Retired Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman is citing the 1871 Ku Klux Klan Act in a lawsuit he filed against Donald Trump Jr., Rudy Giuliani, and two former White House officials in connection with then-President Donald Trump's 2019 impeachment. Vindman alleges the two men, along with former White House Deputy Chief of Staff Dan Scavino and former White House official Julia Hahn, engaged in "an intentional, concerted campaign of unlawful intimidation and retaliation" against him "to prevent him from and then punish him for testifying truthfully before Congress during impeachment proceedings against President Trump."
ABC News reports Vindman's suit accuses the four of violating two sections of the Ku Klux Klan Act, which serves to protect government officials from political intimidation. Per CBS News, the suit alleges the four defendants held meetings in which they came up with "false narratives" about Vindman alleging he had a lack of allegiance to the US and spied for Ukraine. It further alleges coordination with Fox News host Laura Ingraham, and that the campaign against him "was waged on social media and on allied media outlets."
The Hill reports that following his testimony, Vindman alleges his Army promotion was temporarily blocked and his White House post (director of European affairs at the National Security Council) was yanked from him as part of the retaliation against him. He's seeking unspecified damages. Vindman was one of the officials who listened to the July 2019 phone call between Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. (When Vindman ended his 21-year military career in July 2020, he cited White House retaliation.)
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