Thread: Might as well jump into this: When and how can Trump pardon Michael Flynn?

Might as well jump into this: When and how can Trump pardon Michael Flynn?

By Philip Bump April 27 at 12:21 PM

President Trump walks with then-national security adviser Michael Flynn, after arriving at MacDill Air Force Base in Tampa on Feb. 6. (Mandel Ngan/AFP/Getty Images)

Given that it is a weekday during the year 2017, there are new revelations about the extent to which former national security adviser Michael Flynn may have violated federal rules at some point prior to being appointed to the administration of President Trump.

This time, members of the House Oversight Committee announced that the Pentagon’s inspector general would look into whether Flynn failed to get the necessary clearance for accepting payments from a foreign government, which he did when appearing at an event for the Russia-backed television network RT. Previously, questions have been raised about conversations Flynn had with the Russian ambassador during the period between the election and the inauguration.

We’ve reached the point where it’s worth asking a perhaps inevitable question: Can Trump pardon Flynn? And, if so, when can he do it?

To answer those questions, I spoke with P.S. Ruckman, a professor at Rock Valley College who tracks presidential pardons at his blog Pardon Power. The answers, in short: Trump can certainly pardon Flynn, and he can do it whenever he wants.

“The conventional wisdom or the Supreme Court jargon to-date suggests that a president can pardon someone before, during or after conviction,” Ruckman said. “Is it possible Trump could pardon for crimes he may have committed in some period of time? Absolutely, yes.”

Ruckman points to the example of President Gerald Ford who, soon after taking office, pardoned his predecessor Richard Nixon for any crimes Nixon may have committed. This is the most well-known example of a blanket pardon, but it’s hardly the only one. “I wouldn’t call it common” for such pardons to be granted, Ruckman said, “but it’s kind of like finding a dollar on the sidewalk: You don’t call The Post to report that.” He notes that as early as 1821, James Monroe issued such a pardon.

The power of presidential pardon is exceptionally broad. Could Trump pardon everyone in America for crimes they may have committed over a period of time? Yes, Ruckman says — with the caveat that the crimes would have to be federal crimes or crimes committed in the District of Columbia. (He explained that, in the early days of the presidency, pardons for local D.C. crimes actually happened, including, according to his data, a pardon for chicken theft in the district.)

The checks on such a move are fairly limited: Trump could be impeached and removed from office and those pardons could be revoked by the president who replaced him. Such revocations are rare but not impossible. George W. Bush revoked his own pardon of a man named Isaac Toussie in 2008, after learning that Toussie’s father had contributed to Republican politicians. (The pardon could be revoked because it hadn’t yet reached Toussie.)

Of course, such a move would also be a dramatic breach with precedent. A high-profile blanket pardon so early in a presidency would be highly unusual, Ruckman noted. He detailed a handful of pardons early in presidencies that were high-profile, including that pardon of Nixon and Ronald Reagan’s pardons of two FBI agents — including the man we later learned was Watergate’s Deep Throat — for illegal searches in the early 1970s.

A pardon before charges were filed in a high-profile case would be similarly unusual. When Scooter Libby, an aide to former vice president Richard B. Cheney, came under suspicion during Bush’s presidency, there were calls to issue a preemptive pardon that Bush declined to entertain. (He did subsequently commute Libby’s sentence.)

Were Trump to pardon Flynn at this point, it would also be a breach of guidelines set by the Department of Justice, which sets timelines and procedures that Trump would be sidestepping. Not to mention the political cost. Should Trump pardon Flynn, it would immediately increase the amount of attention paid to Flynn’s ties to Russia and raise strong questions about Trump’s desire to avoid having those ties adjudicated in public.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/...=.8b034f78f5cc

What crime or prosecution would Trump pardon him for? Last time I checked, the FBI and the US Congress are still trying to find a law he or anyone else for that matter actually violated.

This is the United States where everyone is innocent of crimes until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law by a jury of their peers. I would think General Flynn would be no exception.

I think Elijah Cummings, Maxine Waters and Adam Schiff are Hysterical Hillary Shrills who have abandoned our rule of law and Bill of Rights for political publicity.

Originally Posted by Judy

What crime or prosecution would Trump pardon him for?

http://eleganthomesinla.com/2017/04/...gressman-says/

What crime? I didn't see a crime stated in your link, MW.

Top Pentagon watchdog launches investigation into money that Michael Flynn received from foreign groups

By Dan Lamothe and Ed O'Keefe April 27 at 1:15 PM

National Security Adviser Michael Flynn arrives before a joint news conference with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and President Trump at the White House on Feb. 13. (Carlos Barria/Reuters)

The Pentagon’s top watchdog has launched an investigation into money that former national security adviser and retired Army Lt. Gen. Michael Flynn received from foreign groups, a new wrinkle in the downfall of President Trump’s ousted national security adviser.

The Pentagon office will try to determine whether Flynn “failed to obtain required approval prior to receiving” the payments, according to an April 11 letter from Defense Department Inspector General Glenn A. Fine to Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R-Utah), the chairman of the House Oversight Committee. In the past, the Pentagon has advised retiring officers that because they can be recalled to military service, they may be subject to the Constitution’s rarely enforced emoluments clause, which prohibits top officials from receiving payments or favors from foreign governments.

[Pentagon weighs response to Flynn working on behalf of Turkish interests without U.S. permission]

Flynn received $45,000 to appear in 2015 with Russian President Vladimir Putin at a gala dinner for RT, a Kremlin-controlled media organization. He also worked as a foreign agent representing Turkish interests for a Netherlands-based company, Inovo BV, which paid his company $530,000 in the fall.

