Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman pushed back firmly at Tuesday’s impeachment hearing when Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) raised questions about his judgment and asked whether he was a source of leaks from within the government.
“You never leaked information?” Jordan asked Vindman, an expert on Ukraine policy at the White House National Security Council.
“I never did. I never would. That is preposterous that I would do that,” Vindman replied.
Jordan and other Republican allies of the president have sought to call Vindman’s credibility into question by suggesting he has undermined the president’s agenda and noting his ties to Ukraine.
“Your boss had concerns about your judgment, your former boss, Dr. [Fiona] Hill, had concerns about your judgment, your colleagues had concerns about your judgment, and your colleagues felt there were times when you leaked information,” Jordan said. “Any idea why they have those impressions?”
Vindman appeared to be prepared for lines of inquiry calling into his credibility into question. He read from an evaluation from Hill in mid-July in which she characterized him as “a top 1 percent military officer.”
“He’s brilliant, unflappable and exercises excellent judgment,” Hill said, according to a review read by Vindman.
Vindman asserted that Tim Morrison, another national security official who Jordan cited as raising concerns about Vindman’s judgment, may have simply clashed with Vindman because of a difference in work culture and a lack of familiarity.