Committee authorized So, this afternoon, my colleagues and poison it with disinformation and to another smattering of subpoenas in I have drafted a simple resolution that sow distrust—are an established mat- what seems to be an ongoing effort to calls for the cessation of any Senate in- ter of fact. disparage a former Vice President and vestigation or activity that allows the It is especially troubling because for his family. U.S. Congress to act as a conduit for periods over the last year, two Senate While the rest of the country is busy Russian disinformation. committees have conducted an inves- fighting COVID–19, this is what the I cannot fathom how any Member of tigation involving Ukraine, former Homeland Security Committee has this Chamber could justify blocking Vice President Biden, and his son Hun- been up to—using the powers of the such a resolution. There must not be a ter: the Homeland Security and Gov- Senate to, in effect, conduct opposition single aspect of this Chamber that ernmental Affairs Committee, led by research for President Trump’s cam- wittingly or unwittingly furthers the our colleague from , Chair- paign. propaganda machine of . man JOHNSON; and our colleague from The Republican chairman has said he Now, I know what my friend from Iowa, Chairman GRASSLEY, of the Fi- plans to release a report about it next Wisconsin might say. He will deny re- nance Committee, in which I am the

VerDate Sep 11 2014 04:24 Sep 17, 2020 Jkt 099060 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 4624 Sfmt 0634 E:\CR\FM\G16SE6.023 S16SEPT1 SSpencer on DSK126QN23PROD with SENATE S5628 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — SENATE September 16, 2020 ranking Democrat. My staff has joined , [then, of course] chair- tainly be pretty good, I would say, evi- in interviews and received documents man of the Intel Committee, and they dence about not voting for Vice Presi- pertinent to the investigation. told me take very cautiously anything dent Biden.’’ Given my Finance Committee role coming out of the Ukraine against any- He said in September: ‘‘Stay tuned. and my position on the Senate Intel- body.’’ In about a week we’re going to learn a ligence Committee, I am unable to dis- The disinformation that these two whole lot more of Vice President cuss classified information or details of have spread—Derkach and Telizhenko Biden’s unfitness for office.’’ an ongoing inquiry. However, I can dis- have spread—the disinformation these cuss public information about the two have spread, largely a collection of Furthermore, the chairman, in my spread of Russian propaganda and the unproven allegations and wild con- view, looking again at the public pathway it is following from Russian spiracy theories, has obviously made it record, cannot credibly take issue with agents, through the U.S. Senate, to the into many media outlets in the coun- the work the Vice President was doing American people. try all too willing to spread the prod- because he supported it publicly at the The Russian Government is again ucts of Russian intelligence. It has time. interfering in our election. This has been circulated by the President’s own In June 2014, at a Foreign Relations been confirmed by our intelligence legal team. Committee hearing on Ukraine, Chair- community. Its interference campaign From there, that disinformation be- man JOHNSON stated: ‘‘If we have to tie includes disinformation about Vice came the basis of much of the work of aid or help to make sure that anti-cor- President Biden and the work he was the Johnson-Grassley inquiry. I am ruption laws are passed, I think we doing to fight corruption in Ukraine. going to have more to say on the de- should do it.’’ To spread this disinformation, Russia tails of that investigation in the days enlists the help of characters like ahead, but for now, I will say this: In 2016, Chairman JOHNSON wrote a Andriy Derkach and Andriy Chairman JOHNSON has repeatedly letter with a bipartisan group of mem- Telizhenko. Derkach has been identi- claimed in the media that he has un- bers of the Senate Ukraine Caucus to fied by American counterintelligence covered new and damaging information former Ukrainian President Petro as an active agent for Russian intel- about Vice President Biden’s activity Poroshenko. The letter reads: ligence. This agent, instead of being in Ukraine. This is simply not true. Succeeding in these reforms will show Rus- treated as a foreign enemy, has met Nothing I have seen—not one bit of evi- sian President Putin that an independent, personally with the