Cummings: White House is 'covering up for Michael Flynn'


Play Video1:34
Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-Md.) released a letter from the Defense Department Inspector General on April 27, saying that they launched an investigation into the money Gen. Michael Flynn received from foreign groups, and attacked the White House over a lack of transparency.(Reuters)

Defense Department guidelines warn that the department’s top financial officer, the comptroller, “may pursue debt collection” if a retired officer does not seek permission to accept foreign payments before doing so. Any debt collection due to an emoluments clause violation is capped at no more than what an individual makes in retirement pay during a period of unauthorized employment. In Flynn’s case, that is more than $35,000 for the three months of the Inovo project.

Flynn was fired as national security adviser in February after revelations that he misled Vice President Pence about the nature of his communications with the Russian ambassador to the United States. The pugnacious retired officer, who last year led “lock her up” chants about Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, filed paperwork as a foreign agent about three weeks later, on March 7.

Flynn’s lawyer, Robert K. Kelner, has argued that the retired general briefed the Defense Intelligence Agency, from which he retired in 2014, before and after his 2015 Russia trip.

But a letter DIA sent the House committee said that the agency has no record of Flynn seeking permission or approval to accept money from a foreign source, potentially countering Kelner’s argument. Kelner did not respond to requests for comment Thursday.

Flynn also did not seek permission from the U.S. government to work as a paid foreign agent for Turkish interests, U.S. defense officials said last month, raising the possibility that the Pentagon could dock his retirement pay. Navy Capt. Jeff Davis, a Pentagon spokesman, said then that the Defense Department was reviewing the issue. The Army had no record of Flynn seeking permission for that arrange, military officials said.

The issue involving Turkey emerged after Flynn retroactively registered in March with the Justice Department as a foreign agent for work that his company, Flynn Intel Group, carried out on behalf of Inovo BV. It is owned by Turkish businessman Ekim Alptekin, who is not a part of the Turkish government but has links to it.

Flynn’s company received three payments between September and November from Inovo BV before Trump was elected president and the arrangement was discontinued, according to Flynn’s filings. Flynn is the majority owner and chief executive officer of the Flynn Intel Group.

On Thursday, the White House deflected any criticism that they failed to properly vet Flynn to be Trump’s top security adviser. Press Secretary Sean Spicer said any improper actions by Flynn also flew under the radar of the Obama administration: The Department of Defense issued Flynn a new security clearance in 2016, and Flynn took his trip to Russian 2015.

“All of the clearance was made during the Obama administration, and apparently with knowledge of the trip that he took,” Spicer said.

But beyond checking Flynn’s security clearance, Spicer indicated the Trump administration didn’t do much other vetting — something that is typical.

When asked by reporters if the president had any regrets bringing Flynn on in the first place, Spicer said: “I think the president made the right decision at the right time, and it’s been pretty clear.”

Rep. Elijah E. Cummings (Md.), the top Democrat on the Oversight Committee, also released an Oct. 8, 2014, letter Thursday in which a Defense Department lawyer warned Flynn upon his retirement from military service that he was forbidden from receiving payments from foreign sources without receiving permission from the U.S. government first.

“These documents raise grave questions about why Gen. Flynn concealed the payments he received from foreign sources after he was warned explicitly by the Pentagon,” Cummings said. “Our next step is to get the documents we are seeking from the White House so we can complete our investigation. I thank the Department of Defense for providing us with unclassified versions of these documents.”

Cummings also alleged that the White House was covering up by Flynn by not willingly releasing all documents associated with his case. Spicer disputed that later in the day saying that it was “not true” and he was “taken aback” by the accusation.

Bruce Anderson, a spokesman for the Defense Department inspector general, said that the investigation into Flynn began April 4. The watchdog’s office did not discuss the investigation publicly until after the House Oversight Committee released documents about it, and it typically does not disclose what it is reviewing while an investigation is underway.

The latest revelations from the Pentagon came as congressional Democrats put more pressure on Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R-Utah), chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, to make good on vows to investigate the Flynn matter.

Democrats on the panel reminded Chaffetz that for years he has warned witnesses that complying with committee requests “is not an optional exercise.”

“Your decisions on this investigation will have a profound impact on the faith that the American people have in Congress to act in an even-handed manner and fulfill our duty under the Constitution to exercise robust oversight of the Executive Branch, regardless of who occupies the White House,” the Democrats added.

Chaffetz announced on Wednesday that he is planning to take a medical leave of up to four weeks to repair screws implanted in his foot years ago after an accident. It is likely that House GOP leaders will appoint an interim chairman in his absence.

Two Republican members who emerged Thursday from the room with the documents about Flynn brushed off questions from reporters. But a group of Democrats on the committee addressed the media.

“The information that we received this morning was quite troubling. Actually, it left us with more questions, I would say, than answers,” said Rep. Val Butler Demings (D-Fla.).
Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-N.Y.) said they just came a classified briefing and could not discuss the material they reviewed. She said the materiel ought to be declassified for the American people “read it and judge for themselves.”
The Democrats demanded further documents from the White House.

“They have already told us they have documents with respect to General Flynn. And we’ve received zero documents,” said Rep. Stephen Lynch (D-Mass.). “So they’ve told us we have these documents and they’ve been widely reported in the press that they have the documents, yet they refuse to give it to Congress.”

Rep. Matt Cartwright (D-Pa.) said that after reviewing the documents, he believes lawmakers should “keep digging” on Flynn.

