The Trump team has shown no major regard for the rule of law throughout the entirety of Donald’s time in the national spotlight. Now, according to reporting from the Daily Beast, Trump team insiders are amped up on the possibility of bringing none other than former national security adviser Michael Flynn out in some kind of pro-Trump capacity as the 2020 general election approaches. Flynn, of course, pleaded guilty to lying to federal investigators about his contacts with a Russian ambassador, but the Trump appointee-led Justice Department has sought to drop the government’s case against him. Now, according to the Daily Beast, “officials close to President Donald Trump are already gaming out ways to bring the former national security adviser back onto the national political stage” — and apparently, Trump himself is on board.
The potential roles for Flynn include that of “an official Trump surrogate as Election Day inches closer,” the Daily Beast report explains. Having Flynn out on some campaign stage somewhere or hitting the cable news circuit in defense of the president’s re-election campaign would certainly drive in the point of the Trump team’s disregard for the rule of law.
One figure close to the Trump campaign got so ridiculous that he compared Flynn to the late Nelson Mandela, who, of course, fought against apartheid in South Africa. John McLaughlin, who’s a pollster for the Trump re-election campaign, insisted:
‘Years ago when Nelson Mandela came to America after years of political persecution he was treated like a rock star by Americans. Now after over three years of political persecution General Flynn is our rock star. A big difference is that he was persecuted in America.’
Flynn was not persecuted. He admitted to lying to federal investigators about his secretive contacts with a foreign official. There’s a big difference! Transcripts that have come out of Flynn’s original communications with that official have made clear that Flynn did, in fact, discuss sanctions with the then-Russian Ambassador, although he claimed the opposite — and thereby made himself vulnerable to foreign exploitation. After all, the Russians knew his secret and could have used it as leverage for political pressure to do their bidding.
Meanwhile, the Daily Beast adds:
‘According to a source who has spoken to the president about Flynn in the past month, Trump had made clear that if legal circumstances permitted, he would want Flynn to get “something good” in his political orbit following years of bad press and legal turmoil. The source said it was unclear if Trump meant a job in the administration, a role for the 2020 campaign, or another position.’
Just this week, Trump made his commitment to Flynn abundantly clear yet again. A three-judge panel on the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals issued a ruling ordering Judge Emmet Sullivan to comply with the Justice Department’s request to drop the Flynn case, and although there are options for further appeals, the president glibly tweeted:
‘Great! Appeals Court Upholds Justice Departments Request To Drop Criminal Case Against General Michael Flynn!’
Great! Appeals Court Upholds Justice Departments Request To Drop Criminal Case Against General Michael Flynn!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 24, 2020
