Today I officially requested retirement from the US Army, an organization I love. My family and I look forward to the next chapter of our lives. pic.twitter.com/h2D9MRUHY2
— Alexander S. Vindman (@AVindman) July 8, 2020
Congratulations to @AVindman my twin brother on a glorious military career. Love you bro!
— Yevgeny (Eugene) Vindman (@YVindman) July 8, 2020
A sentiment I can only second, from one of Vindman’s fellow Soviet refugees:
If ever in my lifetime the Dems go extinct and the GOP platform has free healthcare, spiritual fulfillment for all and peace on Earth, I'll still rather have my eyes eaten out by rats rather than consider voting Republican.
No forgiveness for this. Ever.https://t.co/ZBGJLewHIp— Slava Malamud (@SlavaMalamud) July 8, 2020
JUST IN: Full statement from VINDMAN attorney on Vindman’s retirement. pic.twitter.com/nn99aXA5Wj
— Kyle Cheney (@kyledcheney) July 8, 2020
Speaker Pelosi on Lt. Col. Vindman: "It is sad that America is losing this patriotic soldier because of the President's cruel vindictiveness and disrespect for the Constitution and our national security."
— Kyle Griffin (@kylegriffin1) July 9, 2020
Rep. Schiff: "What makes the punishment of Col. Vindman possible, is not just this amoral president, but it's a GOP and Congress that is not only unwilling to lift a finger or speak a word in his defense, but quite to the contrary piled on the attacks on Col. Vindman." pic.twitter.com/9bZh7JaFI8
— MSNBC (@MSNBC) July 8, 2020
The entire civilian and military leadership in the DoD can go fuck themselves. https://t.co/KroXkl9K61 pic.twitter.com/CuMVekqcTV
— Daniel W. Drezner (@dandrezner) July 8, 2020
It's unprecedented that someone selected for the US Army War College and on the promotion list for Colonel would be bullied out of the Army by a Commander-in-Chief who is allowing Russia to place bounties on American troops in Afghanistan. https://t.co/G14WVbX2Kc
— VoteVets (@votevets) July 8, 2020
No the most insufferable part is that cult of personality cost America another honorable public servant.
— Steve Metz (@steven_metz) July 8, 2020
Trump can't help himself so he'll totally take a victory lap over sabotaging the career of a lieutenant colonel with a flawless service record.
And then probably pardon some Leavenworth s***bag who curbstomped an Iraqi 8-year old.
— Zeddy (@Zeddary) July 8, 2020
To put it in terms the Oval Office Occupant might understand: Every day Lt. Colonel Vindman shits better presidents than Donald Trump will ever be.
Thank you for your service and your patriotism, @AVindman.
— The Lincoln Project (@ProjectLincoln) July 9, 2020
debbie
Will he get his pension?
A woman from anywhere (formerly Mohagan)
This is terrible. Couldn’t he wait until after November? Couldn’t a new President Biden reverse the wrong and put him back in his proper place, or at least appoint people who could? What am I missing
That pisses me off too. I’m sure a pension for a Lt Col is less than for a full Col.
danielx
@debbie:
Not an expert, but he was eligible to retire as a light colonel so he’d get that much pension.
Unless, of course, the Army and DOD try to screw him out of it at the behest of that orange shitbag squatting in the White House. Which would not surprise me in the least, legalities be damned.
Jim, Foolish Literalist
@A woman from anywhere (formerly Mohagan): I thought I heard someone on the TV say earlier that he could be reinstated by a new president, but I wasn’t paying close attention
CarolPW
President Biden should appoint him Ambassador to Ukraine. He would get to work in his area of expertise and everyone would have to refer to him as Ambassador Vindman for the rest of his life (unless he gets a higher office after that).
Emma from FL
Godamn them all. All the enablers, the lickspittles, the racists, the religious fanatics that voted for and continue to enable that monstrosity in the White House.
Edmund Dantes
He is again doing the honorable thing by resigning and not forcing the military to go through with the orders from on high. He is saving face for Trump, and the asshole will still take a victory lap.
We lost a good one with Vindman retiring.
A class act all the way.
HumboldtBlue
Words fail at times.
But there are echoes.
Ya never know.
Shit can get real really fast.
