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| Marie Yovanovich, left, and Fiona Hill. |
Three immigrants -- three patriots -- three public servants who chose to work for the good of their adopted country, gave powerful, compelling testimony this week in the impeachment hearings.
As an immigrant myself, Donald Trump's policies trying to limit immigration to the US is personal. So I was struck by the irony that these public servants, who have served both Democratic and Republican Presidents, gave testimony that blasted holes into the Republican defense of Trump's attempt to bribe Ukraine leaders with US military aid.
- Marie Yovanovich, The former Ambassador to the Ukraine, daughter of refugees from the Soviet Union and Nazi Germany, that’s who. An immigrant, no less, who earned her citizenship.
- Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman, the White House's Russian expert, who as a young boy fled Russia with his family, to start over in a country that offered a better life. He earned a Purple Heart during his service in a war zone.
- Fiona Hill, the National Security Council expert and adviser on Russia who has written a book on Vladimir Putin. She was born a coal-miner's daughter from northern England and fulfilled her family's dream of becoming an American.
Yovanovich, the anti-corruption former Ambassador to the Ukraine and who was summarily recalled by the State Department, was attacked by Trump while she was testifying. She said she felt threatened and Trump's tweet/threat is being seen as witness tampering and possibly providing another reason for impeachment.
Even before Lt. Col. Vindman's gave his damning testimony, he was being smeared by the Trump synchophants, causing Rep. Krishnamoorthi to say, “I’m concerned” the smears are coming against you “because you’re an immigrant,” said Krishnamoorthi, referring to questions about him since he immigrated from USSR at a young age. “I assume you are as proud as being an American as I am,” Krishnamoorthi said, choking up
During her testimony in Thursday's impeachment inquiry hearings, Hill also called out GOP attacks against Yovanovich and Vindman. Her message, delivered in her clipped no-nonsense British accent had me cheering. "I think it's very unfortunate," she said. "This is a country of immigrants ... Everyone immigrated to the United States at some point in their family history. This is what, for me, really does make America great," she said. "I know for a fact that every single one of my colleagues — and there were many naturalized citizens in my office and across the National Security Council — felt exactly the same way. I think it's deeply unfair."
But Vindman didn't need anyone to stand up for him. He gave a moving opening statement, recalling his family's journey to the US.
“When my father was 47 years old, he left behind his entire life and the only home he had ever known to start over in the United States so that his three sons could have better, safer lives,” Vindman told the committee. “His courageous decision inspired a deep sense of gratitude in my brothers and myself and instilled in us a sense of duty and service. All three of us have served or are currently serving in the military. Our collective military service is a special part of our family’s story in America.”
In Russia, Vindman said, his “act of expressing my concerns to the chain of command in an official and private channel would have severe personal and professional repercussions and offering public testimony involving the president would surely cost me my life.”
During her testimony in Thursday's impeachment inquiry hearings, Hill also called out GOP attacks against Yovanovich and Vindman. Her message, delivered in her clipped no-nonsense British accent had me cheering. "I think it's very unfortunate," she said. "This is a country of immigrants ... Everyone immigrated to the United States at some point in their family history. This is what, for me, really does make America great," she said. "I know for a fact that every single one of my colleagues — and there were many naturalized citizens in my office and across the National Security Council — felt exactly the same way. I think it's deeply unfair."
But Vindman didn't need anyone to stand up for him. He gave a moving opening statement, recalling his family's journey to the US.
“When my father was 47 years old, he left behind his entire life and the only home he had ever known to start over in the United States so that his three sons could have better, safer lives,” Vindman told the committee. “His courageous decision inspired a deep sense of gratitude in my brothers and myself and instilled in us a sense of duty and service. All three of us have served or are currently serving in the military. Our collective military service is a special part of our family’s story in America.”
In Russia, Vindman said, his “act of expressing my concerns to the chain of command in an official and private channel would have severe personal and professional repercussions and offering public testimony involving the president would surely cost me my life.”
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SCREEN CAPTURE / MSNBC
LT. COL. ALEXANDER VINDMAN |
“Dad, my sitting here today, in the US Capitol talking to our elected officials is proof that you made the right decision forty years ago to leave the Soviet Union and come here to the United States of America in search of a better life for our family,” Vindman said in the closing moments of his statement.
“Do not worry. I will be fine for telling the truth.”
For Yovanovich, who has been in the foreign service for 33 years, "My service is an expression of gratitude for all that this country has given my family and me. My late parents did not have the good fortune to come of age in a free society. My father fled the Soviets before ultimately finding refuge in the United States. My mother’s family escaped the USSR after the Bolshevik revolution, and she grew up stateless in Nazi Germany, before eventually making her way to the United States. Their personal histories—my personal history—gave me both deep gratitude towards the United States and great empathy for others—like the Ukrainian people—who want to be free."
Hill also set Republicans on the House Intelligence Committee back on their heels in her opening statement when she admonished them for playing right into the hands of Russian President Putin.
“Some of you on this committee appear to believe that Russia and its security services did not conduct a campaign against our country, and that perhaps, somehow, for some reason, Ukraine did,” Hill said. “This is a fictional narrative that has been perpetrated and propagated by the Russian security services themselves. The unfortunate truth is that Russia was the foreign power that systematically attacked our democratic institutions in 2016. This is the public conclusion of our intelligence agencies confirmed in bipartisan congressional reports. It is beyond dispute, even if some of the underlying details must remain classified."
Hill also set Republicans on the House Intelligence Committee back on their heels in her opening statement when she admonished them for playing right into the hands of Russian President Putin.
“Some of you on this committee appear to believe that Russia and its security services did not conduct a campaign against our country, and that perhaps, somehow, for some reason, Ukraine did,” Hill said. “This is a fictional narrative that has been perpetrated and propagated by the Russian security services themselves. The unfortunate truth is that Russia was the foreign power that systematically attacked our democratic institutions in 2016. This is the public conclusion of our intelligence agencies confirmed in bipartisan congressional reports. It is beyond dispute, even if some of the underlying details must remain classified."
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