Eric Swalwell and Mark Meadows reportedly got into a shouting match during the Vindman hearing

(Image credit: The Associated Press)

published 29 October 2019

Things reportedly got heated between House Democrats and Republicans during Army Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman's impeachment testimony Tuesday, CNN reports.

Considering the consequences of the hearing (Vindman, the National Security Council's top expert on Ukraine, testified about his concerns regarding the Trump administration's interactions with Kyiv), it's not a shocker that the atmosphere in the closed-door hearing was tense, but the lawmakers reportedly took things to another level with a "shouting match."

It apparently started when House Intelligence Committee Chair Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) objected to a line of questioning from Republicans. Schiff accused the GOP of trying to reveal the identity of the original whistleblower who set the whole saga in motion by expressing concern over President Trump's phone call in July with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. The Republicans reportedly didn't take too kindly to Schiff's charge, and the fray ended with Reps. Eric Swalwell (D-Calif.) and Mark Meadows (R-N.C.) yelling at each other, multiple sources confirmed, which isn't surprising since the two have gone at it before.

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Sen. Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii) expressed her displeasure with Republicans afterwards, calling their performance during the hearing "pathetic," while arguing their only course of action was "attacking" Vindman, a decorated military veteran. Read more at CNN. Tim O'Donnell

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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.