The president has grown obsessed with defending the tough-talking 58-year-old general, repeatedly telling aides and associates in private that Flynn was a ‘good man.’
Two days after firing Michael Flynn as his national security adviser in February, President Donald Trump told several aides and friends he should have kept him instead.
Trump, several people close to him say, sometimes appears to question decisions even after they’ve been made. He told New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie that he could still be labor secretary even after he’d publicly named Alexander Acosta to the role. He privately told former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani he could potentially still name him as attorney general after he’d offered Jeff Sessions to the job.
But the Flynn situation has been different, several officials and advisers said. “I was kind of stunned,” one person said. “I asked him. You fired him already. What are you going to do?”
Trump has grown obsessed with defending the tough-talking 58-year old general, repeatedly telling aides and associates in private that Flynn was a “good man.” One adviser close to Trump said he’s heard Trump defend the general using the exact words described in reports of memos written by former FBI director James Comey recording his conversations with the president — and that Trump has told people inside the White House he wished the investigation would go away.
It has left White House officials and outside advisers perplexed: Why is Trump so determined to defend a man at the center of a federal investigation that is damaging his administration, and a man he has accused of lying to his vice president?
Officials say Trump has remained resolute in defending Flynn even though aides, including White House Counsel Don McGahn, have reminded Trump of the Russia investigation and other problems. News reports about Flynn, including his lobbying for foreign governments, haven’t bothered Trump nearly as much as they’ve bothered his aides, senior officials said. News of subpoenas haven’t caused him to lose faith, even privately, associates said.
“A lot of people in the White House don’t want anything to do with Flynn,” one White House official said. ”But Trump loves him. He thinks everyone is out to get him.”
……..
- Discussion
-
Trump told aides firing Flynn was a mistake https://t.co/AkNcaaBMcH pic.twitter.com/6ShDbNYsmx
— The Reagan Battalion (@ReaganBattalion) May 20, 2017
So it would be better to have it come out Flynn was getting paid by Putin and Muslim dictator while he was still on the payroll? What? https://t.co/3cvoEYTPeu
— Steve Deace (@SteveDeaceShow) May 20, 2017
Trump probably doesn’t think that Flynn did anything wrong. And I wouldn’t be surprised if either Flynn knew too much and that why Trump defends him or Trump and Kushner have made their own deals with Russia that they don’t want anyone to know about. Just floating a couple of thoughts.
You must be logged in to reply to this topic.