>> the person is a spy in my opinion. >> reporter: after republican senator chuck grassley said the whistle-blower should be heard and protected, trump said this -- >> i think a whistle-blower should be protected if the whistle-blower is legitimate. >> reporter: coming hours after secretary of state mike pompeo admitted he was on the july call when ukrainian president zelensky. >> i was on the phone call -- >> reporter: it is the first time he's publicly addressed his role in the call since this interview. >> so you just gave me a report about a i.c. whistle-blower complaint, none of which i've seen. >> reporter: it is a scandal the world is watching. including russian president vladimir putin who defended trump against the impeachment inquiry today. >> translator: nixons team was wiretapping and listening to rivals but this is a completely different situation. trump was wiretapped.