Wikipedia (en)
Michael Thomas "Mike" Flynn (born December 1958) is a retired United States Army lieutenant general who was the eighteenth director of the Defense Intelligence Agency and the first national security advisor appointed by President Donald Trump. Flynn served as the twenty-fifth national security advisor from January 20, 2017, to February 13, 2017. He resigned at the behest of the president after information surfaced regarding his misleading key officials about the nature of his telecommunications with Russian diplomats. Flynn's tenure of just 24 days as national security advisor is the shortest in the history of the office.
Flynn's military career was primarily operational, with numerous combat arms, conventional, and special operations senior intelligence assignments. He co-authored a report in January 2010 through the Center for a New American Security entitled, Fixing Intel: A Blueprint for Making Intelligence Relevant in Afghanistan. In addition, Flynn served as the commander of the Joint Functional Component Command for Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance, chair of the military intelligence board, assistant director of national intelligence, and the senior intelligence officer for the joint operations command. In 2014, he retired with 33 years service in the army, a year before he was scheduled to leave his position.
On November 18, 2016, President-elect Donald Trump announced that Flynn would serve as national security advisor in his coming administration. As a member of the White House executive office staff, Flynn did not require confirmation by the United States Senate.
Even prior to his appointment as national security advisor, Flynn had already drawn criticism for what sources, including The Washington Post and Associated Press, have described as his close relations with Russia, his promotion and popularization of anti-Clinton conspiracy theories, and fake news stories during the 2016 presidential election. On January 22, 2017, The Wall Street Journal reported that Flynn was under investigation by U.S. counterintelligence agents for his communications with Russian officials. Flynn submitted his official resignation as national security advisor on February 13, 2017, citing his failure to provide complete information regarding his communications with foreign officials.
