Michael Flynn made a statement today, and I haven’t seen it posted on DKos, so here it is:
After over 33 years of military service to our country, including nearly five years in combat away from my family, and then my decision to continue to serve the United States, it has been an extraordinarily painful to endure these many months of false accusations of “treason” and other outrageous acts. Such false accusations are contrary to everything I have ever done and stood for. But I recognize that the actions I acknowledged in court today were wrong, and, through my faith in God, I am working to set things right. My guilty plea and agreement to cooperate with the Special Counsel’s Office reflect the decision I made in the best interests of my family and of our country. I accept full responsibility for my actions.
Also wanted to say a little about Robert Muller’s job security, for those who are worried Trump may go nuclear on him (once he stops strangling Ty Cobb).
Keeping the focus on advisers' Russia contacts helps Mueller keep his job.
Prosecutors could’ve chosen any criminal act on Flynn’s part for his initial plea. In negotiations with someone who has been caught committing felonies, federal prosecutors have most of the power. The point of the guilty plea is to put Flynn on the hook and require him to continue to cooperate going forward. Now that he’s admitting to a crime, they can seek a harsher penalty if he doesn’t cooperate and a lesser one if he does. What’s more, if the prosecutors want to add more charges later, they can.
All this means that the Mueller team chose the specific charge. And that it fits into the narrative his team is creating. And because Trump has let it be known that he is considering firing the special counsel, Mueller must do more than simply prosecute if he doesn’t want to be fired. He must shape public perception of his investigation to reduce the probability -- by suggesting that his firing would itself be an act of obstruction of justice by the president.