Trump’s very inaccurate claim that the whistleblower is ‘very inaccurate’

Washington Post logo“Well, the whistleblower was very inaccurate. The whistleblower started this whole thing by writing a report on the conversation I had with the president of Ukraine. And the conversation was perfect; it couldn’t have been nicer.”

— President Trump, remarks to reporters, Oct. 2, 2019

“The whistleblower said terrible things about the call, but he then — I then found out he was secondhand and third-hand. In other words, he didn’t know what was on the call.”

— Trump, remarks to reporters, Oct. 2

“The Whistleblower’s facts have been so incorrect about my ‘no pressure’ conversation with the Ukrainian President.”

— Trump, in a tweet, Oct. 9

Despite Trump’s claim that the whistleblower was “very inaccurate” or “so incorrect,” much of the details of the whistleblower complaint have already been confirmed by additional information, documents and reporting. Here’s a quick guide to what the whistleblower alleged — and what has been confirmed. (Note: While Trump dismissed the information as “secondhand and third-hand,” the whistleblower signed a form saying he was a firsthand witness to at least some of the events recounted.)

We will examine the whistleblower’s allegations in the order in which he made them, under the sections as he labeled them.

View the complete October 9 article by Glenn Kessler on The Washington Post website here.