@CarolPW:
Perfect
Ohio Mom
I hope giving Vindman a Presidential Medal of Freedom (or something equivalent, if being retired military disqualifies him for this civilian reward), is on Biden’s to-do list.
At the least, a seat next to Jill at the State of the Union.
Alison Rose
Jeez, “support the troops” sure doesn’t mean what it used to, does it, GOP?
You fucking mendacious trashmonsters.
Edmund Dantes
https://twitter.com/projectlincoln/status/1280961056261767168?s=21
Flying spaghetti monster damn I need a cigarette.
Yutsano
It’s disgusting. Even if he is at a time where he will get his full retirement. There is no point in suing since he’s “voluntarily” leaving. But this should put bile in every American’s mouth. The fact that it won’t just makes it worse.
HumboldtBlue
@Alison Rose:
Motherfucking contumelious fumbledicks.
Anya
This one hurts. I can see him calmly reading his opening statement.
God damn it. Trump takes out another honourable American.
danielx
@A woman from anywhere (formerly Mohagan):
He could be recalled by the President, since he would go into the inactive reserves. Which, if I recall correctly, can be done and has been done multiple times, but this would be more along the lines of a president asking someone personally to return. As opposed to, say, stopping separation of service for the government’s convenience, which happened to people after doing tours in Iraq. Or getting recalled years after being discharged, as happened to my dad after WW2. He’d been a civilian for four years and got recalled for Korea, which totally pissed off my mom.
?BillinGlendaleCA
@Anya:
And interferes with military justice for some shitstain.
HumboldtBlue
@?BillinGlendaleCA:
He’s pardoned two murderers.
thruppence
Appropriate to everything this year, I’ve found my first 2020 shirt
Alison Rose
@HumboldtBlue: I second that emotion.
Jess
This is some putrid shit. That’s a great Lincoln Project response, though. You can tell they’re really, really pissed off now. “This time it’s personal…”
HumboldtBlue
I was puzzled by this, has that series of numbers been posted yet?
Bruuuuce
I wonder to what extent the threat by Senator Duckworth to put a hold on all other promotions until he got his put pressure on him. More to the point, whether it was his conscience or external voices telling him he’d be held responsible that pushed harder.
Anya
@?BillinGlendaleCA: This just proves how republicans can always get away with anything. They know how demagogue their way out of anything.
They wrap themselves in the flag and pretend to care about the military. They’ve created a mythology that they’re the party that cares about the military when and they never actually care about them beyond the performative aspects, like flag waving, “thank you for your service” and using the vets to attack Dems.
JWR
OT, but speaking of murder:
A f*cking two man “kill squad” is what it was.
Another Scott
(Includes an image of Schiff’s full letter.)
Cheers,
Scott.
rikyrah
So mad about this????
Steeplejack
@HumboldtBlue:
86 = get rid of.
45 = Trump.
11320 = Election Day.
Adam L Silverman
@debbie: Yes.
JWR
Related: The Lincoln Project strikes again. (This one is really good)
Learn. Their. Names. Damn straight!
patroclus
Senator Duckworth isn’t giving up. She will continue to hold all promotions until that lying scumbag Esper gives up a complete accounting for this appalling treatment of a decorated Purple Heart recipient.
Adam L Silverman
I’m going to answer some questions real quick and then rack out. I’ll have a more detailed post on this stupidity tomorrow.
JWR
@Steeplejack: Thanks for that. I was thinking maybe it was another one of those “867-5309” (Tommy Tutone lyric) things. ;)
Adam L Silverman
@A woman from anywhere (formerly Mohagan): He could be recalled, but there would then be other issues. All the senior uniformed leadership of the Army had to do was tell him that no matter what happened right now, they’d ensure he’d get his promotion after the election in November when the pressure would be off even if it wound up being above the zone. Then get him off to one of the senior leader colleges that is not in DC, which is all of them but National War College. No matter whether everything went smoothly right now or smoothly later, as I wrote back in FEB, there was no way he’d have the colonel (O6) level foreign area officer (FA48) that you’d expect for him. Because of his testimony it would not be safe to send him to either Embassy Kyiv or Embassy Moscow as the Defense Attache or Senior Defense Official. There is just no way it would be safe for him to live in either of those locations.
?BillinGlendaleCA
@Another Scott: I love my Congressman.
