Former special counsel thinks Alexander Vindman will get Gordon Sondland in 'deep, deep legal trouble'

(Image credit: Patrick Semansky/AP)

published 29 October 2019

Things aren't looking good for U.S. Ambassador to the European Union Gordon Sondland, a former special counsel argues.

Army Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman, the top Ukraine expert on the National Security Council, will testify Tuesday about his concerns about the Trump administration's interactions with Kyiv. Vindman's opening statement contradicts Sondland's claims that he never discussed former Vice President Joe Biden or his son, Hunter, with any White House or State Department official and that he never encouraged Ukraine to investigate the Bidens over Hunter Biden's ties to Ukrainian gas company, Burisma.

Vindman's statement, on the other hand, claims Sondland stressed the importance of investigating the Bidens, Burisma, and Ukraine's role in the 2016 U.S. presidential election in the presence of Vindman and former NSC official Fiona Hill. Vindman will also testify that both he and Hill told Sondland his statements were inappropriate, which has been corroborated by testimony from both Hill and former U.S. diplomat to Ukraine Bill Taylor.

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Tim is a staff writer at The Week and has contributed to Bedford and Bowery and The New York Transatlantic. He is a graduate of Occidental College and NYU's journalism school. Tim enjoys writing about baseball, Europe, and extinct megafauna. He lives in New York City.

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