Why is Ukraine’s choice for defense minister running US Ukraine policy?

House Democrats’ hopes for their amazing shrinking impeachment inquiry now rest on U.S. Ambassador to the European Union Gordon Sondland. That’s because the previous, supposed star witness, Lieutenant Colonel Alexander Vindman, amounts to a partisan Trump opponent in uniform.

Worse yet for Vindman’s supporters, the record now reflects serious concerns expressed by superiors at the National Security Council about his judgment, conduct and discipline with respect to the chain of command. Among other things, he is believed to have been a leaker of sensitive information.

The government of Ukraine thought so highly of Lt. Col. Vindman, however, that it invited him to become its Minister of Defense on three different occasions. That alone would seem to disqualify him from serving as the National Security Council official responsible for the Ukraine portfolio, let alone being an impartial witness against the President.