Trump considering testifying in House impeachment probe

By Michael Hernandez

WASHINGTON (AA) - U.S. President Donald Trump said Monday he is "strongly" considering testifying in the House of Representatives' ongoing impeachment investigation.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi offered Trump the opportunity to testify under oath during an interview with CBS' Face the Nation Sunday morning television program.

Trump, Pelosi said, "could come right before the committee and talk, speak all the truth that he wants if he wants."

"If he has information that is exculpatory, that means ex, taking away, culpable, blame, then we look forward to seeing it," Pelosi said. "He has every opportunity to present his case."

Saying he is weighing her offer, Trump continued to lash out at the impeachment probe and Pelosi, whom he dubs "Nervous Nancy," calling the House's investigation a "phony Impeachment Witch Hunt."

"Even though I did nothing wrong, and don’t like giving credibility to this No Due Process Hoax, I like the idea & will, in order to get Congress focused again, strongly consider it!" Trump wrote in a pair of tweets.

The Democrat-led impeachment process is investigating whether Trump abused the power of his office in seeking to have Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky open corruption probes into Democratic challenger Joe Biden on hitherto uncorroborated claims of corruption, as well as the hold-up of some $400 million in congressionally-appropriated military aid.

Trump has denied wrongdoing as the process has gathered steam and moved into the public arena with nationally-televised hearings of senior diplomats and officials.

Three witnesses, including the U.S.'s ousted top diplomat to Ukraine -- Marie Yovanovitch, testified last week.

An ABC News/Ipsos poll released Monday found some 70% of Americans think Trump's request to a foreign leader to open the probe into Biden and his son, Hunter, was wrong.

Moreover, the poll indicated that a majority of Americans -- 51% -- now believe the president should be impeached and removed from office. The poll did note that just over 20% of respondents said they had been following the process closely.