Election results are contested.

In the months since a single senator froze military promotions over the Pentagon’s abortion policy, the uniformed officers affected have been largely silent, wary of stepping into a political fray.

A judge has ruled that the oldest son of Donald Trump and other Trump allies did not defame a retired Army lieutenant colonel who was a key witness in the first impeachment case against the former president.

From the earliest days of his first presidential campaign, Donald Trump aggressively dismantled pillars of Republican foreign policy.

A retired Army lieutenant colonel who was a pivotal witness in the first impeachment case against Donald Trump has sued the oldest son of the former president and other Trump allies.

Who is the woman at the center of the viral coffee chugging moment during Tuesday’s impeachment hearing? The woman dramatically chugged her cup of coffee as Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman testified Tuesday. She says she grabbed an oatmeal and large coffee on her way to the hearing, where the world saw her chug every last caffeinated drop. Meanwhile, bombshell testimony came from Gordon Sondland, the Ambassador of the European Union, on Wednesday. He was appointed ambassador to the European Union by Trump after he donated $1 million to the presidential inauguration.

The House Intelligence Committee continues public hearings in President Trumps impeachment inquiry. Starting at 9 a.m. Tuesday, Jennifer Williams and Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman testify. By about 2:30 p.m., Amb. Kurt Volker and Tim Morrison will testify. Read more: What to watch on Day 3 of public Trump impeachment hearingsWatch live NBC News coverage here:

The procession includes officials closest to Trump as lawmakers grind through their investigation of the 45th president. It was President Trump who raised Burisma, Williams testified on Nov. 7. Tell Jennifer Williams, whoever that is, to read BOTH transcripts of the presidential calls, Trump tweeted in part over the weekend. The White House is happy with the role of Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, as the committees Republican bulldog questioner. But privately these officials pointed to concerns in the White House about the performance of GOP counsel Steve Castor.

Former National Security Council Director for European Affairs Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman returns to the Capitol to review transcripts of his testimony in the impeachment inquiry of President Donald Trump, in Washington, Thursday, Nov. 7, 2019. Scott Applewhite)WASHINGTON, DC Two top national security aides who listened to President Donald Trumps call with Ukraine are scheduled to testify in the impeachment hearings, launching back-to-back sessions as Americans hear from those closest to the White House. An Army officer at the National Security Council, Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman, and his counterpart at Vice President Mike Pences office, Jennifer Williams, both had concerns as Trump spoke on July 25 with the newly elected Ukraine president about political investigations into Joe Biden. In the afternoon, the House will hear from former NSC official Timothy Morrison and the former Ukraine special envoy, Kurt Volker. In all, nine witnesses are testifying in a pivotal week as the Houses historic impeachment inquiry accelerates and deepens.

A look at how Sondlands account differs from that of other witnesses:ON INTERACTIONS WITH MICK MULVANEYTHEM: Multiple witnesses describe a cozy relationship between Sondland and the White House acting chief of staff. Fiona Hill, another White House national security official, says Sondland repeatedly talked of meetings with Mulvaney. ___ON HIS ROLE IN UKRAINE POLICY:THEM: Hill describes a blowup with Sondland in June when he asserted he was in charge of the administrations Ukraine policy. Irritated and shocked, she said she responded, youre not. And I said, Who has said you're in charge of Ukraine, Gordon? Hill said. He said he doesnt recall mentioning Ukraine investigations or Burisma.

(AP Photo/Alex Brandon)WASHINGTON, DC The House impeachment hearings are entering a crucial second week as Democrats are set to hear from eight additional witnesses about President Donald Trumps dealings with Ukraine. Whats ahead on the impeachment schedule:A PARADE OF WITNESSESThe House intelligence committee, which is conducting the impeachment hearings, has set a breakneck schedule ahead of the Thanksgiving recess. Morrison will testify alongside Volker, who was also involved in White House meetings. "There was no ambiguity," said Vindman, an Army officer detailed to the White House who showed up at the deposition in his military uniform. House Democrats are hoping to finish the process by the end of the year.

Under questioning from GOP impeachment counsel Steve Castor, Morrison said others at the White House had raised concerns that Vindman might leak information. So, Congressman, the power disparity between the president of the United States and the president of Ukraine is vast, Vindman said. He moved to the Trump White House in July 2018 after being tapped to serve on the National Security Council. Behind the scenes, White House officials have sought to downplay the issues raised by Vindman. Senior administration officials argued that Vindmans beef is a policy dispute" with the president and other White House officials over Ukraine aid.

Military aid promised by the U.S. to Ukraine and the strange circumstances under which it was held up and eventually released is at the heart of the impeachment inquiry into President Donald Trump. I am not part of whatever drug deal Sondland and (acting White House chief of staff Mick) Mulvaney are cooking up on this, Hill said Bolton told her. AUG. 12: The complaintA whistleblower files a formal complaint addressed to Congress that details concerns over the July 25 phone call and the hold placed on the military aid. AUG. 28: The articlePolitico publishes details that the military aid to Ukraine is on hold, setting off a scramble among diplomats in Ukraine and the United States. Taylor and other diplomats involved in Ukraine were not given a reason for the aid being released.

