The New York Times reports that the attorney for Lieutenant Colonel Alexander Vindman is sending a letter to Fox News’ general counsel, asking the network for a retraction and a correction for a comment made by former George W. Bush attorney John Yoo about his client during a Monday, Oct. 28 appearance on The Ingraham Angle.
On Laura Ingraham‘s 10 p.m. Fox News show, the host cited a report that Ukrainian officials were seeking advice on how to deal with Pres. Trump’s personal lawyer Rudy Giuliani from Lt. Col. Vindman, a military hero and adviser on the National Security Council who testified as part of the Pres. Trump impeachment hearings yesterday.
“Here we have a U.S. national security official who is advising Ukraine, while working inside the White House, apparently against the president’s interest,” Ingraham said. “Isn’t that kind of an interesting angle on this story?”
Yoo responded: “I found that astounding. Some people might call that espionage.”
The guest later backtracked his controversial statement. He claims he meant that Ukraine may have committed an espionage operation, not LTC Vindman.
Lt. Col. Vindman’s lawyer, David Pressman of the firm Boies Schiller Flexner, wrote in the letter that the “deeply flawed and erroneous segment” was promoted by President Donald Trump and smears of his client were pushed by others at the network, including Tucker Carlson. The lawyer also noted that espionage is punishable by death.
“LTC Vindman and his family have been forced to examine options, including potentially moving onto a military base, in order to ensure their physical security in the face of threats rooted in the falsehood that Fox News originated,” Pressman wrote.
A Fox News spokesperson responded to our request for comment with the following: “As a guest on Fox News, John Yoo was responsible for his own sentiments and he has subsequently done interviews to clarify what he meant.”
Yoo, a guest who is not on the Fox News payroll, later clarified his statement in a USA Today op-ed.
Below is a letter obtained by The New York Times’ Danny Hakim that’s addressed to Fox News evp and general counsel Lily Fu Claffee:
Letter from Boies Schiller Flexner on behalf of LTC Alexander VIndman