Adam L Silverman
@CarolPW: He is not going to be ambassador to Ukraine. He is not going to be the Secretary of the Army as he doesn’t have the senior management and command experience. LTC Vindman does not have the experience that would enable him to be a good and effective ambassador to Ukraine. If VP Biden is elected, and provided the Democrats retake the Senate so that McConnell cannot fail a Biden administration by refusing to allow anyone he nominates for senior position to come up for a vote thereby rendering the executive branch effectively defunct, then the ambassadors to all of our major allies will need to be career, senior foreign service officers – Foreign Service Executives – because of all the diplomatic fence mending that will need to be done. That doesn’t mean there won’t potentially be an appropriate senior appointment for him in a potential Biden administration. Just that it won’t be a stunt appointment.
Anne Laurie
I’m looking forward to it!
Think Lt. Col. Vindman would accept an offer from the Biden administration to serve as a liaison, if not Ambassador, to Ukraine?
Adam L Silverman
@Edmund Dantes: Actually he’s falling on his sword for the other 1,200 or so Soldiers who are up for promotion to colonel, brigadier general, major general, lieutenant general, and general. He’s also removing himself from the position of being accused of ruining those other careers, which I suspect is what some of the threats his attorney referred to were.
HumboldtBlue
@Steeplejack:
Yup
Ruckus
@Adam L Silverman:
I’d bet good money that he wouldn’t want a stunt appointment. He really, really does not seem like that kind of person.
West of the Rockies
Was there a House inquiry of some sort today about the bounty program? I thought I heard there would be.
Adam L Silverman
@Bruuuuce: I expect it placed incredibly pressure on him as about 1,200 other officers were suddenly facing the possibilities that their careers would be hung up until Senator Duckworth got the resolution she wanted. I would not be surprised that it will eventually be reported that some of the threats his attorney referred to were in reference to this.
danielx
@Anne Laurie:
He probably would, if asked, but it doesn’t really sound all that safe for him to be in either Ukraine nor Russia on a short- or long-term basis. He’s irritated too many people.
Adam L Silverman
@patroclus: While she’s doing the right thing, she’s got to be very careful here. I would expect that she would be a strong possibility for Secretary of Defense in a potential Biden administration. Having 1,200 senior Army officers from colonel to general (four stars) pissed off at you because you derailed their careers for one of their peers who many most likely do not agree with, is a good way to lose a significant part of the building.
Chetan Murthy
@Adam L Silverman:
That doesn’t reflect well on those officers, gotta say.
?BillinGlendaleCA
@Adam L Silverman:
I hope not, we need to stop raiding the Senate for the fucking cabinet.
kindness
Trump has politicized the military and the DOJ more than any other president in my lifetime. When Biden wins the question is going to be how far down do they have to get rid of folks till they get to neutral folk and not Brownshirts?
Adam L Silverman
@Anne Laurie: I would expect that he’d be considered for the following positions: Senior Director for Ukraine and/or Russia and/or Eastern Europe on the National Security Staff of the National Security Council. This is the position that Fiona Hill had – she was his boss. Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense or Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Army for Eastern Europe and Russia. Those are positions he’s qualified for. You have to keep in mind that Vindman switched from his primary military occupation specialty to Functional Area 48 (FA48)/foreign area officer between captain and major. As a result, provided he was a company commander as a captain (officer level 3/O3), his last command assignment, which is his last real managerial assignment as an officer, was over somewhere around 200 Soldiers. If he didn’t have an O3 command, then his last command was likely of a platoon when he was a lieutenant. And that is around 36 Soldiers. These command assignments are simply insufficient managerial experience for running the entire Army.
Right now the problem with the DOD and the Services is that the Secretary of Defense and the Service Secretaries would never have been considered for their positions in any other administration. They barely have the civilian management and leadership experience necessary to run organizations the size of the DOD or the Services. Their military experience, if I’m remembering the bios correctly, all ended before they had to run anything of significant size. As with everything else, a potential Biden administration needs to replace them with people who actually have the right experience and expertise to not just manage the DOD and Services, but to do it well.
As for the senior uniformed leadership, I cannot explain why they seem to have suddenly misplaced their character.
Adam L Silverman
@Ruckus: I would expect he wouldn’t either, but as far as I know I’ve never met him.
