Fired Deputy FBI Director Andrew McCabe slammed the decision by the Department of Justice to drop its case against former Trump National Security Advisor Lt. Gen. Michael Flynn (U.S. Army Ret.) for allegedly lying to the FBI Thursday, calling the move “pure politics designed to please the president.”
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McCabe, who was involved in the decision to investigate Flynn, was fired for lying to the FBI but was ultimately not prosecuted. Like Flynn, McCabe said any misleading statements he made were from failing to remember details of conversations due to the press of matters in his job.
Just in–Statement from Andrew McCabe on DOJ and Flynn: "The Department's position that the FBI had no reason to interview Mr. Flynn pursuant to its counterintelligence investigation is patently false, and ignores the considerable national security risk his contacts raised." pic.twitter.com/bY0qXbAmS3
— Natasha Bertrand (@NatashaBertrand) May 7, 2020
Excerpt from Politico report from February on the DOJ declining to prosecute McCabe:
…”We write to inform you that, after careful consideration, the Government has decided not to pursue criminal charges against your client, Andrew G. McCabe,” prosecutors J.P. Cooney and Molly Gaston wrote on behalf of the new U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia, Tim Shea. “Based on the totality of the circumstances and all of the information known to the Government at this time, we consider the matter closed.”
…After more than 20 years at the FBI, McCabe was fired in 2018 following findings by the Justice Department inspector general and the FBI’s Office of Professional Responsibility that he displayed a “lack of candor” in his dealings with internal investigators and a top Justice Department official.
The Justice Department watchdog report released in April 2018 found McCabe was not forthcoming with former Director James Comey and with FBI investigators about McCabe’s involvement in the FBI’s handling of media inquiries about an FBI probe into the Clinton Foundation during the 2016 campaign.
The inspector general report said McCabe led Comey to believe he did not authorize disclosing that politically-sensitive investigation and that McCabe affirmatively denied any role in that to internal FBI investigators. McCabe has denied any intentional effort to mislead, but said he was preoccupied with other weighty matters at the time and may have failed to remember some conversations.
While Inspector General Michael Horowitz’s review found McCabe was less than candid, he referred the matter to federal prosecutors to consider whether criminal charges for perjury or making false statements were appropriate.
Justice Department leaders also used Horowitz’s findings to initiate a disciplinary process against McCabe. Former Attorney General Jeff Sessions wound up firing McCabe just one day before he would have been eligible for an early retirement pension available to law enforcement officers…
