In a notable 2020 interview with Jesse Watters, Trump’s attorney Rudy Giuliani revealed significant details about a meeting held in January 2016 at the Obama White House. This meeting, orchestrated by whistleblower Eric Ciaramella, aimed to gather compromising information on Donald Trump.
This revelation has roots tracing back to a report by in November 2019.
Documentation indicates that officials from the Obama administration pressured Ukraine to provide damaging information on Trump and his campaign during the early months of 2016. Investigative journalist John Solomon characterized the January 19, 2016 meeting in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building as “one of the earliest documented efforts to build the now-debunked Trump-Russia collusion narrative, marking the Obama administration’s first intervention in this matter.”
Ciaramella chaired this pivotal meeting, which also featured Liz Zentos, a frequent collaborator. While officially presented as a session on anti-corruption efforts, it quickly became apparent to Ukrainian attendees that the U.S. had dual objectives: to investigate allegations involving Vice President Joe Biden’s family and to scrutinize a lobbying firm closely associated with Trump.
Furthermore, officials from the Obama Department of Justice expressed interest in reopening a closed investigation from 2014 that primarily focused on GOP lobbyist Paul Manafort, whose connections to Trump were widely known, thanks to his partnership with Roger Stone.
Nazar Kholodnytskyy, who served as Ukraine’s chief anti-corruption prosecutor and attended the meeting, reported observing evidence of political interference in the U.S. elections. This included the timely release of the so-called “black ledger,” crucial evidence against Manafort, who had joined Trump’s campaign on March 29, 2016, and was later promoted to campaign chairman on May 19, 2016.
According to Andriy Telizhenko, a former political officer at the Ukrainian Embassy in Washington and another attendee of the meeting, U.S. officials indicated a preference for Ukraine to abandon its investigation into Burisma, suggesting that the FBI might take over the probe. Burisma Holdings was under scrutiny for alleged improper foreign financial transactions, particularly involving Hunter Biden, who was serving as a board member and consultant at the time.
This series of events suggests that the Obama administration may have employed U.S. personnel to solicit foreign assistance in undermining political adversaries while simultaneously stifling inquiries into political allies. When Ukraine hesitated to comply, the U.S. allegedly pressured the Ukrainian government to replace resistant officials with more agreeable counterparts.
In a striking turn, Giuliani disclosed that he had gathered testimonies from three witnesses asserting that members of Obama’s National Security Council violated laws similar to those for which Robert Mueller accused Trump.
The Obama officials are alleged to have solicited foreign entities for derogatory information on an American citizen—Donald Trump—who was poised to enter a political contest.
Previous reports by detailed the attendees of Ciaramella’s meeting. Giuliani uncovered a memo that identified participants at the session.
Moreover, he amassed evidence pointing to money laundering linked to Hunter Biden.
Compounding these issues, it has been suggested that a senior USAID official could be embroiled in this potential scandal involving Ciaramella and Norm Eisen, a key figure in the progressive agenda aimed at reshaping America into a one-party state.
Jonathan Katz, co-author of Eisen’s Democracy Playbook—which draws from Gene Sharp’s influential work on color revolutions—serves as Ciaramella’s counterpart at USAID and reportedly met with the Ukrainian delegation in 2016. This connection has been corroborated by sources in various interviews.
Michael Shellenberger later highlighted the links between the CIA and USAID in relation to the first impeachment of Trump.
The House of Representatives impeached President Donald Trump on December 18, 2019, after a White House whistleblower unveiled evidence that Trump had abused his powers by withholding military aid to Ukraine to unearth damaging information on his rival, Joe Biden.
In the complaint,… pic.twitter.com/rZ6gTazw5v
— Michael Shellenberger (@shellenberger) February 5, 2025
This development should not be surprising, as it clarifies the Democrats’ vehement opposition to USAID’s funding cuts. There is an urgent need for Kash Patel and Pam Bondi to initiate an investigation into this Obama-Biden scandal.
