Michael Flynn, a retired general and former national security adviser to former President Donald Trump, has emerged as a leader for the far-right movement. The Associated Press' Michelle Smith joins Reality Check's John Avlon to discuss how Christian nationalism and culture wars messages take center stage at his 'ReAwaken America' tour rallies. His status as a "Christian warrior" for election deniers, extremists and conspiracists is the focus of a new documentary by FRONTLINE on PBS and the Associated Press, "Michael Flynn's Holy War."
Michael Flynn’s testimony a ‘shocking moment,’ journalist says
“A delusion held by one person is a mental illness, held by a few is a cult, held by many is a religion.”
Robert Todd Carroll
@Jeremy DeCaro sorry, I don’t believe in mythical beings, I leave that to the crazies
@olecrowey If they got rid of the electoral college, there would NEVER be another republican government, traitor trump never ever won the popular vote, and he never will
@Jimmy Mcelroy i didn’t post about trump or electoral college, i simply stated the mid terms showed more Americans voted red than blue. It’s worrying.
Mental illness that besets his boss too……
LOL!
Recall him to active duty and Court Marshall him.
Maybe friendly fire.
It’s martial as in military affairs, not Marshall as in a dude named Marshall.
What you are advocating for is recalling the guy to duty so as to put him through a court martial trial.
I suspect one of the issues with that (there are many), is that he wasn’t serving or on duty during any of the ‘alleged’ wrong doing, which would mean that the military would have no jurisdiction.
Otherwise every WW2 vet that got drunk and then drove their car 20 years after separating from the military would have been pulled up in front of a court martial.
No, civilian authorities created Flynn’s ability to ‘allegedly’ commit treason, and civilian authorities need to deal with it.
At least that is the separation between military and civilian justice systems in civilized countries, how it works in the US I have no idea.
@Aaron Mathie Agree with your basic hypothesis but there was no “alleged”.
Flynn was found guilty of lying to the FBI re contact with Russia.
And Drumph subsequently pardoned him!
The reinstate and court martial… was an effort to make him accountable for his crimes (rather than reward and enable him).
@R Wags
Oh I agree that there is no alleged.
Hence the air quotes. 😉
Lock him up. He is a traitor!
Guantanamo for these animals
@The Blessings Of Jesus Satan:
Is that you?
@iTheEncounter he’s a straight up con artist.
@Kevin Nelson no that’s you guy.
@Janice Connett thanks Janice
And the art of the con continues; stay on message, promise them the world, fleece’em like the fools they are.
And plead the 5th knowing that our Democracy allows it and that your sheep don’t pay attention to anything but whatever conspiracy nonsense you spoon feed them.
@P Watson 🤣😂🤣
@Cameron Bratten The poor pay taxes, they would have to help cover the unpaid student loans. Climate change combat. cant prove any progress, your delusional!
@Occam3132 We see the Liberals escalate the crisis mode, forcing mandates, to unsure Conservatives do as (dictated) by Dictators like obama & biden!
@doris affissio Im a hard working plumber, that was Democrat, until i realized Democrats hate USA (true fact)
% of crazies in the USA is alarming
That’s why I left for Mexico. I couldn’t stand to live in a country that’s 50.001% not-Fascist.
@KD tRump candidacy is a good thing. The party is already fractured. That will make the democrats WIN.
@Basilica Rusnac -I agree. And now the announcement of a special counsel today is also a great development. He will have an unlimited budget, and the investigation can (and probably will) go wherever a crime has or may have been committed.
Same view from overseas… we saw 4 years of Drumphs lies, bs, conspiracies, corruption, racism, bigotry, xenophobia, misogyny, nepotism, abuse of power… and then 74m came back in 2020 and said “that’s the guy for me”.
Truly mind boggling!
Every country has a percentage of nut jobs and gullibles but why is the quotient so high in the US?
A query from afar
@Mike Ainsworth When did Biden espouse fascism, Qanon wackoism, Christian extremist nationalism? Is he supported by Nazis, Oath Keepers and Proud Boys? Herschel Walker and Marjorie Taylor Greene? You people aren’t even PRETENDING to believe in the ideals of American Democracy or even to be attached to reality. Just a bunch of insane, fascist liars.