President’s lawyer, dence—could lead to the conclusion transparent and democratic Ukraine can and , to further his task of that Vice President Biden did anything will succeed. It also offers a stark alter- undermining elections in America. I wrong in Ukraine. What I have seen is native to the authoritarianism and oligar- am not sure, colleagues, what you a monthlong investigation that still chic cronyism prevalent in Russia. As such, should call an American who aids a has no legitimate basis, burning we respectfully ask that you address the se- Russian agent, but counselor to the through an incredible amount of man- rious concerns raised— President is certainly not it. power and taxpayer-funded resources. And we are talking here about the In August, the Director of the Na- Neither of these committees, by the Minister of Economic Development and tional Counterintelligence and Secu- way, under the rules of the Senate, Trade. rity Center issued a threat assessment have any jurisdiction over our diplo- on foreign threats to our election. It matic ties with Ukraine. It has no leg- We similarly urge you to press ahead with identified Derkach as a Kremlin-linked islative purpose. urgent reforms to the Prosecutor General’s actor involved with attempting to This investigation, as I have pointed Office and Judiciary. denigrate former Vice President Biden. out on a number of occasions, also is So these are the words, colleagues, On September 3, Senator SCHUMER happening under a clear double stand- the words of the chairman of the com- and I wrote a letter, along with several ard that has favored Republicans in the mittee. That is why Senator SCHUMER of our Democratic colleagues, urging Senate and stonewalled oversight by and I believe this investigation, the the Treasury Department to issue Democrats. In my view, that is a sign Johnson-Grassley investigation, is sanctions against Derkach. It did so that the flimsy accusations made baseless. We have brought forward a the following week, describing his role against the Vice President can’t stand resolution that we believe is important in what it called ‘‘a covert influence up to real scrutiny. campaign centered on cultivating false The real nature of this inquiry has to defending our democracy. It comes and unsubstantiated narratives con- been clear all along. It began as a down to a question of what we want cerning U.S. officials in the upcoming counterprogramming during the im- campaigns and elections to be all 2020 Presidential Election.’’ peachment trial, and the urgency be- about. Telizhenko is yet another Giuliani hind the investigation really almost In my view—and I have always said associate who, according to press ac- seemed to die out when the trial ended. this—right at the core of my being, I counts, American counterintelligence It only returned—and again, these are want elections about our best ideas. has identified as a conduit for Russian facts. All of these are facts. It only re- That is why I serve on the Finance attacks on our elections. He has also turned when the Vice President estab- Committee, to try to come up with the been a star witness in the Johnson- lished himself as the Democratic best ideas in healthcare, taxes, trade, Grassley investigation. frontrunner. The day after the Biden and the like. Elections ought to be Derkach and Telizhenko have re- victory in the South Carolina primary, about our best ideas and having real leased what appears to be heavily edit- Chairman JOHNSON sent a letter to the debates and not attacking the other ed portions of phone calls Vice Presi- committee announcing his intention to side with farfetched foreign misin- dent Biden held with Ukrainian offi- kick-start the investigation with a formation, especially at a time when cials in the course of his anti-corrup- subpoena. the American people are dealing with tion work. Some were released on the So now what I am going to do is out- the crushing weight of one crisis very same day. Telizhenko is promising line what Senator JOHNSON said in his stacked on another. further releases. Telizhenko also told own words, because I think that is also the Washington Post that he forwarded very important as Senators consider There are 200,000 Americans who have more than 100 emails to staff on Sen- this resolution. These are Senator died of COVID–19. I couldn’t disagree ator JOHNSON’s committee and an- JOHNSON’s words specifically. more with the President’s handling of swered their questions. My colleague said in March: ‘‘[I]f I the coronavirus pandemic. We have Our colleague from South Carolina, were a Democrat primary voter, I’d seen so much economic hurt. I cham- Senator GRAHAM, was involved in the want these questions satisfactorily an- pioned on the floor and, for a while, we earliest stages of the Johnson-Grassley swered before I cast my final vote.’’ had bipartisan support for basically inquiry in 2019, but in February of 2020, The chairman said in August: ‘‘I bringing unemployment into the rel- Chairman GRAHAM said: ‘‘I called the would think it would certainly help evant century and getting an extra $600 attorney general this morning and Donald Trump win reelection and cer- per week to people and covering gig

