Trump Asked Ukraine Leader to ‘Do Us a Favor' and Investigate Biden, Memo Shows

President Donald Trump repeatedly prodded Ukraine’s new leader to work with the U.S. attorney general and lawyer Rudy Giuliani to investigate Democratic political rival Joe Biden, according to a five-page memo released by the White House Wednesday summarizing the July 25 call. In the call this summer, Trump raised allegations, without citing any evidence, that the former vice president sought to interfere with a Ukrainian prosecutor in regard to son Hunter. His words were at once bantering and suggestive, without the kind of explicit language that would lead to a straight-line conclusion about his intent. “Whatever you can do with the attorney general would be great,” Trump told President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, asking for help in investigating Biden. He referred to Giuliani, his personal attorney and trusted adviser, as a “highly respected man” and said, “I will ask him to call you along with the attorney general.” After saying Giuliani and Barr would be in touch, Trump referenced Ukraine’s economy, saying: “Your economy is going to get better and better I predict. You have a lot of assets. It’s a great country.” Zelenskiy had earlier raised to Trump his desire to purchase additional Javelin anti-tank missiles from the U.S.