Donald Trump just had a Twitter meltdown about Michael Flynn. This is why

Once again, Donald Trump's tendency to turn to Twitter in times of stress has put him under fire. We'd recommend chatting to a friend or having a hot bath next time.

The President's former national security adviser and top campaign official, Michael Flynn, pleaded guilty to lying to the FBI on Friday.

The next day, the New York Timesreported that members of Trump's transition team were aware that Flynn was in contact with the Russian ambassador, despite the White House message being that he acted alone.

Trump, who had so far refrained from tweeting about Flynn, took to Twitter that day with the 'lock her up' line against Hillary Clinton, which worked so well on his campaign trail.

In another rant that now feels routine, the President then took a stab at 'fake news', congratulating ABC News for suspending Brian Ross after he reported - citing an unnamed source - that Donald Trump had directed Flynn to make contact with the Russians during the campaign.

Trump's Twitter storm had started earlier that day, before the New York Times report was published.

He had tweeted:

The tweet was a departure from what Trump said when Flynn was fired in February.

Then, he claimed it was because Flynn lied to Vice President Mike Pence.

But here the President appeared to suggest it was because "he lied to the Vice President and FBI".

Critics argued that the tweet was self-criminating and evidence of an obstruction of justice if Trump knew that Flynn lied to the FBI - a felony - in February.

However, according to The Washington Post, Trump's lawyer John Dowd drafted the tweet.

They wrote:

Its authorship could reduce how significantly it communicates anything about when the President knew that Flynn had lied to the FBI, but also raises questions about the public relations strategy of the president's chief lawyer.

HT The Hill The New York Times

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