VerDate Sep 11 2014 04:24 Sep 17, 2020 Jkt 099060 PO 00000 Frm 00012 Fmt 4624 Sfmt 0634 E:\CR\FM\G16SE6.025 S16SEPT1 SSpencer on DSK126QN23PROD with SENATE September 16, 2020 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — SENATE S5629 workers and all kinds of other people. explained that in my opening state- containing Russian Yet, still, the economy has collapsed, ment, I would like to read the next disinformation. We are aware of this and millions are out of work. My Or- part, which describes the duplicity and fact because, during the course of this egon neighbors—a number of them— the hypocrisy of the Democrats. investigation, my chief counsel uncov- have seen their communities reduced I said: The most recent example of ered it buried in four classified foot- to ashes. Thousands and thousands of this hypocrisy was a letter and classi- notes to the Department of Justice in- homes and businesses have been lost. fied addendum created by senior Demo- spector general FISA report. We also There has been a national outcry cratic leaders that accused Senator know the FBI was aware of this as against racism and violence against GRASSLEY and me— early as 2016. Think about that. The Black Americans. The PRESIDING OFFICER. The FBI knew that Russian disinformation Our elections are supposed to be Chair will remind Senators that rule was contained in the Steele dossier as about those kinds of issues, and in all XIX provides that ‘‘[N]o Senator in de- early as August of 2016. Yet they con- of them, what I have tried to do is de- bate shall, directly or indirectly, by tinued the investigation, and that in- vote my public service to bringing peo- any form of words impute to another vestigation spilled over into a special ple together and getting parties to find Senator or to other Senators any con- counsel and disrupted America’s Gov- common ground on the best ideas of duct or motive unworthy or unbecom- ernment and politics for years. how to make changes in these areas. ing a Senator.’’ We also note that the Steele dossier Now, that sure seems to me to be what Mr. JOHNSON. I appreciate the was bought and paid for by the DNC the Senate should be all about rather warning. I don’t think I did that. and Clinton campaign. Apparently, than baseless attacks and foreign The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Sen- Democrats are willing to look the disinformation. ator is recognized. other way when they pay for or use I urge my colleagues to support the Mr. JOHNSON. Let me continue. disinformation against Republicans. resolution that Senator SCHUMER and I The most recent example is a letter That is what I read in my opening have championed. It is long past time and classified addendum created by statement at our business meeting ear- for this badly flawed investigation by senior Democratic leaders that accused lier today. our colleagues to end. Senator GRASSLEY and me of relying on As I look at this resolution, the last As in legislative session, I ask unani- foreign disinformation. This ‘‘intel- ‘‘whereas’’ talks about a congressional mous consent that the Senate proceed ligence product,’’ which was full of investigation that alleges the same dis- to the immediate consideration of a false allegations, was produced, classi- credited claims by Derkach. I don’t resolution opposing efforts to launder fied, and then leaked to the press more know who Derkach is. As I said earlier, Russian disinformation through the than a week before Senator GRASSLEY Senator GRASSLEY and I have repeat- edly, unequivocally, denied we did not Congress, which is at the desk. I fur- or I were given access to it. Many in solicit; we did not accept; we did not ther ask that the resolution be agreed the media dutifully reported this hot receive any information from Mr. to, the preamble be agreed to, and the tip. Democrats then used those media Derkach whatsoever. Yet Democrats motions to reconsider be