We are currently watching the Yates/Clapper Senate hearing. A key question in all these questions is why Flynn remained in office for some three weeks after these notifications from the Department of Justice. That’s a long time, given the centrality of Flynn’s role as National Security Advisor. But eventually it did happen.
Here’s what really isn’t being noted. Flynn was only fired because a series of press reports – most specifically one in the Post – revealed his deceptions. There’s every reason to think the White House had no intention of acting until the information became public because of leaks.
This is a critical part of the story. It wasn’t just that the White House didn’t act quickly. There is strong, strong reason to believe they never would have acted on it or dismissed Flynn at all.
There were a series of articles which began on February 9th. The real blockbuster was the article published by the Post on February 13th, which i discussed here. Flynn resigned a short time later. These made Flynn’s continuance in office impossible. He resigned a short time later. We can’t know for certain why Flynn was forced to resign at that moment. But there is every reason to believe that that series of press reports led the White House to fire Flynn. As long as it remained secret, Flynn could stay.
