Loyalty and trust go a long way with President Donald Trump, and Michael Flynn ultimately was in too short of supply on the latter, and it cost him his job as national security adviser, according to reports.
Flynn's loyalty to the president kept him safe longer than expected; Trump's chief strategist Stephen Bannon had been calling for Flynn's removal since Friday, The New York Times reported.
Trump rebuffed Bannon through the weekend at his Florida resort Mar-a-Lago, where Flynn also was staying, but ultimately Bannon would ask for and get Flynn's resignation Monday, the Times reported.
Though Politico reported the president "doesn't like to fire people who are loyal," the eroding trust of Flynn, who lied to Vice President Mike Pence about the nature of his pre-Trump presidency conversations regarding sanctions with the Russian ambassador to the U.S., ultimately cut deeper.
According to the Times, Flynn repeatedly misled and embarrassed Pence, but was slow or reticent to apologize for the slights, angering the affable VP.
Flynn also clashed early on with Cabinet appointees Rex Tillerson and John Kelly, forcing Bannon to intervene, The Wall Street Journal reported.
But ultimately, it came down to lack of trust of a man who could impugn Trump's credibility on national security issues, according to reports.
The sudden resignation of Flynn on Monday came amid a The Washington Post report the Justice Department — with since-deposed, acting attorney general Sally Yates still in charge — warned the administration Flynn had misled them and could be susceptible to Russian blackmail.
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