The special counsel’s office is pushing back at the suggestion that the FBI acted improperly in its interview of former national security adviser Michael Flynn.
The special counsel’s office pushed back Friday at the suggestion that the FBI acted improperly in its interview of former national security adviser Michael Flynn, saying he “chose to make false statements” and did not need a warning that it was against the law to do so.
The filing from special counsel Robert Mueller comes four days before Flynn gets sentenced on a charge of lying to the FBI about his conversations with the then-Russian ambassador to the United States. It responds to a sentencing memorandum filed earlier this week by Flynn’s lawyers that suggested there were irregularities in how he was interviewed.
The back-and-forth between prosecutors and defense lawyers has created an unusual rupture in an otherwise harmonious relationship as prosecutors had praised Flynn as a model cooperator and recommended that he receive no prison time at his sentencing.
The disagreement is unlikely to affect Flynn’s chances for probation, but it’s attracted the attention of President Donald Trump, who said this week that Flynn did not lie despite having fired him nearly two years ago for just that reason. The matter may also become a point of debate at next Tuesday’s hearing, especially since the judge, Emmet Sullivan, has asked prosecutors to produce documents related to Flynn’s interview.