“Todays GOP is the worlds most dangerous and contemptible political force”
– Retired 4 star General Michael Hayden, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, appointed director of the CIA by George W Bush and a registered Republican.
The history books will not be kind to Michael Flynn…what a disgrace
@Mike seek help
Forget what a book says about him in the future. He is a threat NOW! Deport him! Revoie hus citizenship and by God stop giving him a military pension. For the love of God!
@Mike Old man trump gre
Groomed you real good
Federal Law provides for the death penalty for: 18 U.S.C. § 2381 Treason.
When the convictions are in, and all the appeals are finished, I hope they take volunteers for the FIRING SQAUD! Death by firing squad: The concept is simple: a prisoner either stands or sits against a brick wall or some other heavy barrier. Five or more soldiers line up side by side several feet away, and each one aims their firearm directly at the prisoner’s heart
@Mike Flynn is most definitely NOT a hero. Seditious Traitor is the more apt description of him.
How the hell was this man allowed to become a US General without being screened.
@CybershamanX thanks…😂😂😂
Army
@Now a major motion picture event! …Correct.
@Zelmo The Unruly & Baby Doll right wingers are incredibly stupid.
@H K S very true.
Imagine being under heavy bombardment from the enemy and calling back to your general for those sophisticated capabilities you know he has, and him replying “Prayer is the most powerful weapon system known to man.”
@Ligma Johnson what is wrong with vaccinated? it really means i have something more than you do.
@david dauphin And quite possibly, something less… Covid.
@GRIT51 Flynn is heretical and subversive.
@GRIT51 He should be reduced to the rank of corporal- the same rank Hitler had in WW 1.
There aren’t many atheists in a foxhole with fire raining down on you…
5:35 How can a retired general under oath intentionally not commit to the belief in a peaceful transition of power in a country he was sworn to protect? I don’t get why the military cannot recall him to active duty and court-martial him.
@Haight-Ashbury Judge Yep…he was cutting a deal while tfg was giving his inaugural address. He can be seen on the phone with a Russian during the speech. His deals are what got him in trouble.
Power
@Linda Dbse “treat them like any other me tally I’ll person”. Exactly. Hospitalize them and get them supervised treatment.
@Chuck Deezy Some may need serious treatment. A few that have been “deprogrammed” have said it was like being caught in an uncontrollable spin of spin and conspiracy. The repetitiveness, the constant shock of conspiracies, the desperate need to believe because of fear. Other cults have been raided by the government and come to a bitter end, this one is very serious and they better find a way to turn the tide of this delirium.
He can’t be recalled and subjected to UCMJ action because of his beliefs or his speech. However, there were other behaviors that would’ve justified that action and I am extremely disappointed that it wasn’t done at the time. And I’m sure that he’ll commit acts in the future that will also justify recall and UCMJ action and I desperately hope that when it occurs that those actions are taken by the military. I’m also certain that his future behaviors will be of great interest to the FBI, etc. He’s a traitor to his oaths, to the U.S Constitution, and he’s a fascist, authoritarian, theocratic cultish threat and danger to this secular representative democratic republic. Prison and exile would be my fondest wishes for such a turncoat.
His expertise is 4 years of spreading misinformation for Trump.
DISinformation, i.e. intentionally lying.
The Fifth expert.
It’s unfortunate, twisting things and they follow
He’s been a successful felon
He would gladly eat Trump’s poop without 2nd guessing 💩🇺🇸..
ESPIONAGE,,LIFE IN PRISON
Any generals still in the army as insane as this guy?
@John Jay – that’s a worry.
his kid brother: trøn made him “head” of The Pentagon…
@DensLight promotion to general officer is all who you know on the promotion board. In my husband’s 30 year Army career we knew many fine generals and we knew quite a few that made us shake our heads in disbelief. Promotions tl general are very political indeed.
