Tag: Michael Flynn

FBI director Wray orders internal review of Flynn case

The Hill logoFBI Director Christopher Wray on Friday ordered an internal review into the investigation of former national security adviser Michael Flynn amid rising GOP pressure on the FBI chief to examine the circumstances of the case.

The bureau announced in a statement that the after-action review will have two objectives: Evaluate whether there was any misconduct or errors made by bureau officials during the course of their investigation, and to determine whether there are ways to improve FBI policies and procedures.

The FBI said its Inspection Division will lead the review, which will “complement” the work of U.S. Attorney Jeff Jensen, who is reviewing the prosecution of Flynn and guiding the decision of the Justice Department (DOJ) on how to proceed in the case. Continue reading.

GOP ‘Unmasking Scandal’ Implodes — Because Flynn Was Never Masked

Another right wing conspiracy theory down the drain.

For days if not weeks the right has insisted various Obama administration officials had targeted former Lt. General Mike Flynn, trying to “unmask” his name from transcripts on intercepted calls with Russian officials.

That was a ludicrous assertion, since “masked” names are masked and no one knows who they are until they are unmasked. Continue reading.

Trump administration declassifies full Susan Rice email sent on Inauguration Day

The email describes a Jan. 5, 2017, Oval Office meeting about Michael Flynn and Russian interference in the 2016 election.

On the day of President Donald Trump’s inauguration, outgoing national security adviser Susan Rice sent herself an email that has since drawn intense scrutiny from Republicans.

Now the full text of the email has been declassified, and POLITICO reviewed it. It says that then-FBI Director James Comey worried about sharing classified information with the Trump team because of incoming national security adviser Michael Flynn’s frequent conversations with the Russian ambassador but that Comey had no knowledge of Flynn sharing classified information with the envoy.

Republicans have seized on the document as potential evidence that the outgoing president had ordered the FBI to spy on the new administration, as Trump has alleged. And they have raised questions about the “unusual” nature of Rice memorializing the conversation in an email to herself, suggesting that in warning Comey to proceed “by the book,” Obama was implying that top law enforcement officials had done the opposite. Meanwhile, a spokesperson for Rice said it shows the Obama administration handled the Flynn situation appropriately. Continue reading.

Trump White House Changes Its Story on Michael Flynn

New York Times logoThree years ago, President Trump swiftly fired his first national security adviser, Michael T. Flynn, for lying to the F.B.I. Ahead of the November election, Mr. Trump and his allies are now telling a very different tale

WASHINGTON — After announcing that the Justice Department was dropping the criminal case against Michael T. Flynn, the former national security adviser, Attorney General William P. Barr was presented with a crucial question: Was Mr. Flynn guilty of lying to the F.B.I. about the nature of phone calls he had with the Russian ambassador to the United States?

After all, Mr. Flynn had twice pleaded guilty to lying about them.

“Well, you know, people sometimes plead to things that turn out not to be crimes,” Mr. Barr said last week in an interview with CBS News. Then he went even further and described the infamous calls during the Trump presidential transition as “laudable.” Continue reading.

What You Need To Know About The Flynn, Biden And ‘Unmasking’ Story

In the final days of the Obama administration, someone leaked a key nugget of information to The Washington Post about Michael Flynn, President-elect Donald Trump’s national security adviser.

Then, since and today, Trump and Republicans have argued that was an abuse of power and a breach of the law, one that, in their view, needlessly cost Flynn his reputation, his liberty and a fortune in legal fees.

That’s why, three very long years later, Trump and his supporters sought payback with evidence from that era they hope will cause political problems for a man who was in the thick of it — former Vice President Joe Biden, Trump’s likely opponent in the general election this year. Continue reading.

Trump administration sends list to Congress of Obama officials who ‘unmasked’ Flynn

The Hill logoThe Trump administration has sent Congress a list of dozens of Obama administration officials who they say asked for documents that led to the identity of former national security adviser Michael Flynn being “unmasked” from intelligence reports between the 2016 election and President Trump’s inauguration.

A copy of the list obtained by The Hill includes a who’s who of Obama-era officials, including then-Vice President Joe Biden, former White House chief of staff Denis McDonough, former FBI Director James Comey and former CIA Director John Brennan.

Acting Director of National Intelligence (DNI) Richard Grenell declassified and then sent the list of names to GOP Sens. Ron Johnson (Wis.) and Chuck Grassley (Iowa) on Wednesday. Continue reading.

Federal judge mulls contempt charge against Michael Flynn

Judge Emmet Sullivan named a former judge to weigh the issue after the Justice Department filed a motion to dismiss the case against the former Trump national security adviser.

A federal judge is signaling that he might pursue perjury or contempt charges against former national security adviser Michael Flynn over his effort to abandon a guilty plea to a charge of lying to the FBI.

The Justice Department moved last week to drop the prosecution of Flynn launched by special counsel Robert Mueller, but U.S. District Court Judge Emmet Sullivan slammed the brakes on that effort by announcing Wednesday evening that he is appointing a former federal judge to argue against the government’s unusual bid to dismiss the case against an ally of President Donald Trump.

Sullivan’s order also directed the retired judge, John Gleeson, to recommend whether Flynn should face a criminal contempt charge for perjury — apparently for declaring under oath at two different court proceedings that he was guilty of lying to the FBI, before he reversed course in January and claimed he had never lied. Continue reading.

U.S. judge puts Justice Department’s move to drop charges against Michael Flynn on hold

Washington Post logoA U.S. judge put on hold the Justice Department’s move to drop charges against Michael Flynn, saying he expects independent groups and legal experts to argue against the bid to exonerate President Trump’s former national security adviser of lying to the FBI.

U.S. District Judge Emmet G. Sullivan said in an order Tuesday that he expects individuals and organizations will seek to intervene in the politically charged case. Having others weigh in could preface more aggressive steps that the federal judge in Washington could take, including — as many outside observers have called for — holding a hearing to consider what to do.

Sullivan’s order came after the government took the highly irregular step Thursday of reversing its stance on upholding Flynn’s guilty plea. Continue reading.

Exclusive: Pence says he’d be “happy” to see Michael Flynn back in government

Axios logoVice President Mike Pence told “Axios on HBO” that he welcomes the idea of bringing Michael Flynn back into government, after the Justice Department moved last week to drop its criminal case against President Trump’s former national security adviser. This episode of “Axios on HBO” debuts Monday at 11pm ET/PT.

Why it matters: Trump said April 30 that he would “certainly consider” bringing Flynn back into the administration. Since Flynn had been accused of lying to the vice president, Pence’s blessing clears an obstacle to him returning to Trump’s inner circle.

  • “I think Gen. Michael Flynn is an American patriot,” Pence said during the interview in Iowa on Friday. “And for my part, I’d be happy to see Michael Flynn again.”

The big picture: Trump lavished praise on the decision by his Justice Department to go to court to drop charges against Flynn, who had pleaded guilty to lying to the FBI about his conversations with former Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak.

The Memo: Flynn case will become election issue

The Hill logoThe prosecution of Michael Flynn has been dropped, but the use of his case as a political weapon looks sure to intensify.

President Trump kept his rhetoric on the case red-hot in the immediate aftermath of Thursday’s decision from the Department of Justice (DOJ) to drop the case against the retired Army general, who had pleaded guilty on two occasions to lying to the FBI.

The president blasted the people behind Flynn’s prosecution as “human scum” to reporters — terminology that has grown familiar from Trump’s mouth but would once have been a shocking thing for a commander in chief to say in apparent reference to members of the FBI. Continue reading.