Cartwright declined to share specifics about what the documents entail, but said Republican members of the oversight panel should be pushing the White House to release more information about what top administration officials knew about Flynn during the presidential campaign, transition and in the early days of Trump’s presidency.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/...=.1d835a966653

After You Go: Temporary Employment Restrictions
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Post Government Service Employment Restriction Counseling should be completed during the transition process. You will be informed about this requirement when completing your DD Form 2648, Pre-Separation Counseling Checklist."

Post government (military) employment restriction information will be provided by the Military Services as appropriate. Transition/Command Career Counselors shall refer separating and retiring Service members to an installation legal office (Staff Judge Advocate or Counselor's Office) to ensure they receive a post government (military) employment restrictions briefing, counseling or appropriate information from an ethics official.

Additional information about employment restrictions after leaving the military is provided below.

Personal Lifetime Ban

Simplified Rule: After you leave Government service, you may not represent someone else to the Government regarding particular matters that you worked on while in Government service.

Rule: Former service members may not knowingly make a communication or appearance on behalf of any other person, with the intent to influence, before any officer or employee of any Federal agency or court in connection with a particular matter in which the officer or employee personally and substantially participated, which involved a specific party at the time of the participation and representation, and in which the U.S. is a party or has a direct and substantial interest.

NOTE: This rule does not apply to former military enlisted personnel.

Official Responsibility 2 Year Ban

Simplified Rule: For 2 years after leaving Government service, you may not represent someone else to the Government regarding particular matters that you did not work on yourself, but were pending under your responsibility during your last year of Government service.

Rule: For a period of 2 years after termination of Government service, former Government officers and employees may not knowingly make a communication or appearance on behalf of any other person, with the intent to influence, before any officer or employee of any Federal agency or court, in connection with a particular matter which the employee reasonably should have known was actually pending under his or her official responsibility within 1 year before the employee left Government service, which involved a specific party at that time, and in which the U.S. is a party or has a direct and substantial interest.

NOTE: This rule does not apply to former military enlisted personnel.

Trade or Treaty 1 Year Ban

Simplified Rule: For 1 year after leaving Government service, you may not aid, advise, or represent someone else regarding trade or treaty negotiations that you worked on during your last year of Government service.

Rule: For a period of 1 year after leaving Government service, former employees or officers may not knowingly represent, aid, or advise someone else on the basis of covered information, concerning any ongoing trade or treaty negotiation in which the employee participated personally and substantially in his last year of Government service.

NOTE: This rule does not apply to former military enlisted personnel.

Compensation for Representation to the Government By Others

Rule: After you leave Government service, you may not accept compensation for representational services, which were provided by anyone while you were a Government employee, before a Federal agency or court regarding particular matters in which the Government was a party or had a substantial interest. This prohibition may affect personnel who leave the Government and share in the proceeds of the partnership or business for representational services that occurred before the employee terminated Federal service. (Examples: Lobbying, consulting, and law firms).

NOTE: This rule does not apply to former enlisted military personnel.

Additional Restrictions for Retired Military Personnel and Reservists

Simplified Rule: Foreign Employment - Unless you receive prior authorization from your Service Secretary and the Secretary of State, you may forfeit your military pay during the time you perform services for a foreign government.

Rule: The U.S. Constitution prohibits retired military personnel and reservists from receiving pay from foreign governments without Congressional authorization. This can extend to receipt of pay from a U.S. contractor or subcontractor for providing services to a foreign government. In 37 U.S.C. 908, Congress authorizes the Secretary of State and Secretary of the appropriate Military Department to approve such receipt of pay. Each military service has implementing directives. Retired personnel and reservists who violate this Constitutional proscription may forfeit pay equal in amount to their foreign pay.

Employment By DoD

To avoid the appearance of favoritism, the law prohibits the appointment of retired military personnel to civil service positions (including a non-appropriated fund activity) in any DoD component for 6 months after retirement.

NOTE: This restriction has been temporarily waived during the current national emergency following the attacks of 9/11.

The Secretary concerned may waive this prohibition. However, DoD requires the Secretary concerned to conduct intensive external recruitment before granting the waiver.

Employment During Terminal Leave

Holding a Civil Office in State or Local Government: While on active duty (including terminal leave) military officers are prohibited by 10 U.S.C. 973(b) from holding a "civil office" with a state or local government.

Civilian Position in the U.S. Government: Military personnel on terminal leave are authorized to accept a civilian position in the U.S. Government and receive the pay and allowances of that position as well as their military pay and allowances.

NOTE: Remember that while on terminal leave, you are still an active-duty servicemember, and the restrictions that apply to you while on active duty still apply. For example: Restrictions on political activities.

Rule of Thumb: If you are currently required to obtain permission prior to engaging in outside employment, that requirement will most likely carry over to you during terminal leave. Check with your supervisor.

Restrictions on Lobbying the Federal Government: You may not represent anybody outside the Government to the Government on any particular matter involving the Government. Military officers working on terminal leave (like all Federal employees) are prohibited from representing their new employer to the Government. In almost every case, this precludes a member from interacting or appearing in the Federal workplace as a contractor. Being present in Government offices on behalf of a contractor inherently is a representation. Of course, military officers on terminal leave may begin work with the contractor, but only "behind the scenes" at a contractor office or otherwise away from the Government workplace.

NOTE: Enlisted members are not subject to these restrictions.

