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Flynn likely broke the law by failing to disclose foreign payments, House Oversight leaders say

  

Category:  News & Politics

Via:  pj  •  7 years ago  •  16 comments

Flynn likely broke the law by failing to disclose foreign payments, House Oversight leaders say

Flynn likely broke the law by failing to disclose foreign payments, House Oversight leaders say

The Washington Post

Karoun Demirjian

Oversight Chiefs Explain 'Extremely Troubling' Flynn Documents

Former national security adviser Michael Flynn likely broke the law by failing to disclose foreign income he earned from Russia and Turkey, the heads of the House Oversight Committee said Tuesday.

Committee Chair Jason Chaffetz (R-Utah) and ranking member Elijah E. Cummings (D-Md.) said they believe Flynn neither received permission nor fully disclosed income he earned for a speaking engagement in Russia and lobbying activities on behalf of Turkey when he applied to reinstate his security clearance. They reached this conclusion after viewing two classified memos and a financial disclosure form in a private briefing Tuesday morning.

“Personally I see no evidence or no data to support the notion that General Flynn complied with the law,” Chaffetz told reporters following the briefing.

“He was supposed to get permission, he was supposed to report it, and he didn’t,” Cummings said. “This is a major problem.”

Both Chaffetz and Cummings stressed that as a former military officer, Flynn would have needed special permission for his appearance at a gala sponsored by RT, the Russian-government funded television station, for which he was paid $45,000. For his work lobbying on behalf of the Turkish government, he was paid more than $500,000.

“It does not appear that was ever sought nor did he get that permission,” Chaffetz said.

The Utah Republican later added that while Flynn was clearly not in compliance with the law, “it would be a little strong to say that he flat-out lied.”

Flynn’s omission could cost him: violations of this nature can be punished by up to five years of jail time, though Trump’s Justice Department ultimately would make the decision about whether to investigate or charge him.

Chaffetz stressed that the government ought to “recover the money” that was paid to Flynn by foreign entities — a figure that would at least be in the tens of thousands of dollars.

While it will not be up to the committee to impose punishment, committee leaders pledged to pursue the matter, indicating a preference for making the documents the lawmakers reviewed public.

The future of any action may rely on a new Oversight chairman as Chaffetz announced last week that he would resign from Congress in 2018, and perhaps leave much sooner — setting off a scramble to replace him at the end of the House’s chief investigative panel.

The documents that committee members reviewed Tuesday came from the Defense Intelligence Agency and showed that Flynn had not declared any income from Russian or Turkish sources — despite the fact that the forms were filed about a month after Flynn’s reported trip to Moscow to speak at the RT gala, Cummings said.

Then-national security adviser Michael Flynn speaks during the daily news briefing at the White House in Washington.

Flynn, a Trump campaign adviser and the first national security adviser of the Trump administration, was ousted in February after it was revealed that he misled Vice President Pence about his talks at the end of 2016 with the Russian ambassador to the United States.

Both the FBI and the House and Senate Intelligence committees are investigating Russia’s alleged meddling in the 2016 election, supposedly to help Trump. They are also exploring possible links between Trump aides and Russian officials.

Former acting Attorney General Sally Yates and former Director of National Intelligence James Clapper are scheduled to testify before Senate Judiciary Committee subcommittee on May 8. The House Intelligence Committee has also invited Yates and Clapper to testify in a public hearing that has not yet been scheduled.

The House probe in particular has been beset with controversy after its Chairman Devin Nunes (R-Calif.) publicly signaled that he had seen informsay

The Oversight Committee asked the White House in March for documents pertaining to Flynn’s security-clearance applications, the vetting that occurred before he was named national security adviser, and all of his contacts with foreign agents, including any payments received. In particular, the committee heads requested to see a disclosure form known as the SF-86, on which Flynn was obligated to declare any foreign income.

On April 19, the White House sent the committee a reply, stating that any documents related to Flynn from before Jan. 20 — the day President Trump took office — were not in its possession, and that any documents from after that date did not seem relevant to the committee’s investigation.

“The White House has refused to provide this committee with a single piece of paper in response to our bipartisan request,” Cummings said.

