President Trump defended his tweets against former ambassador Marie Yovanovich as she testified on Capitol Hill, saying that he had every right to send them.

“You know what? I have the right to speak. I have freedom of speech just as other people do, but they’ve taken away the Republicans rights,” the President said.

Trump admitted that he watched today’s proceedings, saying, "It’s really sad when you see people not allowed to ask questions." He said he didn’t watch Wednesday’s proceedings due to a White House visit from Turkish President Recep Erdogan.

When asked directly if he thought his tweets and words could be intimidating, the President responded, “I don’t think so at all.”

More context: Earlier today, Trump tweeted as former Ambassador Marie Yovanovitch's testimony was underway that "everywhere Marie Yovanovitch went turned bad," which prompted a response minutes later from House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff, who allowed Yovanovitch to react to Trump's latest criticisms. Schiff charged that the tweet was "designed to intimidate" her and other witnesses.

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