In one of the most anticipated testimonies of the impeachment hearings, EU Ambassador Gordon Sondland took the stand on Wednesday. Of all the other ancillary witnesses, who testified earlier this week and last who brought secondhand knowledge and hearsay, Sondland was believed to have the most firsthand knowledge of the situation.

The major takeaways from Sondland’s testimony are that he says there WAS a quid pro quo but, he only “assumed” military aid was tied to Biden investigation. He also fingered Rudy Giuliani, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, Security Advisor John Bolton, and Vice President Mike Pence saying they were “in the loop” on Ukraine.

“They knew what we were doing and why,” Sondland recounted to the House Intelligence Committee. “Everyone was in the loop. It was no secret.” He also said categorically that, “I know that members of this committee have frequently framed these complicated issues in the form of a simple question: ‘Was there a quid pro quo?’ With regard to the requested White House call and White House meeting, the answer is yes.”

However, he also testified to the fact he did not know why aid was suspended but just assumed it was because of the Biden investigation. Sondland stated on the record, “I tried diligently to ask why the aid was suspended, but I never received a clear answer. In the absence of any credible explanation for the suspension of aid, I later came to believe that the resumption of security aid would not occur until there was a public statement from Ukraine committing to the investigations of the 2016 election and Burisma, as Mr. Giuliani had demanded.”

In a statement to assembled reporters, President trump defended himself from these allegations and called on the Ukraine President to “do the right” thing and clear this up. The President said that Sondland repeatedly asked him regarding Ukraine, ‘‘What do you want? What do you want? I hear all these theories. What do you want?’’ The President continued, “And now here’s my response that he just gave. Ready? You have the cameras rolling? ‘‘I want nothing. That is what I want from Ukraine. That is what I said. ‘I want nothing. I said it twice.” He went on to say, “I say to the ambassador—response—I want nothing, I want nothing, I want no quid pro quo. Tell Zelensky, President Zelensky, to do the right thing.”