Prohibition on working for a foreign principal: Over and above the restriction of receiving compensation from a foreign government, there is also a specific prohibition of a public official from being or acting as an agent of a foreign principal required to register under the Foreign Agents Registration Act of 1938.

http://www.military.com/military-tra...trictions.html

Michael T. Flynn

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
For other people named Michael Flynn, see Michael Flynn (disambiguation).
Michael T. Flynn
Michael T Flynn.jpg
25th National Security Advisor
In office
January 20, 2017 – February 13, 2017
President Donald Trump
Deputy K. T. McFarland
Preceded by Susan Rice
Succeeded by Keith Kellogg (Acting)
Director of the Defense Intelligence Agency
In office
July 24, 2012 – August 7, 2014
President Barack Obama
Preceded by Ronald Burgess
Succeeded by David Shedd (Acting)
Personal details
Born Michael Thomas Flynn
December 1958 (age 58)
Middletown, Rhode Island, U.S.
Political party Democratic
Education University of Rhode Island, Kingston (BS)
Golden Gate University (MBA)
United States Army Command and General Staff College (MMAS)
Naval War College (MA)
Signature
Website Official website
Military service
Allegiance United States
Service/branch United States Army
Years of service 1981–2014
Rank US-O9 insignia.svg Lieutenant General
Unit Defense Intelligence Agency
• Joint Functional Component Command for Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance
Battles/wars Operation Urgent Fury
Operation Uphold Democracy
Operation Enduring Freedom
Operation Iraqi Freedom
Awards Defense Meritorious Service Medal
Defense Superior Service Medal (4)
Legion of Merit (2)
Bronze Star Medal (4)
Meritorious Service Medal (6)
Joint Service Commendation Medal
Army Commendation Medal (5)

Michael Thomas "Mike" Flynn (born December 1958) is a retired United States Army lieutenant general who was the eighteenth director of the Defense Intelligence Agency and the first national security advisor appointed by President Donald Trump.[1][2] Flynn served as the twenty-fifth national security advisor from January 20, 2017, to February 13, 2017. He was forced to resign after information surfaced he had misled Vice President Mike Pence about the nature and content of his communications with the Russian ambassador to the U.S., Sergey Kislyak.[3][4] Flynn's tenure of just 24 days as national security advisor is the shortest in the history of the office.[5][6]

Flynn's military career was primarily operational, with numerous combat arms, conventional, and special operations senior intelligence assignments. He co-authored a report in January 2010 through the Center for a New American Security, entitled Fixing Intel: A Blueprint for Making Intelligence Relevant in Afghanistan.[7] In addition, Flynn served as the commander of the Joint Functional Component Command for Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance, chair of the military intelligence board, assistant director of national intelligence,[8][9] and the senior intelligence officer for the joint operations command. In 2014, he retired with 33 years service in the army, a year before he was scheduled to leave his position.

Contents

1 Early life
2 Military career
2.1 U.S. Army
2.1.1 Defense Intelligence Agency
2.1.2 Retirement from the military
3 Post-retirement
3.1 Consulting firm
3.1.1 Registration as foreign agent
3.2 Attendance at RT gala dinner
3.3 2016 U.S. presidential election
4 National Security Advisor
5 Political views
6 Books
7 Awards and decorations
8 Other awards and recognitions
9 References
10 External links

Early life

Flynn was born in December 1958 in Middletown, Rhode Island,[9] the son of Helen Frances (Andrews), who worked in real estate, and Charles Francis Flynn, a banker.[10][11][12][13]

Michael Flynn graduated from the University of Rhode Island with a Bachelor of Science degree in management science in 1981 and was a Distinguished Military Graduate of the Reserve Officers' Training Corps. He also earned a Master of Business Administration in Telecommunications from Golden Gate University, a Master of Military Art and Science from the United States Army Command and General Staff College, and a Master of Arts in National Security and Strategic Studies from the Naval War College.[1]

Flynn is a graduate of the Military Intelligence Officer Basic Course, Military Intelligence Officer Advanced Course, Army Command and General Staff College, the School of Advanced Military Studies, and Naval War College.[1]

Military career

U.S. Army

General Stanley McChrystal and Flynn in Afghanistan, 2010

Flynn was commissioned in the U.S. Army as a second lieutenant in military intelligence, in 1981.[1] His military assignments included multiple tours at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, with the 82nd Airborne Division, XVIII Airborne Corps, and Joint Special Operations Command, where he deployed for the invasion of Grenada and Operation Uphold Democracy in Haiti.[14] He also served with the 25th Infantry Division at Schofield Barracks, Hawaii, at the Joint Readiness Training Center at Fort Polk, Louisiana, and the Army Intelligence Center at Fort Huachuca, Arizona.[1]

Flynn served as the assistant chief of staff, G2, XVIII Airborne Corps at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, from June 2001 and the director of intelligence at the Joint Task Force 180 in Afghanistan until July 2002. He commanded the 111th Military Intelligence Brigade from June 2002 to June 2004[1] and was the director of intelligence for Joint Special Operations Command from July 2004 to June 2007, with service in Afghanistan (Operation Enduring Freedom) and the Iraq War (Operation Iraqi Freedom). He served as the director of intelligence of the United States Central Command from June 2007 to July 2008, as the director of intelligence of the Joint Staff from July 2008 to June 2009, then the director of intelligence of the International Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan from June 2009 to October 2010.[1][15]

Defense Intelligence Agency

Flynn speaks during the change of directorship for the Defense Intelligence Agency on Joint Base Anacostia-Bolling in Washington, D.C.
Flynn with Martin Dempsey and Ashton Carter, June 11, 2013

In September 2011, Flynn was promoted to Lieutenant General and assigned to the Office of the Director of National Intelligence. On April 17, 2012, President Barack Obama nominated Flynn to be the 18th director of the Defense Intelligence Agency.[16][17] Flynn took command of the DIA in July 2012.[18] In October 2012, Flynn announced plans to release his paper "VISION2020: Accelerating Change Through Integration", a look at changes he believes are necessary for the DIA in the future.[19][20] It was at the DIA that Flynn met Ezra Cohen-Watnick, who in 2017 Flynn would elevate to the National Security Council.[21][22]

