Shameful Tactics

OK to question testimony, but not to attack the witness

President Donald Trump has a tendency to go too far sometimes in attacking those he considers to be disloyal or an enemy. So, unfortunately, it wasn’t that much of a surprise when he took to Twitter to denounce Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman, a decorated military hero who testified Monday before the U.S. House impeachment inquiry.

Vindman heard the president’s phone call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and believed the president went too far in tying an investigation into former Vice President Joe Biden and his son, Hunter, to U.S. aid to that country.

“I did not think it was proper to demand that a foreign government investigate a U.S. citizen, and I was worried about the implications for the U.S. government’s support of Ukraine,” Vindman testified.

Vindman relayed these concerns to his superiors at the time.

Vindman oversees Ukraine policy for the National Security Council. That gives him quite a bit of credibility.

So does his oustanding record of military service, including a Purple Heart for injuries in Iraq.

But, as has been common throughout the investigation, President Trump did not take the testimony well. No did some of his stronger supporters. Vindman was attacked on social media and on TV. There were even suggestions his loyalties may not lie with the U.S., but with the Ukraine.

It was the wrong tactic.

Senior Republicans in Congress, including No. 2 GOP Senator John Thune of South Dakota, sprung to Vindman’s defense against the allegations.

“You can obviously take issue with the substance and there are different interpretations about all that stuff. But I wouldn’t go after him personally. He’s a patriot,” Thune said.

Others speaking out against the smear included Texas U.S. Sen. John Cornyn, Missouri U.S. Sen. Roy Blount and even Wyoming U.S. Rep. Liz Cheney.

It’s fine to dispute testimony or challenge interpretations during an investigation. And it is acceptable to challenge credibility where there is real evidence to do so. But the attacks on Vindeman have been based on nothing at all. They are, as Rep. Cheney said, “shameful.”

Let’s hope the president and his supporters choose their battles — and tactics — more carefully in the future.