What happened at Sandy Hook
President Trump on Saturday questioned whether his former national security adviser Michael Flynn was the victim of a "rigged system" or "double standard" after he was charged with lying to the FBI about his contacts with Russia.
"So General Flynn lies to the FBI and his life is destroyed, while Crooked Hillary Clinton, on that now famous FBI holiday "interrogation" with no swearing in and no recording, lies many times...and nothing happens to her? Rigged system, or just a double standard?" Trump wrote on Twitter.
In another tweet, Trump reignited his attacks on his former Democratic opponent Hillary Clinton, asking what the Justice Department would do to punish Clinton for deleting emails that he suggested may have been related to the FBI's investigation into her use of a private server during her tenure as secretary of state.
"Many people in our Country are asking what the "Justice" Department is going to do about the fact that totally Crooked Hillary, AFTER receiving a subpoena from the United States Congress, deleted and "acid washed" 33,000 Emails? No justice!" he tweeted.
WASHINGTON — When President Trump fired his national security adviser, Michael T. Flynn, in February, White House officials portrayed him as a renegade who had acted independently in his discussions with a Russian official during the presidential transition and then lied to his colleagues about the interactions.
But emails among top transition officials, provided or described to The New York Times, suggest that Mr. Flynn was far from a rogue actor. In fact, the emails, coupled with interviews and court documents filed on Friday, showed that Mr. Flynn was in close touch with other senior members of the Trump transition team both before and after he spoke with the Russian ambassador, Sergey I. Kislyak, about American sanctions against Russia.
While Mr. Trump has disparaged as a Democratic “hoax” any claims that he or his aides had unusual interactions with Russian officials, the records suggest that the Trump transition team was intensely focused on improving relations with Moscow and was willing to intervene to pursue that goal despite a request from the Obama administration that it not sow confusion about official American policy before Mr. Trump took office.
On Dec. 29, a transition adviser to Mr. Trump, K. T. McFarland, wrote in an email to a colleague that sanctions announced hours before by the Obama administration in retaliation for Russian election meddling were aimed at discrediting Mr. Trump’s victory. The sanctions could also make it much harder for Mr. Trump to ease tensions with Russia, “which has just thrown the U.S.A. election to him,” she wrote in the emails obtained by The Times.
It is not clear whether Ms. McFarland was saying she believed that the election had in fact been thrown. A White House lawyer said on Friday that she meant only that the Democrats were portraying it that way.
But it is evident from the emails — which were obtained from someone who had access to transition team communications — that after learning that President Barack Obama would expel 35 Russian diplomats, the Trump team quickly strategized about how to reassure Russia. The Trump advisers feared that a cycle of retaliation between the United States and Russia would keep the spotlight on Moscow’s election meddling, tarnishing Mr. Trump’s victory and potentially hobbling his presidency from the start.
As part of the outreach, Ms. McFarland wrote, Mr. Flynn would be speaking with the Russian ambassador, Mr. Kislyak, hours after Mr. Obama’s sanctions were announced.
“Key will be Russia’s response over the next few days,” Ms. McFarland wrote in an email to another transition official, Thomas P. Bossert, now the president’s homeland security adviser.
In an interview, Ty Cobb, the White House lawyer handling the Russia inquiry, said there was nothing illegal or unethical about the transition team’s actions. “It would have been political malpractice not to discuss sanctions,” he said, adding that “the presidential transition guide specifically encourages contact with and outreach to foreign dignitaries.”
The only problem, Mr. Cobb said, was that Mr. Flynn had lied to White House officials and to F.B.I. agents about what he had told the Russian ambassador. Mr. Flynn’s misstatements led to his firing in February and his guilty plea on Friday to charges of lying to federal agents.
With Mr. Flynn’s plea and agreement to cooperate with Robert S. Mueller III, the special counsel investigating the Russian election interference, the inquiry edges closer to Mr. Trump. The president tried to persuade the F.B.I. director, James B. Comey, to drop the bureau’s criminal investigation of Mr. Flynn, and fired Mr. Comey after he failed to comply.
