Via the installation of Bill Barr at the Justice Department, President Donald Trump has finally gotten one of his wishes relating to the Russia investigation — the case getting dropped against Michael Flynn. Previously, Flynn had pleaded guilty to lying to the FBI about his contacts with the then-Russian Ambassador to the U.S., but now, Barr’s team claims that Flynn warrants getting cleared because according to them, the case against the disgraced former official was never relevant to begin with. House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) was among those who publicly took Barr to task over the gross display, which does not erase the basic fact that Flynn lied to the FBI and then admitted to it.
Schiff commented:
‘Flynn pled guilty to lying to the FBI about his illicit Russian contacts. His lies do not now become truths. This dismissal does not exonerate him. But it does incriminate Bill Barr. In the worst politicization of the Justice Department in its history.’
Flynn pled guilty to lying to the FBI about his illicit Russian contacts.
His lies do not now become truths.
This dismissal does not exonerate him.
But it does incriminate Bill Barr.
In the worst politicization of the Justice Department in its history.
— Adam Schiff (@RepAdamSchiff) May 7, 2020
The Justice Department, as led by Barr, claimed that the original case “was untethered to, and unjustified by, the FBI’s counterintelligence investigation into Mr. Flynn” and supposedly “conducted without any legitimate investigative basis.” And yet, the fact of the matter is that Flynn lied, and he didn’t just lie about a random topic. He lied about the nature of his communications with a then-Russian Ambassador to the United States, to whom he tried to offer reassurance that the then-incoming Trump administration would be soft on Russia. Barr’s personal offense at the Justice Department’s case doesn’t erase the facts.
All the way back when Trump abruptly fired FBI Director James Comey in early 2017, who had been leading the Russia investigation, the news came out that Trump had personally advocated to Comey for Flynn’s clearing, which Comey resisted. Yet, the news of Trump’s personal pressure for the investigation to go a particular direction helped spark the appointment of Special Counsel Robert Mueller. Now that Mueller’s gone, the president’s team might feel free to act as they wish.
Check out Twitter’s response to Schiff below:
