Republican @CharlieDent: Failure of vetting, failure of judgement in hiring of Flynn is "indefensible" https://t.co/SUCLF2fK4j
— New Day (@NewDay) May 18, 2017
Rep. Charlie Dent (R-Pa.) on Thursday said that President Trump’s hiring of Michael Flynn as national security advisor was an “indefensible” failure in judgment.
The lawmaker said that there were several major questions about Flynn even before the recent reports detailing his connections to Turkey.
{mosads}”That’s a failure of vetting, its a failure of judgement,” Dent said in an interview with CNN.
“There were certainly a lot of questions about General Flynn’s suitability for that position, even before this revelation of the Turkish connection. So I really can’t defend that, its indefensible,” he added.
Flynn was fired weeks into the new administration after misrepresenting his interactions with Russian officials. Multiple investigations are now probing Russian interference in last year’s election, as well as any possible coordination between Moscow and the Trump campaign.
The White House hiring of Flynn for such a sensitive post was highly criticized by many Democrats who raised concerns about his qualifications and political views.
Trump’s administration, however, has defended the decision to bring on Flynn, stressing that he was previously thoroughly vetted by the Obama White House.