Mr. Bossert forwarded Ms. McFarland’s Dec. 29 email exchange about the sanctions to six other Trump advisers, including Mr. Flynn; Reince Priebus, who had been named as chief of staff; Stephen K. Bannon, the senior strategist; and Sean Spicer, who would become the press secretary.
Mr. Obama, she wrote, was trying to “box Trump in diplomatically with Russia,” which could limit his options with other countries, including Iran and Syria. “Russia is key that unlocks door,” she wrote.
She also wrote that the sanctions over Russian election meddling were intended to “lure Trump in trap of saying something” in defense of Russia, and were aimed at “discrediting Trump’s victory by saying it was due to Russian interference.”
“If there is a tit-for-tat escalation Trump will have difficulty improving relations with Russia, which has just thrown U.S.A. election to him,” she wrote.
Mr. Bossert replied by urging all the top advisers to “defend election legitimacy now.”
nice work Walter. But we covered this 4 hours ago.
What's the arrest date on the warrant issued?
When?
I already asked. No reply.
When is Flynn going to be indicted?
lol yeah!
Flynndicted when?
The suspense is killing me.
When will this happen?
No where in the article did it say they were going to press charges?
So they have been indicted but not charged?
Why not?
Where's the indictment?
Where's the Flynn indictment?
Where's the Flynn indictment?
When will Flynn be indicted?
But it’s been a year and still nothing.
Same day as Global Warming kills us all.
Is this Shit important news or Something?
When will the Flynn indictment happen?
But he was supposed to be charged weeks ago, that’s why I think this latest crap about Flynn is just that, crap.
Totally fake.
Where's the charge against Flynn's son?
Where's the charge about Russian collusion?
Mine, too, cuz it shows how lost the prog’s cause is.This is quickly becoming my favorite thread.
Mine, too, cuz it shows how lost the prog’s cause is.
The biggest laugh I get is anyone who thinks Trump is not a crook.
where is the collusion charge/indictment for the guy who just pleaded guilty in the collusion investigation?Where’s the collusion charge/indictment?
where is the collusion charge/indictment for the guy who just pleaded guilty in the collusion investigation?
where is the collusion charge/indictment for the guy who just pleaded guilty in the collusion investigation?
What we need to know is why he lied.
That is the whole ballgame.
Did he lie because he just lies all the time and lying comes easy to him?
Or did he lie because the white house told him there could be no admitting that anyone talked to the russians? What has to come out is what happened and why it happened.
I should add that the fact of the russian election meddling has already gravely undermined the validity of this presidency. If it os proved that that Trump knowlingly sought out and accepted Russian help that would destroy his administration.
So they are playing for high stakes here.
Can you name a politician that isn't?
Actually the whole thing is a "Tempest in a Teapot"............it's an American issue, this is a Canadian forum.......best just to keep out of their bickering!![]()
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Actually the whole thing is a "Tempest in a Teapot"............it's an American issue, this is a Canadian forum.......best just to keep out of their bickering!![]()
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but why did he lie?He pled guilty to one count of lying to the FBI. Not collusion.
You really should try another approach, MF. You've repeatedly failed at this angle. :lol:
this is the American Politics forum isn't it?Actually the whole thing is a "Tempest in a Teapot"............it's an American issue, this is a Canadian forum.......best just to keep out of their bickering!![]()
I doubt if there's a living one!
but why did he lie?
Unless you know why he lied how can you possibly know if he colluded or not?
You can't.
this is the American Politics forum isn't it?
Flynn admitted to lying about December 2016 conversations with the Russian ambassador to the U.S. at the time, Sergey Kislyak, during which he pushed for a lesser response to President Barack Obama’s new sanctions tied to Russia election meddling, as well as to the Obama administration’s acceptance of a U.N. resolution to denounce Israeli settlements, according to court documents.