Donald Trump triumphed on Thursday May 7. In the early afternoon, the Justice Department recommended dropping the charges against its first national security adviser, Michael Flynn. The final decision will be made by the district judge in charge of the case, Emmet Sullivan. The President of the United States has judged his former right-hand man "Bleached". He had already hinted a week earlier that he could use his presidential pardon for his benefit.
The Michael Flynn case refers to accusations of Russian interference during the 2016 presidential campaign defended by American intelligence, but which Donald Trump has always denied. These interferences, in his favor, had prompted the administration of Barack Obama, in the last weeks of his mandate, to adopt symbolic sanctions against Moscow materialized by the expulsion of diplomats.
The former general appointed to this strategic post of national security adviser had been forced to resign, just three weeks after taking office in February 2017, for lying to Vice-President Mike Pence about his contacts with the Russian Ambassador to Washington. He was suspected of having prompted Moscow to respond with moderation to the evictions. Michael Flynn had also lied to FBI agents who came to question him. The justice department considers that this interrogation was without base "Legitimate".
Change of strategy
Thursday's turnaround is all the more dramatic in that the former general initially acknowledged the charges against him. He even chose to plead guilty and cooperate with the special investigative prosecutor, Robert Mueller, in the hope of a reduced sanction. His name was also linked to the dismissal of FBI director James Comey in May 2017. According to the latter, Donald Trump had indeed suggested to the head of the federal police "Let flynn", a recommendation that the latter had ignored.
Two elements contributed to Thursday's decision. After a change of lawyer, the former general revised his strategy and retracted his statements. He was also able to count on the arrival in the justice department in 2019 of a new attorney general, William Barr, very interventionist in the "Russian" investigation.
The justice minister thus presented the findings of the special prosecutor's investigation in a much more favorable light for the president, suspected of collusion with Russia and abuse of power in the dismissal of James Comey. While reaffirming the reality of Russian maneuvers to favor Donald Trump, the latter had dismissed the first point without commenting on the second on form and not on substance. Case law prohibits prosecution for a president in office.
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