He’s not insane. He’s acting and raking in the cash. It’s all a big grift. Look around at his associates, Stone, Trump and Trump. Not a godly bone in their bodies. Snakes, all of them.
@0321MrsJones agreed!
Ask Michael Flynn to give a text book definition of what a ‘socialist’ or a ‘communist’ is and he would draw a blank. I have respect for most military personnel but Flynn is simply to far gone to get any respect….
Fascism
@Pennee101 Because JESUS.
He sees ghosts everywhere. He’s clearly damaged from that service and trying to find bogeymen.
@Emma Willard ‘cudgel’ is about right! Conflating fascism and socialism is the one that always makes me shake my head.
@Steve Hall Maybe in a Children of the Corn kind of way? LOL
You’re right since you been in the military and he knows about misinformation he does it quite well and he’s using it
@Hakkebrakke Just before the 2008 election I was distributing flyers for the Obama/Biden campaign in Destin Florida. Going door to door in a nice neighborhood. Some passers by saw what I had, stopped, and said, “what are you doing? What are you, a communist? Get out of the country, communist.” That is the power of right wing brain washing. And there’s no reasoning with these folks. Only way to move forward is to defeat them.
Kind of that is more so the CIA’s department.
@John Freedman he was literaly THE head of the DIA, defense Intelligence Agency. THE most important of the intelligence agencies, in some senses. Power and then some.
@John Freedman no you racist clown.
@18rabbit Ya they have power, but misinformation and arming foreign militias is literally 90% of what the CIA does.
You would think it would be the DIA arming the Afghan Mujahedin, or the Syrian militias, but no it was the CIA.
People don’t understand this is a business for him. I see him just as a popstar, touring and offering a service, making bank.
I am sure the entrance isn’t free.
That doesn’t excuse it though. Nevermind the harm it causes to the people and how damaging it is to our society as a whole? He’s just trolling gullible people?
The cultist pay $50. for a pic w him.
@Ash Vandal For sure. He is as evil as it gets.
Fraudsters and grifters. Why so many people fall for it is beyond me.
@Ash Vandal of course not, but there you have a big incentive for these people to come up with as many stories as possible. The more outrageous they are and supoortive of Trump, the more you get paid.
He clearly saw an opportunity in this Qanon movement. He knows what he’s doing and is explicitly aware of what his audience wants to hear. He knows these conspiracy theories are absolutely bonkers, but so are his audience. They are the perfect con.
@eileen garcia lol. You typod a non existent entity.
There are Q posts. There are Anons. Please send me a link to any ” QaNoN”.
That’s why the weak follow him and the strong minded believes he’s nuts.
I think he believes all the crap that spews out of his mouth. I don’t think it’s just an act to grift off of cult followers.
And the perfect weapon.. the joker did the same thing.. now any election worker or politician has to worry about a hammer in the skull one night.. who the he’ll wouldn’t back down to apparently what most white Americans want
It looks like he really believes what he’s saying and revels in his role as a prophet.
I would look into Mike Flynn’s brother who was embroiled in the January 6th lack of military response to the insurrection. He is still in the military. Investigate that guy too.
Absolutely
I agree! Instead? they moved him.
Damn Right !
Please let’s listen to Mr. Hitchman! Better be safe than sorry!!
This is what happens when these ppl aren’t punished. Yet we lock regular ppl up and throw away the key. Shameful
Merrick Garland is a spineless coward.
Yeah it’s bizarre 🤔money talks in the USA
As a combat veteran, I gotta say it’s disconcerting that a high ranking officer would have such unhinged ideas. You see a lot of stuff in the military and it gets your mind going, but most people stay grounded. This guy is or was in a position to use the military in such a way as to enact totalitarianism as rule. It’s so completely opposite to what our military and democracy stand for.
Thanks for your service, as well as your sanity.
This is what happens when you don’t teach responsibility along with freedoms. You think your rights to self expression has neither limits nor consequences.
This right here is why my veteran husband is far more infuriated at Flynn than he is at Trump.
Every American should be infuriated!! Thank you both for your service!