Rick Perry's departure has 'nothing' to do with Ukraine: White House spokeswoman

U.S. Energy Secretary Rick Perry's decision to step down by the end of the year had "absolutely nothing" to do with controversy over President Trump's Ukraine policy, White House spokeswoman Stephanie Grisham said on Friday.

"This was in the works for quite a while," Grisham said in an interview with Fox News.

In recent weeks, Perry has found himself engulfed in the impeachment investigation threatening Trump's presidency. Three Democratic-led U.S. House of Representatives committees issued a subpoena on Oct. 10 for Perry to turn over documents on any role he played in Trump's bid to get Ukraine to investigate a political rival.