Obama warned Trump about hiring Flynn

[Amica Nostra 4,803]

Washington (CNN)Then-President Barack Obama warned President-elect Donald Trump in November against hiring retired Lt. Gen. Michael Flynn as his national security adviser, former Obama administration officials confirmed to CNN Monday.

Obama warned Trump about Flynn during their Oval Office meeting on November 10, days after Trump was elected president.

"Given the importance of the job, the President through there were better people for it, and that Flynn wasn't up for the job," a former senior Obama administration official told CNN Monday.

 

 

Other former Obama administration officials said then-Director of National Intelligence James Clapper didn't think highly of Flynn, and in fact was the person who recommended Flynn's firing as DNI in 2014. Flynn's focus was generally limited to terrorism and didn't know much about many other issues important for the national security adviser job, such as China, the officials said.

But at least one former Obama official disputed that, saying Obama's concerns were not related to the firing of Flynn from the Defense Intelligence Agency but rather in the course of the investigation into Russian interference into the 2016 election.

"Flynn's name kept popping up," according to a senior Obama administration source.

 

Trump transition officials warned Flynn about Russia communications

The White House confirmed later Monday that Obama raised concerns about Flynn during his Oval Office sitdown with Trump in November.

"It's true President Obama made it known he wasn't exactly a fan of Gen. Flynn's," press secretary Sean Spicer said.

He said the concerns shouldn't have come as a surprise, since Flynn was an "outspoken critic" of the Obama administration's shortcomings on foreign policy.

Spicer said if the Obama administration was "truly concerned" about Flynn, there are steps it could have taken, including suspending his security clearance.

Flynn previously served as the head of the Defense Intelligence Agency under Obama until he was reportedly forced out of the post 2014 over internal disagreements over policy and management.

Trump did not heed Obama's counsel on Flynn, bringing aboard the former military intelligence officer who supported Trump during his campaign as his national security adviser. Trump fired Flynn 24 days later when news broke of Flynn's conversations with Russian Ambassador to the US Sergey Kislyak.

News of the warning comes as former acting Attorney General Sally Yates is set to testify before Congress on Monday about the concerns she expressed to Trump administration officials about Flynn's contacts with Russian officials, namely with Kislyak.

NBC News was the first to report the warning.

Yates, in her role as acting attorney general, warned White House counsel Don McGahn on January 26 that Flynn was lying when he denied -- both publicly and privately -- that he discussed US sanctions on Russia with Kislyak. It wasn't until weeks later that Trump asked for Flynn's resignation, only after news surfaced that Flynn had misled Vice President Mike Pence about his conversations with Kislyak

[CaliCat 3,957]

You can take the horse to water...

[Mr&Mrs G. 903]

19 hours ago, ccneat said:

Washington (CNN)Then-President Barack Obama warned President-elect Donald Trump in November against hiring retired Lt. Gen. Michael Flynn as his national security adviser,

You would think he would have done better advising the country not to vote for Hilary after the Benghazi mess, or maybe that scandal was a little too close to home for him. 

 

Always amazes me how high and mighty politicians get just as they are about to leave office.   

 

To quote you from the other thread about France/Putin  

 

"We have to quit covering up for this gross incompetence. Lives are at stake in these roles."

 

Truest words of the day.

 

 

[CaliCat 3,957]

12 minutes ago, Mr&Mrs G. said:

You would think he would have done better advising the country not to vote for Hilary after the Benghazi mess, or maybe that scandal was a little too close to home for him. 

 

Always amazes me how high and mighty politicians get just as they are about to leave office.   

 

To quote you from the other thread about France/Putin  

 

"We have to quit covering up for this gross incompetence. Lives are at stake in these roles."

 

Truest words of the day.

 

 

 

Flynn's role in the administration was not an elected office. He as appointed by Trump, even after Obama (and Yates) had voiced their concerns.  Flynn had worked for the Obama administration earlier on, and had been let go.

 

This type of courtesy is customary during the transition period. Once the elections are over, the partisanship gives way to the hand off of duties, regardless of who the incumbent is. As Trump was unprepared for the office, he may not have understood this time-honored tradition.

Edited May 9, 2017 by CaliCat

[Amica Nostra 4,803]

12 minutes ago, Mr&Mrs G. said:

You would think he would have done better advising the country not to vote for Hilary after the Benghazi mess, or maybe that scandal was a little too close to home for him. 

 

Always amazes me how high and mighty politicians get just as they are about to leave office.   

 

To quote you from the other thread about France/Putin  

 

"We have to quit covering up for this gross incompetence. Lives are at stake in these roles."

 

Truest words of the day.

