President Trump and close ally Lindsey Graham on Wednesday offered contrasting views of ex-Deputy Attorney General Sally Yates ahead of her Senate Judiciary Committee testimony on the origins of the Russian collusion investigation.
Moments before Ms. Yates’ testimony began, Mr. Trump slammed her on Twitter, assailing her credibility.
“Sally Yates has zero credibility,” he wrote. “She was part of the greatest political crime of the Century and ObamaBiden knew EVERYTHING! Sally Yates leaked the General Flynn conversation? Ask her under oath. Republicans should start playing the Democrats game!”
Sally Yates has zero credibility. She was a part of the greatest political crime of the Century, and ObamaBiden knew EVERYTHING! Sally Yates leaked the General Flynn conversation? Ask her under oath. Republicans should start playing the Democrats game!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 5, 2020
The tweet came as Mr. Graham, the committee’s chairman, praised Ms. Yates’ actions in his opening statement.
Mr. Graham, South Carolina Republican, said she exercised “good caution in legal judgment in January 2017.”
During a January 5, 2017 meeting with ex-President Obama and ex-FBI Deputy Director James Comey, Ms. Yates warned that the incoming Trump administration should be told about concerns that then-national security advisor Micheal Flynn could be compromised by Russia.
Mr. Comey ignored her request, according to a filing unsealed in the Flynn criminal case earlier this year. She was “flabbergasted” and “very frustrated” with the FBI director for ordering agents to interview Flynn without consent of the Justice Department, the document revealed.
That infamous interview later resulted in criminal charges against Flynn for lying to the FBI. A federal court next week will weigh whether those charges should be dismissed.
“If people followed her advice, things might be different today,” Mr. Graham said. “From my point of view, you analyzed the situation fairly correctly.”
• Jeff Mordock can be reached at jmordock@washingtontimes.com.
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