Retirement from the military

On April 30, 2014, Flynn announced his retirement effective later that year, about a year earlier than he had been scheduled to leave his position. He was reportedly effectively forced out of the DIA after clashing with superiors over his allegedly chaotic management style and vision for the agency.[23][24][25][26] In a private e-mail that was leaked online, Colin Powell said that he had heard in the DIA (apparently from later DIA director Vincent R. Stewart) that Flynn got fired because he was "abusive with staff, didn't listen, worked against policy, bad management, etc."[25] According to The New York Times, Flynn exhibited a loose relationship with facts, leading his subordinates to refer to Flynn's repeated dubious assertions as "Flynn facts".[27]

According to what Flynn had told in one final interview as DIA director, he felt like a lone voice in thinking that the United States was less safe from the threat of Islamic terrorism in 2014 than it was prior to the 9/11 attacks; he went on to believe that he was pressed into retirement for questioning the Obama administration's public narrative that Al Qaeda was close to defeat.[28] Journalist Seymour Hersh wrote that "Flynn confirmed [to Hersh] that his agency had sent a constant stream of classified warnings ... about the dire consequences of toppling [Syrian President] Assad." Flynn recounted that his agency was producing intelligence reports indicating that radical Islamists were the main force in the Syrian insurgency and "that Turkey was looking the other way when it came to the growth of the Islamic State inside Syria". According to Flynn, these reports "got enormous pushback from the Obama administration," who he felt "did not want to hear the truth". According to former DIA official W. Patrick Lang: "Flynn incurred the wrath of the White House by insisting on telling the truth about Syria ... they shoved him out. He wouldn't shut up."[29] In an interview with Al Jazeera, Flynn criticized the Obama administration for its delay in supporting the opposition in Syria, thereby allowing for the growth of Al Nusra and other extremist forces: "when you don't get in and help somebody, they're gonna find other means to achieve their goals" and that "we should have done more earlier on in this effort, you know, than we did."[30]

Flynn retired from the U.S. Army with 33 years of service on August 7, 2014.[31]
Post-retirement

Consulting firm

Flynn, along with son Michael G. Flynn, runs Flynn Intel Group, which provides intelligence services for business and governments.[32]

Registration as foreign agent

In July 2016, Flynn spoke at a meeting of ACT! for America at a point when the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt against Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan was still underway. He spoke favorably of the coup participants, saying that Erdoğan had been moving Turkey away from secularism and towards Islamism, and that participants in the coup wanted Turkey to be and to be seen as a secular nation — a goal "worth clapping for."[33] But by the end of September 2016, Flynn's consulting company was hired by a company owned by the Chair of the Turkish-American Business Council, which is an arm of the Foreign Economic Relations Board of Turkey (DEIK),[34][35][36][37][38][39] and on November 8 (election day in the United States), Flynn wrote an op-ed for The Hill,[40] calling for U.S. backing for Erdoğan's government and criticizing the regime's opponent, Fethullah Gülen.[41] At the time, Flynn did not disclose that his consulting firm had received funds from a company with ties to the Turkish government.[42] After Flynn's ties had been disclosed by The Daily Caller, Politico, and others, the editor of The Hill added a note to Flynn's op-ed, stating that Flynn had failed to disclose that he had been engaged at the time in "consulting work that might have aided the government of Turkey," that his firm had received payments from a company with close ties to the Turkish government, or that the company had reviewed the draft of the op-ed before it was submitted to The Hill.[40]

On March 8, 2017, Flynn registered with the Justice Department as a foreign agent for $530,000 worth of lobbying work before election day.[43] This work was done on behalf of a Dutch-based company which may have been working for the Turkish government.[43]

On March 24, 2017, former Director of the CIA James Woolsey said that Flynn, while working for the Trump presidential campaign, attended a meeting with top Turkish government ministers to abduct Fethullah Gulen and get him to Turkey without going through the U.S. extradition legal process.[44] Gulen is an opponent of the Erdogan regime and has been accused by the regime of plotting the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt.[44]

Flynn sat in on classified national security briefings with then-candidate Trump at the same time that Flynn was working for foreign clients, which raises ethical concerns and conflicts of interest.[45]

Attendance at RT gala dinner

In December 2015, Flynn and Jill Stein attended RT's 10th anniversary gala.[46][47] Flynn is sitting next to Vladimir Putin during the dinner.
Flynn's talent agency charged RT UK $45,000 and paid him $33,750 for a 60-minute presentation at the RT anniversary gala.

On December 10, 2015, Flynn attended a gala dinner in Moscow in honor of RT (formerly "Russia Today"), a Russian government-owned English-language media outlet on which he made semi-regular appearances as an analyst after he retired from U.S. government service. Before the gala, Flynn gave a paid talk on world affairs.[48][49] Flynn defended the RT payment in an interview with Michael Isikoff.[49] Journalist Michael Crowley of Politico reported that "at a moment of semi-hostility between the U.S. and Russia, the presence of such an important figure at Putin's table startled" U.S. officials, in reference to Flynn and Russian President Vladimir Putin sitting side-by-side.[48]

On February 1, 2017, the ranking Democratic members on six House committees sent a letter to Secretary of Defense James Mattis, requesting a Department of Defense investigation into Flynn's connection to RT.[50] The legislators expressed concern that Flynn had violated the Foreign Emoluments Clause of the U.S. Constitution by accepting money from RT.[50] A 2017 report by the United States Intelligence Community characterized RT as "The Kremlin’s principal international propaganda outlet" and said that RT America is set up as an autonomous nonprofit organization "to avoid the Foreign Agents Registration Act".[51][52]

2016 U.S. presidential election

Flynn at a campaign rally for then-Republican Presidential nominee Donald Trump, in October 2016

Having already been consulted regarding national security by Fiorina as well as other candidates, including Scott Walker, Ben Carson, Ted Cruz, and Donald Trump,[53] Flynn was asked in February 2016 to serve as an adviser to the Trump campaign.[54] In July 2016, it was reported he was being considered as Trump's running mate; Flynn later confirmed that he had submitted vetting documents to the campaign and was willing to accept the Republican vice-presidential nomination if chosen.[55][56] Trump instead selected Indiana Governor Mike Pence.

