President Trump’s man in Brussels found events spinning out of control when he arrived in Washington, D.C., expecting to testify before House committees this week.

Gordon Sondland, appointed U.S. ambassador to the European Union after contributing $1 million to Trump’s inauguration, was to be deposed in the impeachment inquiry for his apparent role in pushing Ukraine to investigate former Vice President Joe Biden. But the White House blocked Sondland from testifying at the last minute Tuesday, prompting the committees to subpoena him.