Donald Trump remained uncharacteristically quiet on Friday following the news that Michael Flynn had pleaded guilty to lying to the FBI about his communications with Russia, and was expected to cooperate fully. Initial reports by ABC News stated that Flynn had been encouraged to reach out to then-Russian ambassador Sergey Kislyak by Trump as a presidential candidate, but was later corrected to clarify that it was when he was a president-elect and to repair the U.S. relationship with Russia, among other things.
What this means for the overall scope of Mueller’s investigation remains uncertain, however in the meantime, Trump finally sounded off on Twitter, and it doesn’t seem as if he’s helping his case. “I had to fire General Flynn because he lied to the Vice President and the FBI,” the president tweeted late Saturday morning. “He has pled [sic] guilty to those lies. It is a shame because his actions during the transition were lawful. There was nothing to hide!”
I had to fire General Flynn because he lied to the Vice President and the FBI. He has pled guilty to those lies. It is a shame because his actions during the transition were lawful. There was nothing to hide!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 2, 2017
So … Is Trump actually admitting knowledge that his former National Security Advisor lied to the FBI? In any capacity, that does not sound good. Previously, he called the investigation into Flynn a “witch hunt,” and on Saturday morning, Trump told reporters that there was “no collusion” as he departed the White House.
As to this latest development, many are pointing out that this essentially amounts to obstruction of justice:
Oh my god, he just admitted to obstruction of justice. If Trump knew Flynn lied to the FBI when he asked Comey to let it go, then there is your case. https://t.co/c6Wtd0TfzW
— Matthew Miller (@matthewamiller) December 2, 2017
https://twitter.com/PalmerReport/status/937021777192026112
This is a confession to obstruction of justice. Trump knew Flynn was guilty when he urged Comey to “let him go.” https://t.co/P4qGWMffJd
— Lawrence O'Donnell (@Lawrence) December 2, 2017
https://twitter.com/Susan_Hennessey/status/937012963172642816
As any good criminal defense lawyer will tell you: sometimes you just gotta tweet through it https://t.co/fLxd1Hr5sB
— Chris McDaniel (@csmcdaniel) December 2, 2017
https://twitter.com/pajiba/status/937014367295561728
https://twitter.com/InternetHippo/status/937024556270792704
Update: The New York Times has now obtained emails that insinuate that Flynn did not, in fact act independently, and that he 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.”