He noted that lawmakers would be interested in seeing documents that could shed light on what Flynn told the White House and his foreign contacts before he was named national security adviser, and what led to his termination less than a month later.

During the transition period, Flynn told the incoming White House that he might need to register as a foreign agent. Cummings would not go so far as to accuse the White House of intentionally obstructing the committee’s investigation of Flynn.

The committee is not likely to pull Flynn before the committee for testimony — despite Cummings’s insistence that it “should be holding a hearing with General Flynn.”

 

Chaffetz said he would “highly doubt” that the committee would call Flynn to testify, deferring any such testimony to the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence to command such an audience.

http://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/flynn-likely-broke-the-law-by-failing-to-disclose-foreign-payments-house-oversight-leaders-say/ar-BBAmtpq?li=BBnb7Kz


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PJ
Masters Quiet
link   seeder  PJ    7 years ago

“Personally I see no evidence or no data to support the notion that General Flynn complied with the law,” Chaffetz told reporters following the briefing.

“He was supposed to get permission, he was supposed to report it, and he didn’t,” Cummings said. “This is a major problem.”

Both Chaffetz and Cummings stressed that as a former military officer, Flynn would have needed special permission for his appearance at a gala sponsored by RT, the Russian-government funded television station, for which he was paid $45,000. For his work lobbying on behalf of the Turkish government, he was paid more than $500,000.

“It does not appear that was ever sought nor did he get that permission,” Chaffetz said.

 
 
 
Randy
Sophomore Participates
link   Randy  replied to  PJ   7 years ago

Looks like he is going to be the one chosen to be the sacrificial lamb. I wonder if the FBI will give him immunity to talk now?

 
 
 
PJ
Masters Quiet
link   seeder  PJ  replied to  Randy   7 years ago

We'll see what happens.  The government has more leverage now that the committee has come out and said Flynn broke the law.  He'll be more pliable.    

 
 
 
Sister Mary Agnes Ample Bottom
Professor Guide
link   Sister Mary Agnes Ample Bottom  replied to  Randy   7 years ago

Looks like he is going to be the one chosen to be the sacrificial lamb. I wonder if the FBI will give him immunity to talk now?

Shoot, Carter Page is singing right now, but Flynn will be the fat lady.

 
 
 
Randy
Sophomore Participates
link   Randy  replied to  Sister Mary Agnes Ample Bottom   7 years ago

Yep. And the dominoes are starting to fall in the direction of 1600 Pennsylvania Ave.

 
 
 
Kavika
Professor Principal
link   Kavika     7 years ago

Is the Fat Lady singing yet?

 
 
 
Sean Treacy
Professor Principal
link   Sean Treacy    7 years ago

Oh Boy! Flynn didn't fill out forms and faces a slap on the wrist which can only mean Trump colluded with the Russians so that if the Russians disclosed the truth about Hillary Clinton he'd act against Russian interests! It's all coming together.. 

Who needs evidence? 

 
 
 
PJ
Masters Quiet
link   seeder  PJ  replied to  Sean Treacy   7 years ago

Sean - We have laws in place to ensure that we don't put ourselves in situations that could compromise our integrity or put ourselves at risk to be blackmailed.  The issue imo, isn't the fact that he accepted money but more because he didn't disclose that he took the money.  

It only feeds the belief that there was collusion or something more nefarious.  Surely you can see that what he did was at best irresponsible and incompetent and at worse collusion or treason.  Either scenario doesn't speak well of him.

 
 
 
Sean Treacy
Professor Principal
link   Sean Treacy  replied to  PJ   7 years ago

The issue imo, isn't the fact that he accepted money but more because he didn't disclose that he took the money.

I agree. It's just surprising to see so many Clinton supporters making a fuss over this, since she failed to properly disclose the millions she took from foreign governments while Secretary of State. I'd be more inclined to take the progressives on this board seriously if they showed any consistency on the subject.

As for Flynn, he should go to jail if that's what the law dictates, though I'd be very surprised by that.  Regardless, it's long way from showing that his failure to properly disclose speaking fee money somehow means anything for anyone else. It speaks badly for him, but that's about it.  

 

 
 
 
Sean Treacy
Professor Principal
link   Sean Treacy    7 years ago

What is the big deal about what Flynn did? 

