[CUSTOMWIRE.AP.ORG] Michael Flynn, the former Army lieutenant general Donald Trump has asked to be his national security adviser, rose through the ranks of military intelligence on the strength of his reputation as an astute professional and an unconventional thinker. After retiring in 2014, he quickly turned on the Obama administration and accused it of being soft on terrorism.
In recent public comments, including his fiery address at the Republican National Convention, Flynn has emphasized his view that Islamic State extremists pose an existential threat on a global scale, demanding a far more aggressive U.S. military campaign against the group, as well as his belief that Washington should work more closely with Moscow.
Flynn is a champion of other foreign policy themes Trump pushed during the campaign, including renegotiating a seven-country agreement with Iran aimed at curbing its nuclear program in exchange for a lifting of economic sanctions.
He has also stirred controversy with his dire warnings about the dangers of Islamist groups, complaining on CNN in June that the U.S. needs to "discredit" radical Islam, but that "we're not allowed to do that right now." He accused the Obama administration in July of failing to design a coherent strategy for opposing the Islamic State group. In August he spoke at an event in Dallas for the anti-Islamist group Act for America, saying that Islam "is a political ideology" and that it "definitely hides behind being a religion." |