Shaylyn Hynes, press secretary at the Department of Energy, issued a statement rejecting the testimony of Gordon Sondland, U.S. ambassador to the European Union, at a House Intelligence Committee hearing into the impeachment of President Donald Trump.

In his testimony, Sondland said that, after orders from Trump to work with his personal lawyer, Rudy Giuliani, on negotiations with Kiev, Perry took the lead.

The statement said:

Ambassador Sondland’s testimony today misrepresented both Secretary Perry’s interaction with Rudy Giuliani and direction the Secretary received from President Trump. As previously stated, Secretary Perry spoke to Rudy Giuliani only once at the president’s request. No one else was on that call. At no point before, during or after that phone call did the words ‘Biden’ or ‘Burisma’ ever come up in the presence of Secretary Perry.

Follow Penny Starr on Twitter