As one of the keynote speakers during the first night of the 2016 Republican National Convention, Flynn gave what the Los Angeles Times described as a "fiery" speech, in which he stated: "We are tired of Obama's empty speeches and his misguided rhetoric. This, this has caused the world to have no respect for America's word, nor does it fear our might";[57] he also accused Obama of choosing to conceal the actions of Osama bin Laden and ISIS.[58] Flynn went on to critically address political correctness and joined the crowd in a chant of "U-S-A! U-S-A!". During the chants he told those in the audience, "Get fired up! This is about our country."[57][59] During the speech, Flynn launched a blistering attack on Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton. He led the crowd in chants of "Lock her up!"; during one of those chants, he encouraged the crowd to keep it up, saying, "Damn right! Exactly right! There is nothing wrong with that!"[28] He called for Clinton to withdraw from the race, saying that "if I did a tenth of what she did, I'd be in jail today."[60][61] He repeated in subsequent interviews that she should be "locked up".[53] While campaigning for Trump, Flynn also referred to Clinton as the "enemy camp".[60] Six days after the speech, Flynn stirred up a controversy by retweeting antisemitic remarks, which he later apologized for and claimed were unintentional.[62] During the election campaign, Flynn used Twitter to post links to negative stories about Clinton, including fake news like the Pizzagate conspiracy theory.[63]

Flynn was once opposed to waterboarding and other extreme interrogation techniques that have now been banned; however, according to an August 2016 Washington Post article, he said at one point, in the context of Trump's apparent openness to reinstating such techniques, that "he would be reluctant to take options off the table."[60] In May 2016, Flynn was asked by an Al Jazeera reporter if he would support Trump's stated plan to "take out [the] families"[64][65] of suspected terrorists. In response, Flynn stated, "I would have to see the circumstances of that situation."[60] In an interview with Al Jazeera, Flynn criticized the U.S. reliance on drones as a "failed strategy", stating that "what we have is this continued investment in conflict. The more weapons we give, the more bombs we drop, that just ... fuels the conflict."[66][30]

National Security Advisor

Flynn, Gen. Joseph F. Dunford, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Gen. Joseph Votel and Gen. Raymond A. Thomas at MacDill Air Force Base, February 6, 2017

On November 18, 2016, Flynn accepted president-elect Donald Trump's offer of the position of National Security Advisor.[67] Even prior to his appointment as national security advisor, Flynn had already drawn criticism for what sources, including The Washington Post and Associated Press, have described as his close relations with Russia,[68][69][48][49] his promotion and popularization of anti-Clinton conspiracy theories, and fake news stories during the 2016 presidential election.[63][70]

In December 2016, after the election of Donald Trump, Flynn met with Heinz-Christian Strache, leader of the far-right Freedom Party of Austria, at Trump Tower in New York.[71] The meeting attracted attention because the Freedom Party was founded by ex-Nazis in the 1950s, and because Strache had recently signed a cooperation agreement with Vladimir Putin's ruling United Russia party. The Trump campaign refused to comment on the meeting.[71]

Michael T. Flynn resignation letter

On December 29, 2016, Flynn spoke with Russian ambassador Sergey Kislyak, the same day the Obama administration announced retaliatory measures in response to the interference in the 2016 U.S. presidential campaign by the Russian government. The phone conversation was reportedly viewed by Obama advisers who had been briefed on its content by the F.B.I. with suspicion as possibly a secret deal between the incoming team and Moscow, which could have violated the dormant Logan Act that bars unauthorized U.S. citizens from negotiating with foreign powers in disputes with the United States.[72][73][74] On January 13, 2017, the next day after the story was broken by David Ignatius, Trump's incoming press secretary, Sean Spicer said the conversation had occurred on December 28 and thus couldn't have touched on the retaliation measures or Russia's response; Spicer later had to correct himself on the date of the conversation.[75]

On January 22, 2017, The Wall Street Journal reported that Flynn was under investigation by U.S. counterintelligence agents for his communications with Russian officials.[76] On February 8, 2017, Flynn flatly denied having spoken to Kislyak in December 2016 about the sanctions placed on Russia by the Obama administration; however, the next day, U.S. intelligence officials shared an account indicating that such discussions did in fact take place.[77] Following this revelation, Flynn's spokesman released a statement that Flynn "indicated that while he had no recollection of discussing sanctions, he couldn't be certain that the topic never came up".[78]

Michael T. Flynn Offer of Testimony for Immunity from Prosecution[79]

In addition to the FBI investigation, The New York Times reported that, according to two defense officials, the Army is separately investigating whether Flynn "received money from the Russian government during a trip he took to Moscow in 2015".[80] According to the officials, there was no record that Flynn has "filed the required paperwork for the trip". If he received money without the consent of Congress, he might have violated the Emoluments Clause of the U.S. Constitution.[80]

