The sentencing for President Donald Trump’s former national security adviser Michael Flynn was postponed until 2019 after a dramatic federal court hearing Tuesday.
Flynn, who pleaded guilty last year, said “I was aware” that lying to the FBI was a crime, but prosecutors from special counsel Robert Mueller’s office had called for him to get little to no jail time because he has cooperated extensively. They also said Flynn may continue to cooperate in a future trial.
Judge Emmet Sullivan of the US District Court for the District of Columbia said he was “not hiding my disgust, my disdain for your criminal offense.”
“I want to be frank with you, this crime is very serious,” Sullivan said. “Not only did you lie to the FBI, you lied to senior officials in the incoming administration.”
“All along, you were an unregistered agent of a foreign country while serving as the national security adviser to the President of the United States,” Sullivan said. “That undermines everything this flag over here stands for. Arguably you sold your country out.”
Sullivan later corrected himself, noting Flynn’s foreign lobbying ended prior to the beginning of the Trump administration.Both sides now have until March 13 to file a status report with the court. Flynn left the courthouse without speaking to reporters. (CNN)
