Trump: What Happened to Flynn ‘Should Never Be Allowed to Happen’ Again

Trump: What Happened to Flynn ‘Should Never Be Allowed to Happen’ Again
President-elect Donald Trump, left, stands withNational Security Adviser Lt. General Michael Flynn at Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach, Florida on Dec. 21, 2016. (Jim Watson/AFP via Getty Images)
Zachary Stieber
4/30/2020
Updated:
4/30/2020

President Donald Trump came out in support of his former national security adviser, Lt. Gen. Michael Flynn, while accusing former FBI director James Comey of wrongdoing.

“What happened to General Michael Flynn, a war hero, should never be allowed to happen to a citizen of the United States again!” Trump wrote in a social media statement on Thursday.

Evidence unsealed late Wednesday showed an FBI official involved in the decision to do an unusual interview with Flynn questioned whether the bureau was trying to catch Flynn in a lie rather than get to the truth through their questioning.

“What’s our goal? Truth/Admission or to—get him to lie, so we can prosecute him or get him fired?” the official, who has not been identified, wrote in notes from January 2017.

Flynn pleaded guilty to lying to FBI agents during a Jan. 24, 2017, interview, but has since said he did not knowingly mislead the agents. Flynn’s attorney, Sidney Powell, said evidence in the newly released material show Flynn was “deliberately set up and framed by corrupt agents at the top of the FBI.”

President Donald Trump’s former National Security Adviser Michael Flynn leaves the E. Barrett Prettyman U.S. Courthouse in Washington on June 24, 2019. (Alex Wroblewski/Getty Images)
President Donald Trump’s former National Security Adviser Michael Flynn leaves the E. Barrett Prettyman U.S. Courthouse in Washington on June 24, 2019. (Alex Wroblewski/Getty Images)
Flynn on Wednesday night shared a short video showing an American flag. Trump shared the video, calling it “great!”
He also took aim at Comey, calling him a “DIRTY COP“ who ”GOT CAUGHT!”
When Tom Fitton, head of Judicial Watch, said “Comey did it” in reference to the alleged entrapment of Flynn, Trump said others were involved as well.

Speaking at an event in 2018, a host told Comey that it was hard to imagine two FBI agents entering the White House to interview Flynn and wondered how it happened.

“I sent them,” Comey responded.

Comey called the Trump administration disorganized, prompting him to think: “It’s early enough, let’s just send a couple of guys over.”

Former Federal Bureau of Investigation Director James Comey leaves the Rayburn House Office Building after testifying to the House Judiciary and Oversight and Government Reform committees on Capitol Hill in Washington on Dec. 7, 2018. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
Former Federal Bureau of Investigation Director James Comey leaves the Rayburn House Office Building after testifying to the House Judiciary and Oversight and Government Reform committees on Capitol Hill in Washington on Dec. 7, 2018. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

“And so we placed a call to Flynn, said, hey, we’re sending a couple of guys over. Hope you'll talk to them. He said, sure. Nobody else was there. They interviewed him in a conference room in the Situation Room, and he lied to them. And that’s what he’s now pled guilty to,” Comey added.

Trump also shared a bevy of social media posts from others regarding the update in Flynn’s case, including one from Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.) that quoted Comey from the event.

Another, from Townhall editor Katie Pavlich, wondered what FBI Director Christopher Wray knew about the situation and when he came to know it.

A third post, from Rep. Chris Stewart (R-Utah), in part accused the FBI and Department of Justice leadership of conspiring against Flynn.

Petr Savb contributed to this report.