US President Donald Trump knew for weeks that national security adviser Michael Flynn had misled the White House about his contacts with Russia but did not immediately force him out, 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 with Russia's ambassador to the United States before Trump took office, White House spokesman Sean Spicer said.
White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer (L) and former National Security Advisor Michael Flynn (R) at the White House in Washington DC. /CFP Photo
Flynn quit on Monday after Trump asked for his resignation, Spicer said. "The issue pure and simple came down to a matter of trust," Spicer told reporters.
US lawmakers, including some leading Republicans, called for a deeper inquiry into not just Flynn's actions but broader White House ties to Russia. Trump has long said that he would like improved relations with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Representative Adam Schiff, the top Democrat on the House of Representatives Intelligence Committee, said Trump only moved against Flynn because of media attention to the issue, and not because of concern at any wrongdoing by the former lieutenant general.
A timeline of events outlined by Spicer and a US official showed that Trump had known for weeks about Flynn misleading the vice president.
Vice President Mike Pence (L) shakes hands with former National Security Adviser Michael Flynn (R). /CFP Photo
The Justice Department warned the White House in late January that Flynn had misled Pence by denying to him that he had discussed US sanctions on Russia with Ambassador Sergei Kislyak, a potentially illegal act, a US official said.
Flynn did talk about sanctions with the diplomat, whose calls were recorded by US intelligence officials, the official said. But Pence went on television in mid-January and denied that Flynn had discussed sanctions.
Spicer stressed that the administration believed there was no legal problem with Flynn's conversations with Kislyak, but it was rather an issue over the president's trust in his adviser.
(Source: Reuters)