considered reports to repeat, distort, and embel- lish the false charges. This coordinated persist in pushing this false allegation. made and laid upon the table with no As a matter of fact, I am not sure our smear—and that is what you have to intervening action or debate. committee has alleged anything yet. call it. It is a coordinated smear which The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. About the only thing that I have al- continues today on the floor of the PERDUE). Is there objection? leged is the glaring and obvious con- The Senator from Wisconsin. Senate—culminated in an August 7 flict of interest. Mr. JOHNSON. Mr. President, I re- opinion piece in the Washington Post I have to step back here. I just have serve the right to object. submitted by Senator RICHARD to give a little history about Ukraine. I want to first point out—I want to BLUMENTHAL. In February of 2014, Ukrainians, coura- thank the previous Presiding Officer But John Ratcliffe, the Director of geous Ukrainians—basically two fac- for pointing out the fact that if this is National Intelligence, wrote: tions: one that wanted to integrate not a violation of rule XIX, it is com- I can confirm the IC did not create the closer to the West and the younger ing pretty darn close. classified addendum to the 13 July letter, nor Ukrainians who wanted to rid them- did we authorize its [release]. What you just witnessed here is this: selves of the corruption of the Soviet We have witnessed Democrats doing The foreign information we were legacy—joined together in massive pro- what Democrats do so well, accusing falsely accused of receiving—we have a test on the Maidan. Approximately, the other side of doing exactly what misprint here. February 20, 21, over 80 Ukrainians they do—only 10 times or 100 times The foreign information we were were slaughtered by snipers protesting worse. falsely accused of receiving utilized— to rid Ukraine of corruption and in- Earlier today, I chaired a business purportedly comes from a Ukrainian crease their ties to the West. meeting of the Homeland Security and named Andriy Derkach, who has since Less than 2 months later—and I have Governmental Affairs Committee, pre- been sanctioned by the Treasury De- asked my colleagues: Is there any cipitated, created, made necessary by partment. Although neither Senator disinformation here? Is this anything the fact that the ranking member of GRASSLEY nor I ever sought, received, from Russian sources? Two months my committee presented an absurd, ri- or used any information from Mr. later, here are the series of events that diculous interpretation of our rules. Derkach, the media has continued to occurred. Based on the subpoena authority I re- report otherwise for weeks, despite our On April 16, 2014, Vice President ceived earlier on June 4, the ranking repeated and unequivocal denials. Biden met with his son’s business part- member said, in order to actually But it is true that a chart produced ner, Devon Archer, at the White House. schedule a subpoena or schedule a by Mr. Derkach is now part of our in- That is kind of a big deal—anybody meeting—a deposition—I could come vestigatory record, not because of me meeting with the Vice President at the back for another vote. or Senator GRASSLEY but because Sen- White House. ’s business During my opening statement of that ator PETERS’ staff introduced it into partner got to do that. business meeting, having just described the record. Five days later, Vice President Biden that level of meddling—which, by the So as was the case in the 2016 elec- visited Ukraine. The media described way, the ranking member also provided tion, the only foreign disinformation him as the public face of the adminis- that ridiculous interpretation to our being used to interfere in this inves- tration’s handling of Ukraine. The next witness, the witness, Jonathan Winer, tigation has been introduced by Demo- day, April 22, Archer joined the board an individual, by the way, who decided crats against Republicans and not by of . not to cooperate with the Department Republicans. Again, Burisma is this company that of Justice inspector general in his re- Given all the concerns expressed by is owned by what George Kent from the port on the FISA abuse. He decided not Democrats over foreign disinformation, State Department called an ‘‘odious to show up for his deposition that had it is notable that we have not heard oligarch,’’ Mykola Zlochevsky. It is been previously scheduled. Having just the same concern over disclosure of the hard to say Ukrainian names.

