A House hearing broke into laughter on Friday after a Democratic lawmaker said the former Ukrainian ambassador’s removal was “the end of a really bad reality TV show.”
Rep. Mike Quigley (D-Ill.) dismissed Republican suggestions that Marie Yovanovitch securing a fellowship at Georgetown University following her ouster as ambassador meant “this is all OK.”
“It not the end of a Hallmark movie, it’s the end of a really bad reality TV show,” he said, earning additional laughter when he added that this is “brought to you by someone who knows a lot about that.”
Quigley went on to emphasize that the events that led to Yovanovitch’s current position were not her “preference.” Yovanovitch was removed from her position as U.S. ambassador to Ukraine in May and testified Friday that she believed she was forced out due to a “smear campaign” by the president’s personal lawyer Rudy Giuliani, among others.
The public phase of the House impeachment inquiry into President Trump began Wednesday and continued Friday. It has been defined by clashes between Republicans and Democrats and allegations by key witnesses of wrongdoing by the president.
However, another moment of levity happened on Wednesday when Democrats broke into laughter after Rep. Peter Welch (D-Vt.) invited President Trump to testify.