The Flynn boys, pere and fils, are back in the Russiagate news, and not in a good way (for them).
Michael G. Flynn, the son of President Donald Trump's former national security adviser, is a subject of the federal investigation into Russian meddling in the presidential election and possible collusion between Moscow and the Trump campaign, according to four current and former government officials.
The inquiry into Flynn is focused at least in part on his work with his father's lobbying firm, Flynn Intel Group, three of the officials said. It's unclear when the focus on Flynn began-- Meanwhile, Daddy Flynn is facing more questions about his shady lobbying efforts for foreign governments:
House Democrats sent special counsel Robert Mueller what they say is evidence that former national security adviser Michael Flynn failed to disclose a trip he took to the Middle East to explore a business deal with the Saudi government and a Russian government agency.
The Democrats allege the retired Army lieutenant general broke the law by omitting the trip, according to the letter they sent to Flynn's former business partners requesting more information about his overseas travels and contacts.Pressure, leverage, plea bargaining -- all come to mind here, and the Flynns are fast running out of road.
Will Daddy cut a deal if it means keeping Sonny out of the clinker? Could these developments, with the potential for flipping a Flynn, be a "big deal?" Well, as Lawfare's Benjamin Wittes, of "tick tick boom" fame, puts it today,
— Benjamin Wittes (@benjaminwittes) September 13, 2017
BONUS: In other Russiagate news, Mueller is focusing on whether the Rump campaign colluded with Russia to use social media to manipulate voters (spoiler alert: they did!):
Officials familiar with the investigation say that Special Counsel Bob Mueller’s probe into whether President Donald Trump’s 2016 campaign colluded with Russia is zeroing in on Russia’s manipulation of voters via social media with a “red hot focus.”
Chris Strohm of Bloomberg News said Wednesday that the Mueller team will be seeking evidence from social media platforms Facebook and Twitter in an effort to determine who aided Russian groups in their targeting of U.S. voters.Who might be implicated in this, you ask?
How the Russians knew to target the tiny voting blocs in individual districts is believed to be attributable to one or more individuals inside the Trump campaign and administration. Jared Kushner — director of Trump 2016’s digital operation — has been mentioned as a possible connection between Russian intelligence and the Trump organization.Let us do it this time: "Tick tick boom!"