WASHINGTON, DC Defense Secretary Mark Esper says an Army officer has no reason to fear retribution for testifying before Congress in the impeachment inquiry of President Donald Trump. Esper was asked about potential retribution for Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman during a trip Monday to New York. The defense secretary said the Pentagon "has protections for whistleblowers" who report waste, fraud or abuse. He testified about concerns that Trump was delaying military aid to the Eastern European country while pressing the country to investigate his political rivals. That allegation is now at the heart of the impeachment inquiry.

WASHINGTON – For only the fourth time in U.S. history, the House of Representatives has started a presidential impeachment inquiry. Both testified they were concerned Trump was inappropriately pressuring Ukraine to investigate Democrats. Cooper wants a federal judge to determine whether Bolton and his former deputy, Charles Kupperman, can be compelled to testify against the White House wishes. Acting White House chief of staff Mick Mulvaney and Office of Management and Budget associate director Marky Sandy defied House investigator subpoenas and were no-shows for their scheduled depositions. NUMBERS THAT MATTERThis week, a dozen Trump administration figures, including high-profile names like Mulvaney and Bolton, declined to appear before the Democratic-led panel.

President Donald Trump tells a reporter to be quiet as he speaks on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, Friday, Nov. 8, 2019, before boarding Marine One for a short trip to Andrews Air Force Base, Md. and then on to Georgia to meet with supporters. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)WASHINGTON, DC If Ukraine's new leader wanted an Oval Office welcome from Donald Trump and he did he would have to open a public probe into the president's Democratic foe Joe Biden and his son. That is what two key White House officials told impeachment investigators. According to transcripts released Friday in the House Democrats' impeachment inquiry, Vindman and Fiona Hill, a former White House Russia adviser, gave House investigators detailed updates of scenes central to the probe.

House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff, D-Calif., talks with reporters on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, Nov. 6, 2019, about the House impeachment inquiry. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)WASHINGTON, DC New impeachment inquiry transcripts show Republicans and Democrats repeatedly skirmishing over GOP questions that appear aimed at drawing out the identity of the whistleblower who filed the initial complaint against President Donald Trump. During questioning of Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman, a top Trump national security adviser, Republicans repeatedly asked questions that could reveal the whistleblower's identity. The GOP's actions led to sharp exchanges with Democrats and Vindman's lawyer. Schiff said Democrats "are determined to protect the right of that whistleblower to remain anonymous" and "will not allow bad-faith efforts to out this whistleblower."

But the subsequent effort to lock down the rough transcript suggests some people in the White House viewed the president's conversation as problematic. Ellis, the other White House lawyer being asked to testify, was with Eisenberg when he made the suggestion to move the document into the more secure server. Ellis is no stranger to White House controversies. Eisenberg and Ellis, both part of the White House legal staff, declined to comment through an NSC spokesman. According to one of the individuals familiar with the White House classified computer systems, Eisenberg couldn't have actually moved it to N.I.C.E.

That includes public hearings in a matter of weeks and the possibility of drafting articles of impeachment against the president. Trump and his Republican allies on Capitol Hill say the entire impeachment inquiry is illegitimate and are unpersuaded by the House resolution formally setting out next steps. Late Wednesday, it was disclosed that Morrison was resigning his White House position. He told investigators that senior White House officials blocked an effort by the State Department to release a November 2018 statement condemning Russia's attack on Ukrainian military vessels. The lawyer told lawmakers that neither of his clients is the whistleblower whose complaint triggered the impeachment inquiry and that he would object to any questions aimed at identifying that person.

Vindman testified to House investigators that he tried to suggest changes to the transcript that was released by the White House, but was unsuccessful, the people said. The White House on Thursday pushed back on the idea that Vindman had suggested that the ellipses in the rough transcript represented missing information. The White House ultimately released the rough transcript after the whistleblower complaint, but insists Trump did nothing wrong. In the White House rough transcript, there are three parts of the telephone call where ellipses replace what was said. Vindman told House investigators his efforts to add back the missing language were unsuccessful and the White House released the transcript with the gaps, the people said.

Now Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman, a 20-year Army officer assigned to the National Security Council, finds himself in the red-hot center of the House impeachment inquiry. The Army officer was a specialist in the White House on Ukraine and Russia. His backstory he's a Jewish immigrant who fled the Soviet Union with his family to become a decorated soldier and White House adviser has the makings of an only-in-America movie. Kitman struck up a relationship with the Vindman family and photographed the boys over the years, including their weddings. He moved to the Trump White House in July 2018 after being tapped to serve on the National Security Council.