On February 13, 2017, Flynn resigned as National Security Advisor, following reporting on his communications with the Russian ambassador, Sergey Kislyak and that he misled the Vice President about it.[80] The Washington Post reported that Acting Attorney General Sally Yates had warned the Trump White House in late January that Flynn had not been truthful about his contacts with Russia related to sanctions and that he was vulnerable to blackmail by Russian intelligence.[81][68] Flynn's 24-day tenure as National Security Advisor was the shortest in the 63-year history of the office.[6]

Commenting on Flynn′s resignation, on February 14 White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer stated, "We got to a point not based on a legal issue, but based on a trust issue, where a level of trust between the President and General Flynn had eroded to the point where he felt he had to make a change ... The issue here was that the President got to the point where General Flynn’s relationship – misleading the Vice President and others, or the possibility that he had forgotten critical details of this important conversation had created a critical mass and an unsustainable situation. That’s why the President decided to ask for his resignation, and he got it."[82]

On March 30, The Wall Street Journal reported that Flynn had offered to testify to the FBI or the Senate and House Intelligence committees relating to the Russia probe in exchange for immunity from criminal prosecution.[83] However, NBC News reported that the Senate intelligence committee rejected Flynn's offer for immunity in exchange for testimony.[84]

Political views

Flynn is a registered Democrat, having grown up in a "very strong Democratic family".[85] However, he was a keynote speaker during the first night of the 2016 Republican National Convention,[57] and he was a surrogate and top national security adviser for President Donald Trump.

During a July 10, 2016, interview on ABC News' This Week, when asked by host Martha Raddatz about the issue of abortion, Flynn stated, "women have to be able to choose."[85][86] The next day, Flynn said on Fox News that he is a "pro-life Democrat".[87]

Flynn has been a board member of ACT! for America,[67] and sees the Muslim faith as one of the root causes of Islamist terrorism.[27] He has described Islam as a political ideology and a cancer.[27][88] He stated in a Twitter post that "fear of Muslims is RATIONAL"[67] and included a video link claiming that Islam wants "80% of people enslaved or exterminated".[89] Initially supportive of Trump's proposal to ban Muslims from entering the US, Flynn later told Al Jazeera that a blanket ban was unworkable and has called instead for "vetting" of entrants from countries like Syria.[67] Flynn has stated the U.S. "should extradite Fethullah Gülen" to Turkey and "work constructively with Russia" in Syria.[29][90] In 2016, he said that he had personally seen photos of signs in the Southwest border area that were in Arabic to help Muslims entering the United States illegally. An officer of the National Border Patrol Council responded that he had never seen any signs delineating smuggling routes, let alone any in Arabic.[91]

Books

Flynn is the author of The Field of Fight: How We Can Win the Global War Against Radical Islam and Its Allies, co-authored with Michael Ledeen, which was published by St. Martin's Press in 2016.[92] In reviewing the book, Will McCants of the Brookings Institution described Flynn's worldview as a confused combination of neoconservatism (an insistence on destroying what he sees as an alliance of tyranny, dictatorships, and radical Islamist regimes) and realism (support for working with "friendly tyrants"), although he acknowledged that this could be due to the book having two authors.[93]

Awards and decorations

Lieutenant General Flynn's decorations, medals and badges include:[1][94]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_T._Flynn

The 2 payments that are in the news are the $530,000 from the Dutch company, not a government, and the $45,000 from the RT, an English-based news service in Russia that is read by and participated in by many people. It is an "autonomous nonprofit organization" funded by the Russian government, no different than the BBC in Great Britain or National Public Radio in the United States.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RT_(TV_network)

Yet...No one is talking about Podesta and his unreported partnership in business with Russia. They formed a company together. Podesta was given money he never reported.

Originally Posted by JohnDoe2

Top Pentagon watchdog launches investigation into money that Michael Flynn received from foreign groups

By Dan Lamothe and Ed O'Keefe April 27 at 1:15 PM

National Security Adviser Michael Flynn arrives before a joint news conference with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and President Trump at the White House on Feb. 13. (Carlos Barria/Reuters)

The Pentagon’s top watchdog has launched an investigation into money that former national security adviser and retired Army Lt. Gen. Michael Flynn received from foreign groups, a new wrinkle in the downfall of President Trump’s ousted national security adviser.

The Pentagon office will try to determine whether Flynn “failed to obtain required approval prior to receiving” the payments, according to an April 11 letter from Defense Department Inspector General Glenn A. Fine to Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R-Utah), the chairman of the House Oversight Committee. In the past, the Pentagon has advised retiring officers that because they can be recalled to military service, they may be subject to the Constitution’s rarely enforced emoluments clause, which prohibits top officials from receiving payments or favors from foreign governments.

[Pentagon weighs response to Flynn working on behalf of Turkish interests without U.S. permission]

Flynn received $45,000 to appear in 2015 with Russian President Vladimir Putin at a gala dinner for RT, a Kremlin-controlled media organization. He also worked as a foreign agent representing Turkish interests for a Netherlands-based company, Inovo BV, which paid his company $530,000 in the fall.

Cummings: White House is 'covering up for Michael Flynn'


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Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-Md.) released a letter from the Defense Department Inspector General on April 27, saying that they launched an investigation into the money Gen. Michael Flynn received from foreign groups, and attacked the White House over a lack of transparency.(Reuters)

Defense Department guidelines warn that the department’s top financial officer, the comptroller, “may pursue debt collection” if a retired officer does not seek permission to accept foreign payments before doing so. Any debt collection due to an emoluments clause violation is capped at no more than what an individual makes in retirement pay during a period of unauthorized employment. In Flynn’s case, that is more than $35,000 for the three months of the Inovo project.