Honestly, the last thing a potential Biden administration needs for any appointment, especially the senior level ones – from the top spots that require Senate confirmation to more junior of the senior level positions that don’t – to the intermediate level ones, are stunt appointments. I cannot emphasize enough just how badly broken the executive branch is right now.
Adam L Silverman
@danielx: There’s also no such position as what AL indicated.
Adam L Silverman
@Chetan Murthy: Look at it from their perspective. Some may be his friends and/or colleagues that know him and are supportive and understand that he answered a lawful subpoena and did his duties. But most of those guy only know him from TV and what’s been reported and from their points of view, Senator Duckworth is going to fuck their careers for someone they don’t know and whose actions they may or may not agree with. I’m not saying it’s right, I’m saying it is human nature.
Uninvited Guest
@?BillinGlendaleCA: Not that I disagree, but if nothing else there would be worse states to pull from than Illinois.
Chetan Murthy
@Adam L Silverman:
Sure, it’s just a job. I mean, fuck, not like I give a damn if they live or die, and not like I’m supposed to care whether they get used and abused, thrown away afterwards. It’s just a job, and they signed up for it. They DGAF, I DGAF.
Just another piece of our country that’s gone down the shitter, I guess. Once upon a time, we were supposed to respect and honor the people who signed up to defend us all. But why bother, when they so clearly care more about their careers, than the existential threat to our country posed by their supposed commander-in-chief.
What I’d hope they would do (and I mean, all of them, every single one) is to communicate to Sen. Duckworth that they support her position, and to LTC Vindman that they support him.
Adam L Silverman
@?BillinGlendaleCA: I’m not saying she will be. Nor am I suggesting the Senate be raided. Just that given her experience and expertise, she’d be a good candidate for both Secretary of Defense and Secretary of the VA.
Frankly my feeling is that if Biden wins the presidency, but McConnell maintains his majority he will not allow any nominations for any positions to come for a vote. He will attempt to fail the Biden administration from day one and unlike during the current administration, he will make a huge stink about acting appointees and sue to stop them from taking any actions that can only be taken when a Senate confirmed senior official would do so. McConnell hasn’t cared that the President’s acting officials have been doing all sorts of things – like issuing new regulations or rolling back old ones – that cannot be done unless they are Senate confirmed. But he will not let that go for a Democratic nominee. The Federal government is close to broken now. McConnell will happily allow it to break all the way betting that this will produce the same results that he got from severely limiting President Obama: a Republican midterm sweep at the Federal and state levels because voters don’t care who is actually responsible when the Federal government doesn’t work, they just blame whomever is president and his party. That will be his play.
Adam L Silverman
@kindness:
When is doing a lot of work there. Do not count your chickens before they hatch.
?BillinGlendaleCA
@Uninvited Guest: True, but there are other qualified folk other the 100 Senators. I’m still having Scott Brown flashbacks.
Adam L Silverman
@Chetan Murthy:
That wasn’t my point. These men and women have all spent between 21 and 40 years working their way up a zero defect Army. Many with multiple deployments to Iraq, Afghanistan, or places equally dangerous. Their families have been moved around every couple of years. Their spouses have largely given up on having careers as part of this arrangements. Many of their kids have been to multiple schools before they graduate. The Army is up or out. Many of the assignments they’re set to start over the next few months, from senior staff positions to taking command of brigades, divisions, corps, service component commands, or geographic combatant commands, require that their promotions be in place. If they can’t be promoted because Senator Duckworth is holding them all up until she gets answers regarding Vindman, she’s essentially ending their careers. Her gamble is that the Secretaries of Defense and the Army and the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs and the Chief of Staff of the Army will blink and give her what she wants before they have to find appropriately qualified people to suddenly fill up to 1,200 billets because the men and women supposedly going into them can’t because their promotions aren’t held up because they did anything wrong. If you’re one of these men or women or a member of their families, who are you going to be mad at?
That’s the dynamics at play right now.
Adam L Silverman
I’m going to bed.
Chetan Murthy
@Adam L Silverman:
I get it. I really do. They’re just like any other mid-level executive at IBM. Not like they swore an oath or anything. Your explanation made that -clear-. Crystal clear.
