Michael Flynn resigns as national security adviser: Official
Michael Flynn abruptly resigned as President Donald Trump’s national security adviser Monday night, hours after it was learned that the Justice Department informed the White House that it believed he could be subject to blackmail, a senior White House source told NBC News.
Flynn’s status was considered perilous after it was disclosed that he had misled Vice President Mike Pence and other senior officials about his communications with Russia’s ambassador to the United States, a senior U.S. official told NBC News.
The U.S. official confirmed part of a report in The Washington Post, which quoted current and former U.S. officials Monday as saying Yates delivered the message to White House counsel Donald McGahn.
The Post reported that Yates was privy to FBI monitoring showing that Flynn discussed sanctions on Russia with Ambassador Sergei Kislyak — even though Flynn told administration officials that he hadn’t. Pence repeated the misinformation in national television appearances.
Trump fired Yates as acting attorney general late last month after she directed Justice Department lawyers not to defend his executive order on immigration.
A senior intelligence official confirmed to NBC News last week that Flynn discussed the sanctions, which the Obama administration imposed to punish Russia for its campaign to interfere in the presidential election.
Related: Flynn in Hot Seat Over Discussing Sanctions With Russians
The intelligence official said there had been no finding inside the government that Flynn did anything illegal.
But Monday, the only clear thing about Flynn’s status was that it is unclear.
White House counselor Kellyanne Conway told NBC News on Monday that Flynn still has the full confidence of the president, appearing to signal that Flynn’s job is safe.
But moments later, White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer said the president was “evaluating the situation” and was talking with Pence about his discussions with Flynn.
Spicer confirmed reports that Flynn had called Pence to apologize.
Trump pointedly declined to answer reporters’ questions about Flynn on Monday afternoon, saying only, “We just put out a statement.”
By contrast, he was effusive in his praise for White House CHief of Staff Reince Priebus, saying: “Reince is doing a great job. Great. Not a good job. A great job.”
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