Flynn was fired as national security adviser in February after revelations that he misled Vice President Pence about the nature of his communications with the Russian ambassador to the United States. The pugnacious retired officer, who last year led “lock her up” chants about Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, filed paperwork as a foreign agent about three weeks later, on March 7.

Flynn’s lawyer, Robert K. Kelner, has argued that the retired general briefed the Defense Intelligence Agency, from which he retired in 2014, before and after his 2015 Russia trip.

But a letter DIA sent the House committee said that the agency has no record of Flynn seeking permission or approval to accept money from a foreign source, potentially countering Kelner’s argument. Kelner did not respond to requests for comment Thursday.

Flynn also did not seek permission from the U.S. government to work as a paid foreign agent for Turkish interests, U.S. defense officials said last month, raising the possibility that the Pentagon could dock his retirement pay. Navy Capt. Jeff Davis, a Pentagon spokesman, said then that the Defense Department was reviewing the issue. The Army had no record of Flynn seeking permission for that arrange, military officials said.

The issue involving Turkey emerged after Flynn retroactively registered in March with the Justice Department as a foreign agent for work that his company, Flynn Intel Group, carried out on behalf of Inovo BV. It is owned by Turkish businessman Ekim Alptekin, who is not a part of the Turkish government but has links to it.

Flynn’s company received three payments between September and November from Inovo BV before Trump was elected president and the arrangement was discontinued, according to Flynn’s filings. Flynn is the majority owner and chief executive officer of the Flynn Intel Group.

On Thursday, the White House deflected any criticism that they failed to properly vet Flynn to be Trump’s top security adviser. Press Secretary Sean Spicer said any improper actions by Flynn also flew under the radar of the Obama administration: The Department of Defense issued Flynn a new security clearance in 2016, and Flynn took his trip to Russian 2015.

“All of the clearance was made during the Obama administration, and apparently with knowledge of the trip that he took,” Spicer said.

But beyond checking Flynn’s security clearance, Spicer indicated the Trump administration didn’t do much other vetting — something that is typical.

When asked by reporters if the president had any regrets bringing Flynn on in the first place, Spicer said: “I think the president made the right decision at the right time, and it’s been pretty clear.”

Rep. Elijah E. Cummings (Md.), the top Democrat on the Oversight Committee, also released an Oct. 8, 2014, letter Thursday in which a Defense Department lawyer warned Flynn upon his retirement from military service that he was forbidden from receiving payments from foreign sources without receiving permission from the U.S. government first.

“These documents raise grave questions about why Gen. Flynn concealed the payments he received from foreign sources after he was warned explicitly by the Pentagon,” Cummings said. “Our next step is to get the documents we are seeking from the White House so we can complete our investigation. I thank the Department of Defense for providing us with unclassified versions of these documents.”

Cummings also alleged that the White House was covering up by Flynn by not willingly releasing all documents associated with his case. Spicer disputed that later in the day saying that it was “not true” and he was “taken aback” by the accusation.

Bruce Anderson, a spokesman for the Defense Department inspector general, said that the investigation into Flynn began April 4. The watchdog’s office did not discuss the investigation publicly until after the House Oversight Committee released documents about it, and it typically does not disclose what it is reviewing while an investigation is underway.

The latest revelations from the Pentagon came as congressional Democrats put more pressure on Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R-Utah), chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, to make good on vows to investigate the Flynn matter.

Democrats on the panel reminded Chaffetz that for years he has warned witnesses that complying with committee requests “is not an optional exercise.”

“Your decisions on this investigation will have a profound impact on the faith that the American people have in Congress to act in an even-handed manner and fulfill our duty under the Constitution to exercise robust oversight of the Executive Branch, regardless of who occupies the White House,” the Democrats added.

Chaffetz announced on Wednesday that he is planning to take a medical leave of up to four weeks to repair screws implanted in his foot years ago after an accident. It is likely that House GOP leaders will appoint an interim chairman in his absence.

Two Republican members who emerged Thursday from the room with the documents about Flynn brushed off questions from reporters. But a group of Democrats on the committee addressed the media.

“The information that we received this morning was quite troubling. Actually, it left us with more questions, I would say, than answers,” said Rep. Val Butler Demings (D-Fla.).
Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-N.Y.) said they just came a classified briefing and could not discuss the material they reviewed. She said the materiel ought to be declassified for the American people “read it and judge for themselves.”
The Democrats demanded further documents from the White House.

“They have already told us they have documents with respect to General Flynn. And we’ve received zero documents,” said Rep. Stephen Lynch (D-Mass.). “So they’ve told us we have these documents and they’ve been widely reported in the press that they have the documents, yet they refuse to give it to Congress.”

Rep. Matt Cartwright (D-Pa.) said that after reviewing the documents, he believes lawmakers should “keep digging” on Flynn.

Cartwright declined to share specifics about what the documents entail, but said Republican members of the oversight panel should be pushing the White House to release more information about what top administration officials knew about Flynn during the presidential campaign, transition and in the early days of Trump’s presidency.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/...=.1d835a966653

The payments were from a Dutch-based business and the Russian-based RT. The Dutch company is a private concern and the RT is an "autonomous nonprofit organization" funded by the Russian government the same as BBC in Great Britain and the NPR in the United States.

I'm sure if there was some obvious crime involved, it seems to me there would be a specific crime identified and proper action taken either by the Army, the DOD, the DOJ, or the FBI. I don't even know from the information I found that either payment was inappropriate let alone illegal, but we'll see what the Witch Hunt comes up with.