Biden, in an interview with ABC on May 12, denied any involvement in the investigation.
"I know nothing about those moves to investigate Michael Flynn," Biden said. "This is all about diversion."
Declassified Docs: Biden Brought Up Logan Act Against Flynn
Presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden asked about using a little-used 18th century law against incoming White House National Security Adviser Michael Flynn, declassified documents indicate, contradicting the former vice president's public statement he knew "nothing" about the case.
Biden brought up pursuing Flynn under the Logan Act, which prohibits Americans negotiating with foreign government officials, in a meeting with President Barack Obama, FBI Director James Comey and Deputy Attorney General Sally Yates, according to notes taken by FBI official Peter Strzok, several outlets, including The Epoch Times, reported.
The notes were obtained by Flynn's attorneys, who Wednesday won a decision from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia ordering District Court Judge Emmet Sullivan to accept the Department of Justice's motion to drop the case against Flynn.
Flynn pleaded guilty to lying to the FBI in the agency's investigation, codenamed Crossfire Hurricane, into whether the Trump administration conspired with Russia to influence the 2016 U.S. presidential election. The investigation became the province of special counsel Robert Mueller, who found no evidence of any conspiracy.
After pleading guilty about lying regarding his phone conversations with Russian Amb. Sergey Kislyak, Flynn hired new lawyers, who have sought to withdraw his plea.
Strzok's notes were undated, but are believed to refer to a Jan. 5, 2017, White House meeting involving Comey, Obama, Yates, Biden and then-National Security Adviser Susan Rice which discussed the intercepted Flynn-Kislyak phone calls, Fox News reported.
Flynn attorney Sidney Powell said the notes indicate Comey characterized Flynn's conversations with Kislyak "appear legit." However, Biden's referencing the Logan Act was the pretext for investigating Flynn, Powell said.
No comments:
Post a Comment