Ruckus
@Adam L Silverman:
Absolutely agreed.
There are good people, skilled people, not asshole people, and not stunt clowns to fill the voids and get the job done. I feel for the Lt Col, but his place is on one side of the business, he’s made it that way for his career, done extremely good at it, but that was his choice. Trying to change that direction now would not put him in the position that many are suggesting. He’s very good, has the strength and character of a great military person. That very rarely translates to political life as they are two differing paths. I wish him well and if he’s given a political/bureaucratic job by the next president I hope that he does as well as he’s done in the military. I’m just not sure that I see that, and would really like to be wrong.
Mallard Filmore
@Adam L Silverman:
As a nobody, even on this blog in a remote corner of the internet, I see 2 problems with this.
Anne Laurie
@Adam L Silverman: Thanks!
Mary G
@Adam L Silverman: Can Biden hire him as a civilian for the NSC
Never mind, sorry I missed your answer above.
Ruckus
@Chetan Murthy:
I don’t believe that’s what Adam is saying.
The military is a rather closed club. You don’t move up until those ahead of you agree. I’ve seen this happen to an officer of his level, who was a horrible officer. I served under this person on both coasts and he should have been fired but that’s not how it works. In the military you have to play the game, be good, be a working part of the whole. And yet the whole thing is made up of people. With all their faults, foibles and bullshit. That officer I served under had all of those. Officers are supposed to work hard to be leaders, while there are only so many natural ones, the military need far more than that, so you get leaders who are leaders because they learned, some well, some not at all. But they have a career that really doesn’t translate well into other parts of an economy, a government, civilian life. And they have given a lot to get there and they often risk a lot doing the job, and most often have to earn that promotion, that raise, that satisfaction. Take that away from them and they can get testy, because they can’t really just walk away and take that career and leave. This man really is in a tough spot. He’s not going anywhere, yet he’s finished. He shouldn’t be at all but he is. If he stays, he’s screwing 1200 people and that will not go over well at all. Tammy Duckworth is in a tough spot as well, what she has done is necessary but it is a risk. So the Lt Col has done what most would not do, it shows that he cares far more about the job, about the military, about the country than any republican ever could or would. That’s leadership, doing the right thing, no matter what. That’s what Tammy Duckworth is doing as well. It’s not necessarily the right thing but it’s the best option, the only thing that’s available because of shitforbrains and all his asshole enablers.
These are honorable people doing what honorable people do. shitforbrains and his enablers are nothing like the Lt Col or Tammy Duckworth or most likely the majority of those 1200 people. And I’m not a military person, I served because that’s what I had to do, I put in my time and did my duty because that’s the job. I woke up every day wanting out, but still did my best. The vast majority of people I met did the same, like it or hate it. And when push came to shove, when general quarters sounded at 3am, everyone ran and did their best. That’s not how things work in civilian life.
Emma from FL
@JWR: I wish I had the money to get that one in wide distribution.
Chetan Murthy
@Ruckus:
NO, these 1200 officers are NOT doing their best. They are, in fact, doing NOTHING. What they SHOULD be doing (because, yes, general quarters has sounded, and our nation is in grave peril) is to make sure that Vindman is not drummed-out of the service, AS A MESSAGE TO TRUMP. Yeah, yeah, yeah, “civilian control of the military”. MY ASS.
HE’S A FUCKING RUSSIAN AGENT.
Indeed, Vindman is doing the right thing by his service, and so is Duckworth. But these 1200? They’re craven and they’re derelict. And sure, lots of civilians do the same in their jobs. But supposedly, we’re supposed to hold these soldiers in high esteem, -because- they’re soldiers, and dedicating their careers to protecting our country.
And it turns out, no, they aren’t. It’s a job like any other. Maybe sometimes more dangerous, but otherwise, just another job.
“Thank you for your service?” Hah. What service? These guys? So busy angling for their next assignment they can’t see that the country’s on fire.
A woman from anywhere (formerly Mohagan)
@Adam L Silverman: Thank you Adam, and I’m looking forward to reading your post tomorrow.
sgrAstar
@HumboldtBlue: he’s actually pardoned three murderers: Gallagher, Lorance, and Golsteyn.
Grrrrr.
?
debbie
@Adam L Silverman:
Thanks. It’s a small bit of very good news.