VerDate Sep 11 2014 04:18 Sep 17, 2020 Jkt 099060 PO 00000 Frm 00013 Fmt 4624 Sfmt 0634 E:\CR\FM\G16SE6.026 S16SEPT1 SSpencer on DSK126QN23PROD with SENATE S5630 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — SENATE September 16, 2020 Six days later, after Archer joined I, personally, am tired of it. As a re- The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without the board, British officials seized $23 sult, I object. objection, it is so ordered. million from the London bank ac- The PRESIDING OFFICER. The ob- There being no objection, the mate- counts of Burisma’s owner, Mykola jection is heard. rial was ordered to be printed in the Zlochevsky. Fifteen days later, on May The Senator from Oregon. RECORD, as follows: 13, Hunter Biden joined the board of Mr. WYDEN. Mr. President, I am DEMOCRATS HAD EXTENSIVE CONTACT WITH Burisma. And over the course of the very disappointed that my colleague UKRAINIAN THEY NOW USE FOR ‘RED SCARE’ next, approximately, 4 to 5 years, Hun- has objected. ATTACK ON GOP ter and his firms were paid more than I just want to make a brief response (By John Solomon) $3 million for his and Archer’s board reflecting on my role as a senior mem- September 16, 2020—2:30pm participation. ber of the Senate Select Committee on For months, Democrats on Capitol Hill Again, Ukraine had just gone Intelligence. Again, as I indicated ear- have waged a whisper campaign to disparage through a revolution. Their leadership lier, I can’t get into anything classified the reputation of a former Ukrainian govern- ment official named Andrii Telizhenko, who was desperate for U.S. support. We all or sources and methods, but before we has emerged as a fact witness for Repub- have to believe that Mr. Zlochevsky, leave this subject, I just want to re- licans investigating the controversial busi- an odious oligarch, would have made mind the Senate that the Russian ness deals of ’s son Hunter. those Ukrainian officials well aware of disinformation campaign is going on Led by Sens. Ron Wyden (D–Ore.) and Gary the fact that the son of the Vice Presi- now. It is not some abstract issue. The Peters (D–Mich.), the Democrats have tried dent of the , the public Russian disinformation campaign is to suggest—without evidence—that face of the administration’s handling of going on now. Telizhenko is connected to Ukrainian Par- liamentary member Andrii Derkach, identi- Ukraine, was sitting on his board. The Russians have attempted to re- fied by U.S. intelligence as leading Russian So what kind of signal did that send write the history of the 2016 campaign. disinformation efforts targeting Joe Biden in to Ukrainians who were trying to stand It is the conclusion of the intelligence the 2020 election and sanctioned by the up and were being pressured by U.S. of- community—this is not Democrats; it Trump Treasury Department. ficials to rid their country of corrup- is not Republicans; it is the intel- Their campaign will break into the open tion? It basically said: If you want U.S. ligence community—that they are try- Wednesday on the Senate floor when Demo- support, don’t touch Burisma. ing to interfere again, this time in the crats try to force a vote on a resolution The fact is, when all was said and 2020 election, including with these at- criticizing Senate Homeland Security and done, Burisma and Mykola Zlochevsky Governmental Affairs Chairman Ron John- tacks on Vice President Biden, and son (R–Wisc.) suggesting the probe he and were never held to account. The inves- they are saying this now. And active Senate Finance Committee chairman tigation, the prosecution of him was Russian agents, like Mr. Derkach, ap- Charles Grassley (R–Iowa) are leading into ceased. It never occurred. parently are having press conferences. the Bidens’ Ukraine dealings is part of In terms of Russian disinformation, I heard a report that he may have had Derkach’s election meddling. Their argu- these false charges, these wild claims one today. ment is thin, relying on the fact that against me and Senator GRASSLEY—I So Members of the Senate—again, Telizhenko has talked publicly about some was way ahead of the curve when it this is a matter of public record—have of the same issues as Derkach. Their resolu- came to Russian disinformation. Back tion is likely to fail in the GOP-controlled been presented with specific warnings Senate. in 2015, as chairman of the European about these Kremlin-backed conspir- But the Democrats’ character-assassina- Subcommittee of the Senate Foreign acies and lies again and again, includ- tion campaign suffers