Flynn to cooperate with Mueller probe
Former national security adviser pleads guilty to making false statements to FBI
WASHINGTON — Former national security adviser Michael Flynn pleaded guilty Friday to lying to the FBI, becoming the first Trump White House official to face criminal charges and admit guilt so far in the wide-ranging election investigation led by special counsel Robert Mueller.
Mr. Flynn also agreed to cooperate with Mr. Mueller’s probe, which focuses on Russian meddling in the 2016 election and possible coordination between Russia and Donald Trump’s campaign aimed at sending the Republican businessman to the White House.
According to court papers filed Friday in connection with the guilty plea, a “very senior transition official” directed Mr. Flynn to contact foreign governments, including Russia, about a U.N. resolution regarding Israeli settlements.
A member of Mr. Trump’s transition team says Mr. Trump’s sonin-law, Jared Kushner, is the “very senior transition official” referenced in the court papers. The transition team official who confirmed the person as Mr. Kushner spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity, since Mr. Kushner’s name was not publicly revealed
The Associated Press also identified former Deputy National Security Adviser KT McFarland as an unnamed senior official referred to in the court papers.
She was involved in a discussion with Mr. Flynn about what he would say to Russian government officials in response to U.S. sanctions imposed on Russia last year. That’s according to two former officials on Mr. Trump’s transition team who spoke on condition of anonymity because they weren’t authorized to publicly
discuss the matter.
The court papers filed by Mr. Mueller show Mr. Flynn contacted Ms. McFarland on Dec. 29, 2016 — after Mr. Trump had been elected, but before he took office — to discuss what, if anything, he would communicate to the Russians about the sanctions imposed by then-President Barack Obama. Mr. Flynn admitted Friday to lying to the FBI about the contents of that conversation.
Ms. McFarland is awaiting Senate confirmation as ambassador to Singapore.
Mr. Flynn was an early and vocal Trump supporter on the campaign trail and was present for consequential moments in the campaign, the following transition period and the early days of Mr. Trump’s presidency, making him a valuable potential tool for prosecutors and agents. His business dealings and foreign interactions have made him a central focus of Mr. Mueller’s investigation.
In a statement, Mr. Flynn, a retired Army lieutenant general, said he accepted responsibility for his actions and added: “My guilty plea and agreement to cooperate with the Special Counsel’s Office reflect a decision I made in the best interests of my family and of our country.”
Mr. Flynn is the fourth former Trump associate to face charges in the investigation, the first who actually served in Mr. Trump’s White House. He has been under investigation for a wide range of allegations, including lobbying work on behalf of Turkey, but the fact that he was charged only with a single count of false statements suggests he is cooperating with Mr. Mueller in exchange for leniency.
White House lawyer Ty Cobb sought to distance the plea from Mr. Trump himself, saying, “Nothing about the guilty plea or the charge implicates anyone other than Mr. Flynn.”
Early on in his administration, Mr. Trump had taken a particular interest in the status of the Flynn investigation. Former FBI Director James Comey, whose firing in May precipitated the appointment of Mr. Mueller as special counsel, has said Mr. Trump had asked him in a private Oval Office meeting to consider ending the investigation into Mr. Flynn.
Mr. Comey has said the encounter unnerved him so much that he prepared an internal memo about it. The White House has denied that assertion.
Mr. Flynn, who was interviewed by the FBI just days after Mr. Trump’s inauguration, was forced to resign in February after White House officials said he had misled them about whether he had discussed sanctions with the Russian ambassador, Sergey Kislyak. Administration officials said Mr. Flynn had not discussed sanctions that had been imposed on Russia in part over election meddling.
In charging Mr. Flynn, prosecutors made clear they believe that claim to be false.
Days after Mr. Flynn’s interview with the FBI, then-acting attorney general, Sally Yates alerted White House counsel Don McGahn that Mr. Flynn was potentially compromised and vulnerable to blackmail because of discrepancies between public assertions — including by Vice President Mike Pence — that Mr. Flynn and Mr. Kislyak had not discussed sanctions and the reality of what occurred.