House Intelligence Chairman Adam Schiff chastised “certain personalities” on Fox News who have questioned Army Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman’s loyalty to the country.
Fox News host Laura Ingraham recently suggested Vindman, a Ukrainian immigrant to the United States when he was a young child, could be disloyal to America.
“Colonel Vindman, we have seen far more scurrilous attacks on your character and watched as certain personalities on Fox have questioned your loyalty. I note that you have shed blood for America, and we owe you an immense debt of gratitude. I hope no one on this committee will become part of those vicious attacks,” Schiff said Tuesday in his opening remarks.
Vindman, a decorated Iraq War veteran, testified publicly on Tuesday in the House impeachment investigation into President Trump’s conduct toward Ukraine. In a closed-door deposition, Vindman said he was “concerned” about Trump’s call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, in which Trump asked for an investigation into his political rival Joe Biden and his son, Hunter Biden.
Ingraham’s comments last month were also condemned by some Republicans. Republican Wyoming Rep. Liz Cheney called the questions about Vindman’s dedication to the U.S. “shameful.”
“I think that we need to show that we are better than that as a nation,” Cheney added. “Their patriotism, their love of country, we’re talking about decorated veterans who have served this nation, who have put their lives on the line and it is shameful to question their patriotism and their love of this nation. We should not be involved in that process,” she said.