a much bigger prob- Relations Committee, I held three ing in classified settings. As I wrap this lem: Long before he assisted the GOP Senate hearings focusing on what Russia does up, I would only ask that Members of investigation, Telizhenko was a trusted mid- to destabilize the politics in coun- this great institution reflect on that. level Ukrainian government contact for the tries—an attempted coup in Monte- I yield the floor. Obama-Biden administration, according to negro and other places in Eastern Eu- scores of U.S. government emails and memos The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Sen- obtained by Just the News. rope. So I am well aware of what Rus- ator from Wisconsin. The memos show Telizhenko routinely ar- sia is doing—well aware. I don’t con- Mr. JOHNSON. Mr. President, a ranged sensitive meetings for senior State done it. I condemn it. I am not having quick response because in my other Department officials at the U.S. embassy in any part of pushing it. paper here, I did not have the full Kiev, met with senior Democrats on Capitol But I have to say, for all the croco- quote from John Ratcliffe. I would like Hill, including current House Foreign Affairs dile tears the Democrats shed in terms to read it now. Committee Chairman Eliot Engel (D–N.Y.), of Russian disinformation, the effects This is referring to the intelligence and facilitated contacts with Ukrainians for on our politics, I would argue that the the National Security Council and the U.S. product that senior Democratic leaders Justice Department in Washington dating to Russian disinformation that has been created, leaked to the press, accusing 2013. He also was cleared for meetings inside perpetrated on our politics and the ef- Senator GRASSLEY and I, falsely, of re- the Obama White House, Secret Service fect it has on the election pales in com- ceiving information from Andriy entry logs show. parison to the false allegations, for ex- Derkach. His contacts included such senior State of- ample, that Russia colluded with the John Ratcliffe, Director of National ficials as William Taylor and Geoffrey Pyatt, Trump campaign. It was promoted by Intelligence, wrote: two ambassadors, the memos show. Democrats for years, culminating in a In another words, the man the Democrats I can confirm the IC did not create the are now using for a ‘‘red scare’’ attack on the special counsel and finally an impeach- classified addendum to the 13 July letter, nor GOP senators was actually their own party’s ment. But how Democrats have used did we authorize its creation. The IC was not Ukrainian contact, vetted and cleared by the and how the media has promoted and consulted prior to its creation and subse- State Department to meet with senior offi- carried the water for Democrats all quent release to the entire membership of cials like ambassadors and DOJ prosecutors this time has had a far greater effect, the U.S. House of Representatives. on sensitive foreign matters. by orders of magnitude, in terms of de- Then, referring to that addendum, he Telizhenko also was hired by the Demo- stabilization and affecting the politics said it ‘‘by no means reflects the full cratic-leaning firm known as Blue Star Strategies to help Burisma Holdings—the and affecting the elections. That is ba- and complete analysis of the IC.’’ Ukrainian gas firm that hired Hunter Biden sically the truth. I would ask unanimous consent to as a board member in 2014—lobby the State I would just ask my colleagues and I enter into the RECORD an article that Department and Ukrainian prosecutors to would ask the American public to take was published today by John Solomon drop corruption allegations against the com- a look at what has really been hap- talking about the extensive—exten- pany in 2016, the memos show. pening here. The false allegations, the sive—contacts by members of the Telizhenko, in fact, was so trusted and fa- basic playbook the Democrats engage Obama administration in terms of the miliar with Obama administration officials in, time and again, create a false nar- NSC and the State Department and the that he was on a first-name basis, trading smiley face emoticons and arranging coffee rative, create a false intelligence prod- Ambassador with Andriy Telizhenko. It and beer outings in Washington with such uct, accuse the other side of things is right here. contacts as Obama-era National Security that you are doing tenfold. That is We have a nice picture of House Council staffer Elisabeth Zentos, the memos what is happening here. Member ELLIOT ENGEL as well. show.

