https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2020/05/michael-flynn-learned-to-play-by-trumps-rules/611332/
Flynn was fired from the White House in February 2017, just days into
his tenure as national security adviser. Before Trump’s inauguration,
Flynn discussed U.S. sanctions against Russia with the Russian foreign
minister. But Flynn lied about those conversations to FBI agents. He
also lied about them to Vice President Mike Pence, which was the reason
given for his dismissal. (Flynn was not forced out when the president
learned of the deception, but only when it was reported in The Washington Post.)
Flynn had a host of other problems too. He had lied repeatedly about
taking money from the Turkish government for lobbying, failing to file
required documents. He appeared to have lied about who paid for a 2015
trip to Russia, where he sat with Vladimir Putin. He was also involved
in an arcane for-profit nuclear-reactor scheme in the Middle East. (One
clear takeaway of the investigation is that, potential criminal acts
aside, Flynn had no business getting anywhere near the sensitive job of
national security adviser.)
The whole process is stunning: Flynn was accused of committing
several crimes, admitted to one to try to get himself off easy, agreed
to cooperate, reneged on the deal, and is now free, having escaped
punishment for both the crime to which he confessed and those on which
he avoided prosecution.
Yet Flynn’s escape is not merely an
isolated outrage. It is also a test case for loyalty to Trump. Since
Flynn flipped on Trump, and then flopped back, his fate offers a lesson
for others who might find themselves in a bind and tempted to turn on
Trump, who continues to engage in the sort of behavior that got him impeached.
Cooperation deals are supposed to show criminals that returning to
the fold and honoring rule of law has its benefits. But the Flynn case
shows that those benefits pale in comparison to honoring loyalty to
Trump.
