One of the reasons I was slow to come around to Gen. Flynn’s side was my view that he could have avoided all his troubles on his own by being thoroughly, indeed enthusiastically, honest with the agent who interviewed him.\u00a0 The agent asked him if he had had prior conversations with the Russian ambassador about American sanctions and the possible Russian response.\u00a0 According to the Justice Department’s motion to dismiss the indictment, Flynn answered, inter alia, “Not really.\u00a0 I don’t remember.\u00a0 It wasn’t, ‘Don’t do anything.'”\u00a0 Flynn also stated that although it was possible, he did not recall any conversation in which the ambassador stated that Russian would moderate its response due to Mr. Flynn’s request.<\/p>\n
At best, these were not straightforward and forthcoming answers.\u00a0 There is no realistic possibility that Flynn didn’t remember that one of his main tasks for the prior six weeks or so was to see if Russia would moderate its response, and that he had talked to the ambassador about just that.<\/p>\n
Gen. Flynn had a much better answer right in front of his face.<\/p>\n
“I’m really glad you asked that question, Mr. Agent.\u00a0 As I’m sure you know, I was named the incoming National Security Advisor shortly after the election.\u00a0 An important part of that job was to do what I could do dissuade the Russian government from an excessive reaction to sanctions\u00a0 —\u00a0 a reaction that would have damaged important American interests\u00a0 —\u00a0 and to do it before the Russian position ossified in a way adverse to our country.\u00a0 So I did indeed talk to the ambassador.\u00a0 Indeed I talked his ear off.\u00a0 I’m happy to tell you that I think our efforts will bear fruit.<\/p>\n
“Oh, and in case you’re wondering whether I thought I might be violating the Logan Act\u00a0 —\u00a0 not a chance.\u00a0 Prosecutions for fornication are more frequent than Logan Act prosecutions.\u00a0 More successful, too!\u00a0 I think the Act was passed, what, 200 years ago or so, that there’s never been a conviction under it, and that the last attempt to get one came nine years before the Civil War.\u00a0 Plus the majority of scholars think it’s pretty clearly unconstitutional.\u00a0 Am I getting that right?<\/p>\n
“While we’re at it, Mr. Agent, I know, having worked in Intelligence for years, that you already have a full account of what my contacts were, since\u00a0 \u00a0—\u00a0 thank goodness!\u00a0 —\u00a0 we lawfully eavesdrop on conversations involving Russian officials, Russia being no particular friend of the United States.\u00a0 My bet is that you have in your briefcase right there a transcript of the whole thing.\u00a0 Maybe we could go over it together at some point.\u00a0 I’d love to show you how smooth I was with that guy.\u00a0 The Russians aren’t nearly as tough as they think.<\/p>\n
“But that does raise a question in my mind.\u00a0 Why are you asking me about something you already know?\u00a0 I mean, if I were a suspicious man, I might think that this was\u00a0 —\u00a0 I hate to say this\u00a0 —\u00a0 \u00a0a setup.\u00a0 But I’m sure that’s not right.\u00a0 The FBI has a long and honorable history of service to the country, and I’m\u00a0 sure its behavior and yours are straightforward and upstanding.<\/p>\n
“Well golly, I do go on.\u00a0 I’m sorry.\u00a0 I have a meeting coming up in five minutes and I’ve got to pull some things together.\u00a0 It was a pleasure meeting you, and I hope we’ll be working together in the future.\u00a0 Thank you for your service.”<\/p>\n
And that would be the end of that.<\/p>\n
********************************************************<\/p>\n
Now obviously I’m having some fun here, but there’s a point.\u00a0 Flynn is not a lawyer and might not have known about the Logan Act or how much of a dead letter it is (although I suspect he did).\u00a0 But he surely knew this much:\u00a0 You either tell the truth, or you decline the question.\u00a0 Thus, he easily could have responded with:\u00a0 (1) the truth itself\u00a0 —\u00a0 “Yes, I talked to the ambassador because that was part of the job I was about to start;” (2) “I think this is more of a national security matter than an FBI matter, so it’s not something I’m sure it’s proper to get into with you;” (3) “I think I can give you the correct answer, but I’m going to have to check my notes first to be sure I’m getting this exactly right.\u00a0 I’ll get back to you;” (4) “With all respect, and intending no offense, a question like that from an FBI guy gets me a little nervous, and I want to check with White House Counsel before answering;” (5) “This seeks more detail than I want to get into just off the seat of my pants, so let’s stop here for now and I’ll be looking for a set of written questions from you.”<\/p>\n
Again, the government’s motion to dismiss should be granted because the higher-ups at the FBI and the Justice Department departed too frequently and too flagrantly from the straightforward dealing we expect, and should demand, in a free country.\u00a0 Their work, if let standing, would be a stain on the fabric of justice.\u00a0 But Gen. Flynn had better options than he exercised.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
One of the reasons I was slow to come around to Gen. Flynn’s side was my view that he could have avoided all his troubles on his own by being thoroughly, indeed enthusiastically, honest with the agent who interviewed him.\u00a0 The agent asked him if he had had prior conversations with the Russian ambassador about American sanctions and the possible Russian response.\u00a0 According to the Justice Department’s motion to dismiss the indictment, Flynn answered, inter alia, “Not really.\u00a0 I don’t remember.\u00a0 It wasn’t, ‘Don’t do anything.’”\u00a0 Flynn also stated that although it was possible, he did not recall any conversation in which the ambassador stated that Russian would moderate its response due to Mr. Flynn’s request. At best, these were not straightforward and forthcoming answers.\u00a0 There is no realistic possibility that Flynn didn’t remember that one of his main tasks for the prior six weeks or so was to see if Russia would moderate its response, and that he had talked to the ambassador about just that. Gen. Flynn had a much better answer right in front of his face.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[37],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1204","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-notorious-cases"],"yoast_head":"\n