White House Official: Flynn Was Asked To Resign

Defense Intelligence Agency Director Lt. Gen. Michael Flynn listens on Capitol Hill in Washington, Jan. 29, 2104, as he testifies before the Senate Intelligence Committee hearing on current and projected national sec... Defense Intelligence Agency Director Lt. Gen. Michael Flynn listens on Capitol Hill in Washington, Jan. 29, 2104, as he testifies before the Senate Intelligence Committee hearing on current and projected national security threats against the US. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais) MORE LESS
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Former National Security Adviser Michael Flynn was asked to resign, a White House official told TPM on Tuesday.

Flynn resigned less than a month into his tenure in the wake of reports that he discussed U.S. sanctions on Russia with the country’s ambassador before President Donald Trump took office.

Earlier Tuesday, White House counselor Kellyanne Conway said in an interview on NBC’s “Today” that Flynn resigned voluntarily.

“The President is very loyal. He’s a very loyal person. And by nighttime, Mike Flynn had decided it was best to resign. He knew he became a lightning rod, and he made that decision,” she said.

The New York Times reported Monday night that Flynn had been asked to resign by President Donald Trump’s chief strategist, Steve Bannon.

And on Tuesday morning, House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-WI) said twice in a press briefing, referring to Flynn, that the President had made the right decision “to ask for his resignation.”

The Post also reported on Monday, before Flynn’s resignation, that then-acting Attorney General Sally Yates had warned White House Counsel Don McGahn in January that Flynn may be at risk of blackmail from Russia.

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