Army Lt. Colonel Yevgeny Vindman, the twin brother of Alexander Vindman, a key witness in Donald Trump’s first impeachment hearing, will become a full colonel despite efforts by Trump administration officials to torpedo his promotion, Politico reports.

Although he had no part in the impeachment, Yevgeny Vindman was given negative performance reviews in his position as the senior ethics official and deputy legal adviser at the National Security Council, where he served in the White House from July 2018 to February 2020.  Alexander Vindman served as the NSC’s Director for European Affairs.

The brothers were unceremoniously fired from the National Security Council in February 2020 and escorted off White House grounds.  They were reassigned to the Pentagon, but Alexander Vindman opted to retire after 21 years in the Army. 

Yevgeny Vindman filed a complaint with the Department of Defense Inspector General claiming that he was retaliated against for by White House counsels John Eisenberg and Michael Ellis, for reporting misconduct by Trump.  Yevgeny Vindman also leveled charges against former national security adviser Robert O’Brien for allegedly using NSC staff’s official time for personal errands and “demeaning and demoralizing sexist behavior against … female NSC professionals.”

Eisenberg and Ellis issued a poor performance review for Yevgeny Vindman last year in what appeared to be a move to punish him and kill his military career.  They claimed he lacked judgment and had lost the trust of senior NSC leadership, according to Vindman’s IG complaint.

Maj. Gen. Michel Russell, an assistant deputy chief of staff in the Army, ruled that the evaluations lacked objectivity, leading the reviews to be removed from Yevgeny Vindman’s record.