"Trump Team Knew Flynn Was Under Investigation Before He Came to White House"
Matthew Rosenberg and Mark Mazzetti (contributions from Matt Apuzzo), The New York Times, May 17, 2017
nytimes.com/2017/05/17/us/…
Matthew Rosenberg and Mark Mazzetti (contributions from Matt Apuzzo), The New York Times, May 17, 2017
nytimes.com/2017/05/17/us/…
"Michael T. Flynn told President Trump's transition team weeks before the inauguration that he was under federal investigation for secretly working as a paid lobbyist for Turkey during the campaign, according to two people familiar with the case."
"Despite this warning, which came about a month after the Justice Department notified Mr. Flynn of the inquiry, Mr. Trump made Mr. Flynn his national security adviser. The job gave Mr. Flynn access to the president and nearly every secret held by American intelligence agencies."
"Mr. Flynn's disclosure, on Jan. 4, was first made to the transition team's chief lawyer, Donald F. McGahn II, who is now the White House counsel."
"That conversation, and another one two days later between Mr. Flynn's lawyer and transition lawyers, shows that the Trump team knew about the investigation of Mr. Flynn far earlier than has been previously reported."
Moving on.
"The New York Times has reviewed one of the subpoenas. It demands all 'records, research, contracts, bank records, communications' and other documents related to work with Mr. Flynn and the Flynn Intel Group."
"The subpoena also asks for similar records about Ekim Alptekin, a Turkish businessman who is close to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey and is chairman of the Turkish-American Business Council. There is no indication that Mr. Alptekin is under investigation."
"Signed by Dana J. Boente, the United States attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, the subpoena instructs the recipient to direct any questions about its contents to Mr. [Brandon] Van Grack."
Moving on.
"The investigation stems from work Mr. Flynn did for Inovo BV, a Dutch company owned by Mr. Alptekin, the Turkish businessman. On Aug. 9, Mr. Flynn and the Flynn Intel Group signed a contract with Inovo for $600,000 over 90 days to run an influence campaign..."
"... aimed at discrediting Fethullah Gulan, a reclusive cleric who lives in Pennsylvania and whom Mr. Erdogan has accused of orchestrating a failed coup in Turkey last summer."
Moving on.
"Days later, after an article in The Daily Caller revealed that the Flynn Intel Group had a contract with Inovo, a Trump campaign lawyer held a conference call with members of the Flynn Intel Group, according to one person with knowledge of the call."
"The lawyer, William McGinley, was seeking more information about the nature of the group's foreign work and wanted to know whether Mr. Flynn had been paid for the op-ed [in The Hill]."
"The Justice Department also took notice. The op-ed in The Hill raised suspicions that Mr. Flynn was working as a foreign agent, and in a letter dated Nov. 30, the Justice Department notified Mr. Flynn that it was scrutinising his lobbying work."
"Mr. Flynn hired a lawyer a few weeks later. By Jan. 4, the day Mr. Flynn informed Mr. McGahn of the inquiry, the Justice Department was investigating the matter."
"Around the time of Mr. Flynn's call with Mr. McGahn, the F.B.I. began investigating Mr. Flynn on a separate matter: phone conversations he had in late December with Sergey I. Kislyak, Russia's ambassador to the United States."
End there.