VerDate Sep 11 2014 04:18 Sep 17, 2020 Jkt 099060 PO 00000 Frm 00014 Fmt 4624 Sfmt 0634 E:\CR\FM\G16SE6.027 S16SEPT1 SSpencer on DSK126QN23PROD with SENATE September 16, 2020 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — SENATE S5631 ‘‘Hi Andrii! I’m doing ok. Yes, definitely Photos taken by U.S. and Ukrainian gov- saults, shootings, murders have been got some rest over the weekend. How about ernment photographers show Telizhenko fa- higher this year, and my home State you?’’ Zentos wrote April 4, 2016 to cilitated meetings between 2014 and 2016 with has not been safe from this trend. In Telizhenko from her official White House key lawmakers in Washington, including fact, in St. Louis, MO, there were 55 email account. ‘‘Survive the visit ok? Also, Democrat Reps. Engel and Marcy Kaptur and should we still plan for coffee this week? then-GOP Sen. Bob Corker, as well as other murders in the month of July. That Maybe Wednesday or Friday? Hope all is U.S. agencies. compares to 22 murders a year earlier well! Liz.’’ And the emails show U.S. embassy officials in July, which we thought were way A month earlier, a planned beer outing in Kiev routinely sought advice and insights too many then. In Kansas City, MO, with Zentos got changed. ‘‘Would you be up from Telizhenko about happenings inside the homicides in the first 6 months of this for doing coffee instead of beer though? I’m Ukrainian government. ‘‘Andriy, we have year were about 40 percent higher than realizing that if I drink beer at 3 p.m., I will heard that there may be a briefing today. Do they were last year. probably fall asleep while attempting to you know the specifics?’’ embassy political One of the Kansas City victims was a work afterward,’’ Zentos wrote. officer Stephen Page asked in a January 2014 Zentos and Telizhenko also discussed the email. 4-year-old boy named LeGend sensitive case of Burisma and its founder, Such contacts are normal in the diplomacy Taliferro. He was murdered in the early Mykola Zlochevsky, in a July 2016 email ex- and national security business of the United hours of July 29 while he was asleep— change with the subject line ‘‘Re: Z,’’ the States. But they take on significance now a 4-year-old boy murdered while he was shorthand Telizhenko used to refer to the because they have been missing from the asleep—by a random shooting, violence Burisma founder. Their email exchange did Democrats’ attacks on Telizhenko and the going on outside his home. So early in not mention Hunter Biden’s role in the com- GOP senators who have interviewed him in July, the Justice Department launched pany but showed the Obama White House their probe of the Bidens. The question now an effort in Kansas City that has be- had interest in the business dealings of Hun- is: If Telizhenko is so bad as Democrats ter Biden’s boss. claim, why did the Obama administration come a national effort, which they ‘‘Hi Liz, Yes, It would be great to meet, to- and Democrats so frequently engage him? called Operation LeGend, named for morrow whatever works best for you 12:30pm Sen. Wyden’s recent statement ignored little LeGend Taliferro. Under Oper- or 6pm—I am ready,’’ Telizhenko wrote the that issue. ‘‘While Democrats are pushing for ation LeGend, Federal law enforcement NSC staffer, adding a smiley face. Zentos more aggressive action against Russian as- officers are working alongside local po- eventually replied when he suggested a res- sets interfering in our elections, Republicans lice to solve crimes, to make arrests, taurant: ‘‘Ooh, that would be wonderful— are using their conspiracy theories to ad- to track down fugitives, and to prepare thanks so much!’’ vance bogus investigations,’’ he said. Attached to Telizhenko’s email was an org U.S. intelligence officials tell Just the cases for trial so criminals can be held chart showing the structure of some foreign News that while they remain vigilant in accountable. The key phrase there is companies that had been connected at one fighting Russian interference in the 2020 ‘‘alongside.’’ Federal agents aren’t point to Zlochevsky’s business empire. election, they have no direct evidence going in and taking over the police de- The memos show Zentos first befriended Telizhenko is, like Derkach, connected to partment; they are going in to add as- Telizhenko when she worked at the U.S. em- the Kremlin. However, they have extensive sistance to the police department. bassy as far back as 2014. evidence he was welcomed by the U.S. gov- On that topic, there was no imme- The memos show that officials at the ernment during the Obama years and that he Obama Justice Department, the NSC, and diate raid of trafficking centers or drug assisted Trump lawyer Rudy Giuliani’s probe gangs or anything like that. I, frankly, the State Department enlisted Telizhenko of legal matters in Ukraine, including find- for similarly sensitive