According to a new report by the New York Times, Michael Flynn apparently told a former business associate that one of the Trump White House’s first priorities was to dismantle President Obama’s economic sanctions against Russia. The former National Security Advisor specifically told his colleague that the sanctions would be “ripped up,” according to a new account given to Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-Maryland) by a whistleblower. Apparently, Flynn and his business partner were looking to expand their financial footprint in the region.
The whistle-blower’s account stems from a conversation with Alex Copson of ACU Strategic Partners, a company that had previously hired Flynn in 2015. On Inauguration Day, Copson reportedly said “this is the best day of my life” because of “the start of something I’ve been working on for years, and we are good to go.” He then claimed Flynn had texted him “to tell others involved in the nuclear project to continue developing their plans,” which were “going to make a lot of very wealthy people” once the Russia sanctions were “ripped up.”
Cummings, the House Oversight Committee’s top-ranking Democrat, relayed these points and others in a letter to Chairman Trey Gowdy (R-South Carolina). The Times acquired a copy of Cummings’s letter and highlighted its most pertinent points regarding the allegations against Flynn:
Mr. Flynn had worked on a business venture to partner with Russia to build nuclear power plants in the Middle East until June 2016, but remained close with the people involved afterward. On Inauguration Day, according to the whistle-blower, Mr. Flynn texted the former business associate to say that the project was “good to go.”
The Maryland congressman never identified the whistleblower in the letter. Nevertheless, he insisted “[t]hese grave allegations compel a full, credible and bipartisan congressional investigation” in tandem with the ongoing probe currently headed by Special Prosecutor Robert Mueller. Considering that Flynn previously agreed to a plea deal with the Justice Department, and is currently cooperating with Mueller’s team of investigators, such a point makes sense.
(Via New York Times)