Trump knew ‘for weeks’ Michael Flynn misled Whitehouse over Russia contact
US President Donald Trump was informed his national security adviser had misled his Vice President about contacts with Russia just six days into his presidency
Donald Trump was informed in late January that Flynn had not told Vice President Mike Pence the whole truth about conversations with the Russian ambassador
US President Donald Trump knew for weeks that national security adviser Michael Flynn had misled the White House about his secret communications with Russian officials but did not fire him, an administration spokesman said on Tuesday.
Trump was informed in late January that Flynn had not told Vice President Mike Pence the whole truth about conversations he had before Trump took office with Russia's ambassador to the United States, White House spokesman Sean Spicer said.
Pence learned of the "incomplete information" that he received from Flynn when news reports surfaced late last week, spokesman Mark Lotter said on Tuesday.
The retired general Flynn was forced to quit on Monday night after Trump asked for his resignation, following reports that he could be vulnerable to blackmail by Moscow.
The president hopes to pick a new national security adviser by the end of the week, Spicer said.
The New York Times reported late on Tuesday that members of Trump's campaign and other associates had contact with senior Russian intelligence officials in the year before the 8 November presidential election, although US officials told the newspaper they had not uncovered any evidence that Trump's associates colluded to disrupt the election.
US lawmakers, including some leading Republicans, called for a deeper inquiry into not just Flynn's actions but broader White House ties to Russia.
Democrats demanded an independent investigation into Flynn’s phone calls with the Russian ambassador, what Trump knew about them and when. A senior Republican promised to examine the matter “exhaustively”, but others in the party were reluctant.
Spicer described to reporters how the resignation had happened: “The evolving and eroding level of trust as a result of this situation and a series of other questionable incidents is what led the president to ask Gen Flynn for his resignation.”
“There’s nothing that the general did that was a violation of any sort. What this came down to was a matter of trust,” he added.
Trump has long said that he would like improved relations with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