 
 
 
A. Macarthur
Professor Guide
link   A. Macarthur    7 years ago

What is the big deal about what Flynn did? 

WASHINGTON — Michael T. Flynn, President Trump’s first national security adviser, may have violated federal law by not fully disclosing his business dealings with Russia when seeking a security clearance to work in the White House, top House oversight lawmakers from both parties asserted on Tuesday.

The revelation came after Representative Jason Chaffetz, Republican of Utah and chairman of the House oversight committee, and other lawmakers on the panel examined classified documents related to Mr. Flynn, including a form he filled out in January 2016 to receive his security clearance. The form is known as an SF-86 and is required by anyone in the government who handles classified information.

As part of the review, Representative Elijah E. Cummings of Maryland, the committee’s senior Democrat, said Mr. Flynn did not disclose in those documents payments totaling more than $45,000 that he received from the Russian government for giving a speech in Moscow in 2015, among others.

The development is the latest trouble for Mr. Flynn, who also  did not disclose payments  from Russian-linked entities on a financial disclosure form that the Trump administration released in late March. Earlier in March, Mr. Flynn filed papers acknowledging that he worked as a foreign agent last year  representing the interests of the Turkish government , causing another uproar and more unfavorable headlines for the Trump administration.

 
 
 
Randy
Sophomore Participates
link   Randy  replied to  A. Macarthur   7 years ago

The development is the latest trouble for Mr. Flynn

Lock him up! Lock him up! Karma is such a bitch!

 
 
 
A. Macarthur
Professor Guide
link   A. Macarthur    7 years ago

Face it; all those who were suckered by Trump … who really didn't give a shit about anything other than Trump's bigotry, xenophobia, misogyny … and his unsavory pandering to knuckle-draggers … those allowed him to lie his way into the White House.

While the anger in America is real, Trump played to, among others, those who blamed the reasons for their anger on minorities, immigrants (legal and illegal) and women. And while the Democrats chose a poor candidate, much of the vitriol toward that candidate was predicated on outright lies!

With each Trump failure, each loss, each spin, each cave in … his die hard supporters, because they lacked the character to NOT vote for him in the first place … certainly will lack the character to recant what they did when all is revealed about his campaign and time in office.

I believe, among other things, we are approaching a charge of "Obstruction of Justice" in conjunction with all that is about to be leaked and/or divulged via protocol of investigation.

Be prepared to see those who called others "snowflakes" -- who gloated over, and, taunted the disappointments of others -- become themselves -- "snowflakes" … they will cry "foul," "fix," "fake news," but … 

Fiat justitia ruat cælum

 "Let justice be done though the heavens fall." The maxim signifies the belief that justice must be realized ...

It would not surprise me if a deal is cut to save Trump and America the embarrassment, shame and outrage that will come from the revealed truth … and … HE RESIGNS.

Poetic justice.

 
 
 
Sean Treacy
Professor Principal
link   Sean Treacy  replied to  A. Macarthur   7 years ago

Amac. ,

can you point to all of your denunciations of Hillary for failing to properly disclose the millions  of dollars from foreign governments she took?

I'd hate to see you look like a hypocrite.

 
 
 
A. Macarthur
Professor Guide
link   A. Macarthur  replied to  Sean Treacy   7 years ago

Better yet, Sean, you post the information item-by-item and we'll see what's true and what's false and/or mischaracterized.

And we'll see how the Trump Foundation donations stack up.

It has been verified that individuals paid by Putin used bots to respond negatively to tweets in favor of Clinton … to respond with false allegations.

Beyond that, since Clinton lost, it's Trump who's lying and losing and fucking with us, so, we can check the Clinton stuff at our leisure.

 

 
 
 
Randy
Sophomore Participates
link   Randy  replied to  A. Macarthur   7 years ago

It would not surprise me if a deal is cut to save Trump and America the embarrassment, shame and outrage that will come from the revealed truth … and … HE RESIGNS.

And then President Pence pardons him. Which would likely be a part of the deal in advance anyway. Personally I see that as a very real possibility. The problem is that then he gets away with all of his share of the money from the EXXON/Mobil-Rosneft deal. Which is sort of the whole point of him and Tillerson being in the U.S government in the first place anyway. Shame.

 
 

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