The White House is engaging in a more aggressive and organized response to Democrats' impeachment inquiry after hiring two new aides, though his congressional allies say the effort remains handicapped by President Donald Trump's own unpredictable reactions.
Trump recently hired Tony Sayegh, formerly the top spokesman at the Treasury Department, and former Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi to coordinate the White House's communications on impeachment. They supervise a "rapid response" to the public impeachment hearings, issuing talking points and statements in real time that attempt to undermine the credibility of witnesses or contradict their testimony.
But the challenge the pair faces was on display Wednesday, as Trump addressed reporters at the White House while his ambassador to the European Union, Gordon Sondland, testified that the president directed a scheme to pressure the Ukrainian government to investigate his political rivals.