MSNBC host Ari Melber was left stunned after Gordon Sondland, a former Trump administration official who testified against Donald Trump during his impeachment, said he would be backing the former president because of “how badly” the Harris-Biden team has run the country.
Sondland, a wealthy hotel magnate and Republican mega-donor, served as Trump’s ambassador to the European Union and was a key witness for House Democrats during Trump’s 2019 House impeachment inquiry.
Sondland testified that there was a “quid pro quo” between Trump and Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky that secured military aid for Ukraine in exchange for an investigation into the Bidens’ business dealings and the 2016 election.
Melber pulled up a clip of Sondlad saying he was done supporting Trump following the Jan. 6 Capitol riot and asked him if he still felt the same way.
“No, I don’t stand by it and I’ll tell you why,” he said while sitting beside other former Trump administration officials Peter Navarro and Sarah Matthews.
“I’ve now lived four years under the Biden-Harris policies and I have to say that those policies are not only becoming an existential threat to our country’s way of life, but to our allies as well,” he continued.
The Emmy-winning journalist then cut him off.
“I’m going to let you finish, but this is so striking. You said it was a “no for me” after that, after January 6. And here we are right now and you’re saying it’s a yes for you?” Melber asked.
Sondland responded emphatically that yes, he will be supporting Trump and JD Vance over Kamala Harris and Tim Walz in November.
“It’s a yes, for me. It is an absolute yes for me,” he said. “That is how badly the Biden-Harris team have prosecuted their job.”
Melber pressed him again, noting that the point Sondland seemed to be making after Jan, 6, 2021 is “that kind of attack on democracy is bigger than any policy.”
“I am seeing so many attacks on democracy that eclipse Jan. 6th,” Sondland replied.
Melber first gave Matthews, a former deputy White House press secretary who is supporting Harris, a chance to respond. Matthews said that she is choosing not to vote on policy in this election, viewing Trump as a danger to US democracy.
“Policy matters greatly,” Sondland said back. “Because policy translates into our way of life and the way our country operates.”
He conceded that Trump’s handling of Jan. 6 “was not an exemplary thing” and that the 45th president “should have admitted he lost the election and moved on.”
But the Washington state native said the last four years of the Biden administration have led him to back Trump again.
During his testimony before the House, Sondland said that he acted on orders from Trump’s lawyer and former New York City mayor Rudy Giuliani.
He said he came to understand that $391 million in military aid for Ukraine was also linked to the probes into the Bidens and the 2016 election.
“Mr. Giuliani’s requests were a quid pro quo for arranging a White House visit for President Zelensky. Mr. Giuliani demanded that Ukraine make a public statement announcing investigations of the 2016 election/DNC server and Burisma,” he said in the statement, referring to the energy giant that hired Hunter Biden.
