House Intelligence Committee Chair Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) and House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerry Nadler (D-N.Y.) are letting President Donald Trump know how they feel about his decision to pardon former National Security Adviser Michael Flynn.
“Donald Trump has repeatedly abused the pardon power to reward friends and protect those who covered up for him. This time he pardons Michael Flynn, who lied to hide his dealings with the Russians,” Schiff wrote on Twitter.
He added, “It’s no surprise that Trump would go out as he came in – Crooked to the end.”
Donald Trump has repeatedly abused the pardon power to reward friends and protect those who covered up for him.
— Adam Schiff (@RepAdamSchiff) November 25, 2020
This time he pardons Michael Flynn, who lied to hide his dealings with the Russians.
It’s no surprise that Trump would go out as he came in —
Crooked to the end.
Nadler released a statement of his own and called Trump’s pardon “undeserved, unprincipled, and one more stain on President Trump’s rapidly diminishing legacy.”
He claimed Trump “dangled” this pardon in front of Flynn so he would not cooperate with federal investigators.
Nadler argued his cooperation could have “exposed the president’s own wrongdoing.”
“This pardon is part of a pattern. We saw it before, in the Roger Stone case — where President Trump granted clemency to protect an individual who might have implicated the president in criminal misconduct,” Nadler wrote.
He continued, “We may see it again before President Trump finally leaves office. These actions are an abuse of power and fundamentally undermine the rule of law.”
Jerry Nadler with the Michael Flynn prewrite: pic.twitter.com/z9rE7pcHxt
— Ryan J. Reilly (@ryanjreilly) November 25, 2020
Nadler reassured Americans President-elect Joe Biden will take office soon and “restore a measure of honor” to the presidency.
“Between now and then, we must be vigilant to additional abuses of power, even as we look with hope to days to come,” Nadler concluded.
Trump announced the pardon on Twitter Wednesday, as IJR previously reported.
“Congratulations to [Michael Flynn] and his wonderful family, I know you will now have a truly fantastic Thanksgiving!” Trump wrote.
Flynn was fired from his job as national security adviser and pleaded guilty to lying to the FBI on two occasions.
The Department of Justice (DOJ) moved to drop the case in May.
