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Rep. Eugene Vindman, D-Va.-7th District, spent $38,783 via two March campaign donations to a Miami-area bookstore that hosted his brother鈥檚 book promotion efforts, labeling the expenditures a 鈥渇undraising expense,鈥� according to campaign finance data from the聽.
Per the commission鈥檚 reports, the Vindman campaign initiated two payments to the Coral Gables location of Books and Books on March 7 and 20 鈥� worth $7,809.55 and $30,972.97, respectively.
The congressman鈥檚 twin brother, Alexander Vindman, a retired Army lieutenant colonel and a key whistleblower in President Trump鈥檚 first impeachment, had signed copies of his new book, 鈥淭he Folly of Realism,鈥� at the store鈥檚 Coral Gables location on March 9. The book criticizes Western policy toward Russian expansionism and lends insight into the containment thereof.
The book was released Feb. 25 at a market price of $30 and briefly appeared on the New York Times鈥� hardcover nonfiction bestseller list for the week ending March 16. The list typically requires a minimum of 5,000 copies sold per week, according to聽, a writing and publishing advisory platform.
Alexander Vindman posted images of himself at the Coral Gables store on X twice, March 9 and April 12, saying he had signed an additional 800 copies on the latter date.
The New York Post聽聽the campaign expenditures and corresponding bookstore events.
A spokeswoman for Vindman declined InsideNoVa鈥檚 request for comment on this story.
The National Republican Congressional Committee ripped the campaign expenditure, calling it an effort to 鈥減rop up Alexander Vindman鈥檚 book.鈥�
鈥淓ugene Vindman is a grifter,鈥� committee spokeswoman Maureen O鈥橳oole said in the statement. 鈥� 鈥� and is now refusing to apologize to Virginians and the donors he swindled.鈥�
Vindman won Virginia鈥檚 7th Congressional District seat last November with 51.2% of the vote, defeating Republican Derrick Anderson and laying claim to Rep. Abigail Spanberger鈥檚 vacant seat. Spanberger did not seek reelection in order to run for governor.
The 7th District, redrawn after the 2020 Census, includes eastern Prince William County as well as all of Stafford, Spotsylvania, Orange, Culpeper, Greene, Madison, King George and Caroline counties; the city of Fredericksburg, and a small portion of northern Albemarle County.
