Michael Flynn didn't sign White House ethics pledge
WASHINGTON — A key congressional oversight committee Wednesday asked the White House and several agencies to turn over documents that detail former national security adviser Micheal Flynn's interactions with foreign interests, in the latest round of questions into Flynn's conduct more than a month after his firing.
The requests from House Oversight and Reform Committee Chairman Rep. Jason Chaffetz, R-Utah, and the panel's top Democrat, Maryland Rep. Elijah Cummings, came as Flynn's spokesman confirmed that the retired lieutenant general had not signed an ethics pledge barring him from lobbying on behalf of a foreign government.
As part of his much-touted pledge to "drain the swamp" of special interests in Washington, President Trump signed an ethics order in January barring administration officials from lobbying their former agencies for five years after leaving the government and imposing a lifetime prohibition on lobbying on behalf of a foreign government.
Flynn spokesman Price Floyd said Wednesday that Flynn "never had an opportunity to sign the ethics pledge" before he was fired. He said Flynn intends to "abide by it anyway" and won't engage in any lobbying that would run afoul of the rules.
Asked about Flynn and the status of ethics pledges for other executive branch employees, White House spokeswoman Stephanie Grisham said in an email that "all ethics pledges have been signed."
She said the administration would not comment on Flynn because "he is no longer with the White House."
Trump forced Flynn's resignation last month for misleading Vice President Pence and other administration officials about the nature of his conversations with Russia's ambassador to the United States Sergey Kislyak. Flynn's military career ended in 2014 when then-President Barack Obama removed him as head of the Defense Intelligence Agency.
In recent weeks, questions have swirled around Flynn's work on behalf of foreign interests and the vetting he underwent before assuming a key national security post.
Earlier this month, Flynn registered retroactively as a foreign agent, disclosing that his now-shuttered consulting firm earned $530,000 last year from a Dutch firm with ties to Turkey's government. The work occurred as Flynn was serving as a top adviser to Trump's presidential campaign.
Last week, Cummings released documents showing that Flynn earned more $33,000 from RT, the Kremlin-backed television network for a 2015 speech in Moscow.
Read more:
N.J. congressman wants details on Michael Flynn's lobbying status
Trump team knew Michael Flynn might register as a foreign agent for Turkey work
Fired a month in: Michael Flynn's rise and very fast fall
White House derides new report on Russian ties to Trump campaign chairman
The lawmakers on the House Oversight Committee said they are reviewing whether Flynn "fully disclosed his payments from Russian, Turkish or other foreign sources" and have asked for documents related to Flynn's vetting for his government job, including answers on the forms he completed for his security clearance to serve on the White House staff.
The requests went to White House Chief of Staff Reince Priebus, Defense Secretary Jim Mattis, FBI Director James Comey and Dan Coats, the director of national intelligence. Chaffetz and Cummings set an April 3 deadline for the agencies to respond.
Asked about Flynn on Wednesday, White House spokesman Sean Spicer said administration employees fill out applications for security clearances and employment "under the penalty of law."
"I don't know what was on his forms and what was not on his forms," Spicer told reporters.