diplomatic matters ing political dirt last year on the Bidens. thought the Justice Department was dating to 2013 including: The officials also noted there is open wrong in not announcing earlier to Arranging for senior members of the source intelligence that Telizhenko actually Federal officials and local officials Ukraine Prosecutor General’s Office to trav- engaged in a rivalry in the Ukrainian press what they were going to do and when el to Washington in January 2016 to meet with Derkach and derided the Ukrainian par- they were going to do it, but I think we with NSC, State, DOJ and FBI officials to liamentary member as a Russian operative worked with them to see that that isn’t discuss ongoing corruption cases. At the just a few months ago. The open source in- time, the Ukraine prosecutors had an esca- going to continue to be the case. In formation includes a BuzzFeed article fact, in early August, they made a lating corruption probe of Burisma, where quoting Telizhenko and social media posts, Hunter Biden served on the board. Within the officials said. similar determination to go into St. weeks of the Washington meeting, Vice Ukraine is a country with much corruption Louis. President Joe Biden had pressured Ukraine’s and many mysterious characters. But one One of the advantages of having Fed- president to fire the lead thing is clear: U.S. government memos cor- eral officers work with the local police prosecutor, Viktor Shakin. roborate Andrii Telizhenko was trusted by in these cases is, one, they bring a Securing a meeting in February 2015 at the the Obama administration for many years whole lot more intensity to the mo- U.S. embassy in Kiev with a deputy Ukrain- before congressional Democrats turned on ment. With the extra help, suddenly ian prosecutor whom U.S. officials wanted to him. confront about a bribe allegedly paid by something becomes possible that Burisma. Mr. JOHNSON. The same person they wasn’t possible before. Also, many of Facilitating a draft statement in Novem- are saying is just this dangerous Rus- the people arrested can face Federal ber 2013 from members of the Ukrainian par- sian agent, they were using extensively charges as well as other sentences. liament to President Obama denouncing throughout the Obama administration Certainly in our State—in Kansas then-Ukrainian President Viktor to set up contacts. He actually had the City and both—the two dif- Yanukovych, whom the Obama administra- ability to go to meetings in the White ferent U.S. attorney’s offices have done tion would help oust from power a few weeks House, and he attended those. This is later. a great job working with local officials ‘‘We, people of Ukraine, appeal to you with the person whom now they are saying, before this but are even better able to request to support Ukrainian people in their because we spoke to him and got a lit- look at what Federal charges might be standing for freedom, justice and democ- tle bit of information from him, we are faced to take some of that load off the racy,’’ the November 2013 draft statement dealing in Russian disinformation. local prosecutor and also look for an- from Telizhenko to the U.S. embassy in Kiev If they had that level of concern, why other way to get these people off the read. ‘‘The Viktor did Democratic lobbying firm Blue street. Yanukovych proved that he is not the guar- Star Strategies employ him for over a By September 1, in Kansas City, the antor of constitutional rights and freedoms year, and why did Democrats deal with of citizens, freedom of choice and right for operation had led to the arrest of 355 free expression.’’ him so frequently during the Obama people suspected of serious crimes in The draft statement was fielded by a mili- administration? Kansas City. More than 100 of those 355 tary attache at the U.S. embassy who urged I yield the floor. people have been charged in Federal Telizhenko to get it to the embassy’s polit- The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Sen- court. In St. Louis, where I said before ical section for consideration. ‘‘The ambas- ator from Missouri. that the government decided to bring sador has not shared with me what the posi- CRIME Operation LeGend—the Justice Depart- tion of the US government would be on such Mr. BLUNT. Mr. President, as we all ment made that decision in early Au- a statement, other than his message yester- day morning,’’ the attache wrote. ‘‘. . . I’m know and as any American who has gust, and by September 1, there were sure once you pass this statement to Ambas- watched the news over the summer already 359 arrests, and 128 of those sador Pyatt’s political section, they will knows, there has been a terrible in- people arrested were looking at Fed- render a timely response.’’ crease in crime in America’s cities. As- eral charges as well.

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