UPDATED - White House Blames Obama For Trump Hiring Flynn

Last edited Mon May 8, 2017, 04:12 PM - Edit history (1)

Source: Talking Points Memo

By ESME CRIBB Published MAY 8, 2017 1:49 PM

White House press secretary Sean Spicer on Monday said it should not come as a surprise that President Barack Obama “wasn’t exactly a fan” of President Donald Trump’s former national security adviser Mike Flynn. Obama reportedly warned Trump against hiring Flynn for the post.

“It’s true that President Obama made it known that he wasn’t exactly a fan of Gen. Flynn’s,” Spicer said during his daily press briefing. Obama dismissed Flynn from his post at the Defense Intelligence Agency in 2014 amid concerns about his temperament and complaints from employees at the agency.

According to a report by NBC News, Obama cautioned Trump in November 2016 not to hire Flynn for the highly sensitive role, advice which Trump apparently ignored. Flynn was ousted in February after reports revealed he spoke about sanctions in a call with Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak before Trump’s inauguration.

Spicer on Monday said Obama’s alleged antipathy “shouldn’t come as a surprise” since Flynn “was an outspoken critic” of Obama and campaigned against Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton, leading a chant at the Republican National Convention in 2016 to “lock her up.”

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UPDATE:

Disbelief As Spicer Blames Obama For Not Showing More Concern About Flynn

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Spicer said during his daily press briefing Monday that “It’s true that President Obama made it known that he wasn’t exactly a fan of Gen. Flynn’s,” but that that “shouldn’t come as a surprise” given Flynn’s criticism of the Obama administration.

If the Obama administration was truly concerned, Spicer said, they should have suspended Flynn’s security clearance. The Trump administration is under fire for not thoroughly screening Flynn themselves for his conflicts of interest.

NBC News’ Ken Dilanian reported Monday that Flynn was required to obtain a new security clearance from the CIA before beginning as national security adviser in the Trump administration. That clearance was never granted, NBC News reported, according to one unnamed official with knowledge of the matter.

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