 

 

not sure what you are getting at here.  Obama said don't hire Flynn...Trump ignored the advice and the subsequent warnings from other channels backed that up.  

[smilesammich 10,727]

23 minutes ago, Mr&Mrs G. said:

You would think he would have done better advising the country not to vote for Hilary after the Benghazi mess, or maybe that scandal was a little too close to home for him. 

 

Always amazes me how high and mighty politicians get just as they are about to leave office.   

 

To quote you from the other thread about France/Putin  

 

"We have to quit covering up for this gross incompetence. Lives are at stake in these roles."

 

Truest words of the day.

 

 

you think benghazi was a mess, just wait till the aclu gets the documents they're after from trumps yemen raid. 

[CaliCat 3,957]

13 minutes ago, ccneat said:

not sure what you are getting at here.  Obama said don't hire Flynn...Trump ignored the advice and the subsequent warnings from other channels backed that up.  

I think Mr. G thought Flynn was an elected official.

[Mr&Mrs G. 903]

20 minutes ago, CaliCat said:

I think Mr. G thought Flynn was an elected official.

I don't understand the whole Flynn affair but I knew that Trump appointed him to his position. When Hilary was made Secretary of State she was also appointed to the position.

 

My point was that it's amazing the way politicians try to make themselves seem high and mighty by ignoring their own indiscretions. ccneat's word about gross incompetence and lives at risk were the same for Obama with Hilary as Trump with Flynn.  So Obama warned Flynn, where was his morals when he was covering up Hillary's mess. 

[Mr&Mrs G. 903]

44 minutes ago, ccneat said:

not sure what you are getting at here.  Obama said don't hire Flynn...Trump ignored the advice and the subsequent warnings from other channels backed that up.  

Nothing cryptic in my reply. 

 

I was agreeing with your comment about gross incompetence and lives at risk. Just because Obama warned Trump it didn't excuse his own incompetence.

[Amica Nostra 4,803]

33 minutes ago, CaliCat said:

I think Mr. G thought Flynn was an elected official.

Mr G gets latitude as he is from Ireland ( Ireland -Ireland) and did not have to pass American Civics

[CaliCat 3,957]

4 minutes ago, Mr&Mrs G. said:

I don't understand the whole Flynn affair but I knew that Trump appointed him to his position. When Hilary was made Secretary of State she was also appointed to the position.

 

My point was that it's amazing the way politicians try to make themselves seem high and mighty by ignoring their own indiscretions. ccneat's word about gross incompetence and lives at risk were the same for Obama with Hilary as Trump with Flynn.  So Obama warned Flynn, where was his morals when he was covering up Hillary's mess. 

 

I don't think anyone warned Obama about Secy. Clinton when she was appointed, and I think that is the disheartening point to most of Trump supporters. In the end he is no different from Obama, even though he purported otherwise. In this case, Obama did warn him about Flynn, but Trump deliberately ignored the warning and appointed him to the job. Obama did the right thing. Trump didn't.

[CaliCat 3,957]

6 minutes ago, Mr&Mrs G. said:

Nothing cryptic in my reply. 

 

I was agreeing with your comment about gross incompetence and lives at risk. Just because Obama warned Trump it didn't excuse his own incompetence.

 

However, Trump is now in the Oval Office - except when he is golfing and promoting his own brand. I don't think Obama was trying to justify anything by warning Trump. He knew there are a bad apple in the lot, and he tried to give Trump some warning. Trump's incompetence at this level, is at least twice that of Obama. 

[CaliCat 3,957]

8 minutes ago, ccneat said:

Mr G gets latitude as he is from Ireland ( Ireland -Ireland) and did not have to pass American Civics

 

As he should. He's not paying for any of this, yet.

Edited May 9, 2017 by CaliCat

[Mr&Mrs G. 903]

1 hour ago, CaliCat said:

 

I don't think anyone warned Obama about Secy. Clinton when she was appointed, and I think that is the disheartening point to most of Trump supporters. In the end he is no different from Obama, even though he purported otherwise. In this case, Obama did warn him about Flynn, but Trump deliberately ignored the warning and appointed him to the job. Obama did the right thing. Trump didn't.

I would love to know how many incumbent Presidents who receive warnings from the outgoing President of the opposing party actually heed the warning. A lot of "I told you so's" must be hanging around Washington.

 

Obama didn't do the right thing about Hilary Clinton, he went further and endorsed her for President even though her dirty laundry was being aired in public.  

[Mr&Mrs G. 903]

1 hour ago, ccneat said:

Mr G gets latitude as he is from Ireland ( Ireland -Ireland) and did not have to pass American Civics

Tell me it's not part of my future citizenship test