It should already be crystal clear that Trump tried to extort the Ukrainian government into doing dirty work for him by withholding military aid if they don't publicly announce or give the appearance that Democratic presidential frontrunner Joe Biden is being investigated for corruption, but now at least one more person very close to Trump says that's what happened.
The New York Times reported early this morning that, according to former National Security Adviser John Bolton, Trump explicitly said the scheme was tied to investigations of Democrats.
The New York Times cited the manuscript of an unpublished book by Bolton as saying that Trump told him he wanted to freeze security aid to Ukraine until Kiev helped with politically beneficial investigations into Democrats, including former Vice President Joe Biden and his son, Hunter Biden. [...]
Trump denied telling Bolton he was seeking something in return for unfreezing the Ukrainian aid, which eventually was provided in September after the controversy became public.
“I NEVER told John Bolton that the aid to Ukraine was tied to investigations into Democrats, including the Bidens ... If John Bolton said this, it was only to sell a book,” Trump wrote on Twitter.
It's true that John Bolton is selling a book, but that doesn't mean he's lying and there's not a whole lot of reason to think he is.
I don't know to what extent Bolton cares about his own reputation and standing, but it will likely take a significant hit from most conservative circles that are almost all controlled by Trumpian sycophants in the year 2020.
Bolton is also far from the first and may not even be the last person make these claims that, lest we forget, were admitted to during a public press conference by Trump's Chief of Staff Mick Mulvaney and made evident by readouts of Trump's call with Ukrainian President Volodomyr Zelenskiy. You know, the "perfect call" in which Trump told Zelenskiy to do him a favor.
I don't think this makes it any more likely that Trump will be removed from office, but it may make Senate Republicans look even worse when they inevitably ignore the evidence and give Trump a pass. Republican control of Congress is on trial.