Last week the House Intelligence Committee heard testimony from career officials concerning Donald Trump’s plot to extort Ukraine for personal gain, which Republicans rejected as hearsay because it came from people who were not on the infamous July 25 phone call. This morning the witnesses included Lt. Colonel Alexander Vindman and Mike Pence aide Jennifer Williams, who were listening in as Trump asked Ukraine president Volodymyr Zelensky to do him a “favor,” meaning the GOP has had to pivot in its sad, sad defense of the president. And here’s what it’s come up with: trying, and failing, to suggest Vindman, a decorated Army veteran who received a Purple Heart in 2004, can’t be trusted.
Not surprisingly, that honor went to resident angry man Jim Jordan, who read from the deposition of National Security Council adviser Tim Morrison, who, according to Jordan, expressed “concerns” about Vindman’s judgment. “So your boss had concerns about your judgment,” Jordan said. “Your former boss, Dr. [Fiona] Hill, had concerns about your judgment. Your colleagues had concerns about your judgment. And your colleagues felt that there were times when you leaked information. Any idea why they have those impressions, Colonel Vindman?” Jordan asked, clearly thinking he’d nailed the guy. To which Vindman, perhaps expecting the attempted smear, responded by reading a performance evaluation written by Hill earlier this year.
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