Tipsheet

How Is Eugene Vindman So Bad at This?

Rebecca Downs
Rebecca Downs  |  November 04, 2024 10:30 PM

One of the key U.S. House races to watch on Tuesday night comes from Virginia's 7th Congressional District. Democratic Rep. Abigail Spanberger is retiring to run for governor, though her successor won't necessarily be a Democrat in this key "Toss-Up" race. The Democratic candidate, Yevgeny (Eugene) Vindman, may have once had the edge, but he's been losing his momentum as the election gets closer, with his most recent media reactions turning out to be truly cringeworthy.

Vindman's Republican opponent, Derrick Anderson, has highlighted the fact that Vindman has dodged debates and even interviews. He finally sat down for an interview with WUSA9, a local CBS News outlet. "It’s only 7 minutes (because Vindman wouldn’t agree to the 15 minutes that Derrick did with the same station)," Anderson's campaign highlighted on Saturday. The network also began the interview by making that clear on air. "Vindman has gone mostly unvetted to this point and we’re glad voters got a clear look at him," the Anderson campaign continued. 

In addition to his lack of interviews, Vindman has also faced concerns over stolen valor. Anderson highlighted over X how such a confrontation was particularly awkward for the candidate. 

When Vindman was directly asked by host Simone De Alba about his rank, who also asked for him to "clarify" multiple times, he maintained he was a colonel, coming off quite hostile at times. He also kept bringing up Anderson, who is himself a veteran, even when De Alba did not, to claim that Anderson was "lying." At one point, Vindman even insisted that "I'm entitled to be called colonel, and that's all there is to it." 

"Yevgeny Vindman doubled down on his lies about his military service just last night — he’s quite literally still lying to voters. He’s not a colonel, and he’s telling voters that he is. That’s a lie, and voters should know that he’s still not telling the truth," the Anderson campaign also said in a statement from Saturday. 

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That interview was hardly the only cringeworthy and newsworthy flub from Vindman, though. While appearing on "CNN This Morning" on Monday, Vindman's final pitch to voters included talking about the wrong district, despite how host Kasie Hunt referenced the race being for the 7th Congressional District multiple times.

"Look, when I campaigned, I've campaigned in every corner of the 11th District," Vindman offered, going on to say he visited the district's 11 counties in 48 hours. 

Such a moment was noticed not just Anderson that same day, but also by the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) and the Congressional Leadership Fund (CLF) staff with Anderson and Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R-VA) both referencing the gaffe during their campaign rally that same day alongside Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA).

During Monday's segment on CNN with Vindman, Hunt referred to the state of the race as one where Vindman and Anderson "are locked in an incredibly tight race."

CBS 19 News also previewed the race as one "that could carry a lot of weight when it comes to a potential House majority," featuring comments from Anderson himself, including comments and concerns about what else Vindman will lie about beyond his military service.

Notably, the interview only features comments from Anderson, as host Sarah Allen noted that although they reached out to both campaigns for an interview, "we've not heard from Vindman's team after multiple attempts."