Pence: Flynn’s Turkey ties ‘affirmation’ of his ouster

by Jordan Fabian - 03/09/17 5:44 PM ET

Michael Flynn’s newly disclosed lobbying ties to Turkey bolster President Trump’s decision to oust him as national security adviser, Vice President Pence said Thursday.

“I think it is an affirmation of the president’s decision to ask Gen. Flynn to resign,” Pence said in an interview with Fox News.

{mosads}The vice president’s comments came after Flynn notified the federal government this week that advocacy work he did last year may have benefitted the government of Turkey.

“Hearing that story today was the first I heard of it,” Pence said of Flynn’s connection to Turkey.

Flynn’s now-defunct firm received more than $500,000 from a firm owned by a Turkish businessman with ties to his country’s government. That led Flynn to retroactively register with the Justice Department as a foreign agent.

The work occurred while the former Defense Intelligence Agency director served as a volunteer adviser to the Trump campaign, a potential conflict of interest.

Flynn was fired last month for misleading Pence and other senior officials about his talks with Russian ambassador Sergey Kislyak. The adviser told them he did not discuss sanctions with the envoy, but later admitted he did.

Tags Mike Pence