Tipsheet

Rand Paul Says Eric Ciaramella Needs to Testify

Bronson Stocking
Bronson Stocking  |  November 13, 2019 5:01 PM

During an interview on WMAL's "Mornings on the Mall", Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) said Eric Ciaramella's previous work alongside former Vice President Joe Biden makes Ciaramella a "material witness" who needs to "be brought in" to testify. 

Co-host Vince Coglianese asked Sen. Paul if he believed reports that alleged Ukraine whistleblower Eric Ciaramella is the individual behind the complaint against President Trump and his phone conversation with Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky. 

Coglianese: "Senator Rand Paul a week ago you were calling on the media to name the whistleblower saying 'look you got the name, just name him' and we've seen a report in Real Clear Politics that the guy is Eric Ciaramella. We've also seen journalist Yashar Ali claiming he has three anonymous sources who have confirmed that its Eirc Ciaramella. Is it your understanding Senator that Eric Ciaramella is the whistleblower?"

Sen. Paul: "I think Eric Ciaramella needs to be pulled in for testimony and then I think it will be ultimately determined at that point. But I think he is a person of interest in the sense that he was at the Ukraine desk when Joe Biden was there, when Hunter Biden was working for the Urkainian Oligarch, so simply for that alone I think he is a material witness and needs to be brought in. ..."

Eric Ciaramella is a career CIA analyst who worked as the Ukraine director on the National Security Council (NSC) during the end of the Obama administration. According to Real Clear Investigations, Ciaramella worked on Ukrainian issues for former President Joe Biden in 2015 and 2016, when Biden served as the "point man" on Ukraine. When President Trump took office, Ciaramella briefly stayed on, heading the Ukraine desk at the NSC before transitioning over to the West Wing. Ciaramella eventually left the White House in the summer of 2017.

Last week, House Democrats released the transcript of the closed-door testimony of acting U.S. ambassador to Ukraine Bill Taylor. Although House Democrats have previously stated they would redact the name of the whistleblower, Eric Ciaramella's name appears in the transcript, leading many to conclude that Ciaramella's name had been overlooked by members of Chairman Schiff's staff or Ciaramella is not the whistleblower.