Pelosi: Vindman ouster is ‘shameful’
Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) lambasted President Trump over his ousting of Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman, calling it a “brazen act of retaliation.”
“President Trump is impeached forever,” Pelosi said in a statement Friday. “The shameful firing of Colonel Vindman was a clear and brazen act of retaliation that showcases the President’s fear of the truth.”
“History will remember Lieutenant Colonel Vindman as an American hero,” she added.
Lieutenant Colonel Vindman has proven to be an American patriot. His firing was a clear and brazen act of retaliation that showcases the President’s fear of the truth — and the vindictiveness which led Republican Senators to be accomplices to President Trump’s cover-up.
— Nancy Pelosi (@SpeakerPelosi) February 8, 2020
Vindman was the National Security Council’s expert on Ukraine. He testified during the House’s public impeachment hearings, detailing his knowledge of President Trump’s dealings with Ukraine and its leader. Vindman’s testimony, along with the testimony of several other government officials, led to the House Democrats passing two articles of impeachment, moving the proceedings to the Senate for trial.
On Wednesday, Trump was acquitted by the GOP-controlled Senate on both articles of impeachment.
On Friday, Trump removed Vindman and his twin brother who was a lawyer for the NSC as well as ousting Gordon Sondland, who had been the U.S. Ambassador to the E.U.
Sondland also testified during the public House impeachment hearings.
In a tweet Saturday morning, Trump claimed that he had never spoken to or met Vindman.
….was given a horrendous report by his superior, the man he reported to, who publicly stated that Vindman had problems with judgement, adhering to the chain of command and leaking information. In other words, “OUT”.
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 8, 2020
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