According to the Washington Post, Army Lt. General Charles Flynn confirmed that he was in the room when the acting Secretary of Defense was on the phone when Capitol Police called to request assistance as the Capitol was being at by pro-Trump domestic terrorists.
The Pentagon had previously denied that Gen. Flynn, the brother of disgraced former National Security Advisor Michael Flynn, when any of the communications with the Capitol happened. However, Gen. Flynn issued a statement to the Post today that he was one of the Pentagon officials on the call as Capitol Police and DC officials pleaded for help in defending the citadel of American democracy against attack as Congress and the Vice President were present to count Electoral College votes.
Michael Flynn reportedly told Donald Trump that he should implement martial law to help his efforts to overturn his election loss to President Joe Biden, who was inaugurated Wednesday, two weeks after the coup attempt at the Capitol.
Gen. Flynn’s presence on the call, after multiple Pentagon denials that he was, comes as questions arise about the Pentagon deploying National Guard troops to assist Capitol Police and DC law enforcement. The attack on the Capitol started at approximately 1 p.m. ET; National Guard units were not authorized to respond to the attack until four hours later, despite multiple calls from the Capitol and DC officials.
Flynn claims that he entered the room after the call in question began and left before it entered, expecting the order from acting DoD Secretary Christopher Miller to deploy the National Guard to come forthrightly. Flynn is the Army’s deputy chief of staff for operations, plans and training, so he would have been involved in planning the National Guard deployment and in any further Pentagon response.
“I entered the room after the call began and departed prior to the call ending as I believed a decision was imminent from the Secretary and I needed to be in my office to assist in executing the decision,” Flynn said. Miller, however, reported did not want to deploy uniformed military, thinking that it would be a poor visual in the Capitol.