WASHINGTON _ In his 2016 book on terrorism, "The Field of Fight," retired Lt. Gen. Michael Flynn described growing up "hell-bent on breaking rules for the adrenaline rush and hardwired just enough to not care about the consequences."
On Friday, it became clear that Flynn broke one rule too many. He pleaded guilty in federal court to one count of "willfully and knowingly" making "false, fictitious and fraudulent statements" to the FBI about his communications with Russia's ambassador last December, after Donald Trump named Flynn his national security adviser.
As part of a plea agreement, Flynn also said he was cooperating with the investigation led by special counsel Robert S. Mueller III into whether anyone in Trump's orbit helped Moscow meddle in last year's presidential campaign, suggesting higher-ups in the White House face legal jeopardy.
The plea was the latest dip in Flynn's roller-coaster career _ a battlefield intelligence officer in Iraq and Afghanistan, promoted to a three-star Army general, named to head the Defense Intelligence Agency and then fired in 2014 for what the Obama White House said was mismanagement.
His tenure as President Trump's national security adviser set a dubious record: He was ousted after 24 days for misleading Vice President Mike Pence and others about his discussions with then-Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak about easing sanctions on Russia.
"It's a sad thing," retired Gen. Barry McCaffrey said Friday. "We owe Flynn a lot, and he went over the line."
Flynn's hard-charging nature was core to his persona. In Afghanistan, his commanding officer once praised him as someone who "just busts down walls" to get the job done. But that determination sometimes clouded his ability to make considered decisions.
"If you're not someone blessed with the gift of good judgment, you end up in the situation he's in," said Derek Chollet, a senior Pentagon official in the Obama administration.
