Vice President Joe Biden argued that the Department of Justice dropped the criminal charges against retired Lt. Gen. Michael Flynn to distract from President Trump’s coronavirus response.
Flynn, who initially pleaded guilty to lying to federal agents, filed to withdraw his guilty plea earlier this year after the DOJ asked the judge to sentence him to up to six months in prison. The department later said probation would be appropriate. His lead attorney, Sidney Powell, pressed for the dismissal of his case by arguing that the FBI unfairly treated Flynn, and the DOJ did just that last week.
Biden was asked about the decision to drop the charges against Flynn during a Tuesday morning interview on Good Morning America with George Stephanopoulos.
“This is all about diversion,” the former vice president argued. “This is a game this guy plays all the time. The country is in crisis. We’re in an economic crisis, a health crisis, we’re in real trouble. He should stop trying to always divert attention from the real concerns of the American people. The American people are worried with good reason. He has acted irresponsibly from the very beginning.
“He continues to act irresponsibly. He hasn’t done his job. This is all about diverting attention. Diverting attention from the horrible way in which he has acted with what — we don’t have coronavirus because of him, but we have the devastating impact of it because of his lack of a policy. His lack of action. It’s all about diversion,” he added.
Biden, when pushed by Stephanopoulos, admitted that he knew intelligence officials “had asked for an investigation” into Flynn back in early 2017.
The Justice Department filed to dismiss the charges against Flynn last Thursday, agreeing with the former national security adviser’s attorneys that his interview with the FBI was not “conducted with a legitimate investigative basis” and arguing that his statements to investigators were immaterial “even if untrue.” The federal judge overseeing the case has not yet indicated whether he will accept or reject the motion to dismiss the prosecution.
Attorney General William Barr defended the decision to drop charges, which was heavily criticized by Democrats, saying, “I’m doing my duty under the law.”
