Coalition of 53 Organizations Oppose General Michael Flynn’s Appointment as National Security Advisor. Veterans For Peace signed on to this letter.
December 5, 2016
Dear Mr. President-elect,
We are organizations representing millions of Americans, writing to express our deep concern with your appointment of Lt. General (Ret.) Michael Flynn to the position of National Security Advisor. While deserving respect for the time he has served our country in uniform, we feel General Flynn is unfit for serving in this critical post. His appointment will damage America’s standing in the world and pose a threat to our national security.
The United States faces complex national security challenges that necessitate serious, measured leadership. The National Security Advisor is a critical role. Considering General Flynn’s deeply troubling history of bigoted and deceitful statements and his alarming ties to foreign governments, it is clear he is a completely inappropriate choice to serve in the most senior national security position in the White House.
General Flynn has repeatedly made Islamophobic statements and peddled anti-Muslim conspiracy theories. He has written that “fear of Muslims is rational” and said that “Islam is a political ideology” and “a cancer” that “hides behind being a religion,” and continuously peddles the nonsensical fear of “Shariah law” spreading in the United States. On social media, he shared a blatantly anti-Semitic tweet. General Flynn’s repugnant statements show a lack of respect for the rights and dignity of Muslims and make him unfit for this post.
General Flynn is entitled to differ from the large majority of the American security establishment by opposing the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) nuclear agreement with Iran. But his advocacy of “regime change” over diplomacy as a means of addressing Iran’s nuclear program is reckless and incendiary. His appointment will send a dangerous signal to all parties to the agreement and the entire world that the United States cannot be counted on to adhere to its obligations under this or other vital international agreements.
Perhaps most alarming, since last summer General Flynn has regularly attended your classified intelligence briefings while also advising foreign governments. He has reportedly leaked classified US intelligence to Pakistan, and his lobbying company, Flynn Intel Group, has ties to Turkish interests close to the government of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
General Flynn’s appointment as National Security Advisor is a frightening prospect for anyone who values America’s national security and ability to promote stability and prosperity around the globe. We call on you to rescind it immediately.
American Family Voices
American Friends Service Committee
American Values Network
American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee
Americans for Peace Now
Asian Americans Advancing Justice – Atlanta
Asian Americans Advancing Justice-LA
Brave New Films
Brooklyn For Peace
Campaign for America’s Future
Center for International Policy
Center of Concern
Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) Refugee & Immigration Ministries
Church World Service
Conference of Major Superiors of Men
Demand Progress
Desis Rising Up and Moving
Disciples Center for Public Witness
Disciples Home Missions of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ)
Division of Overseas Ministries of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ)
Florida Council of Churches
Franciscan Action Network
Global Zero
J Street
Just Foreign Policy
Military Religious Freedom Foundation
MoveOn.org
National Council of Jewish Women
National Immigration Law Center
NETWORK Lobby for Catholic Social Justice
NIAC Action
Nonviolence International
Pax Christi International
Pax Christi USA
Peace Action
Peace Action Bay Ridge
Physicians for Social Responsibility
Rachel Carson Council
Sojourners
South Asian Network (SAN)
Syrian Community Network
T’ruah: The Rabbinic Call for Human Rights
The New American Leaders Project
U.S. Labor Against the War
Unitarian Universalist Association
Unitarian Universalist Service Committee
United Church of Christ
Veterans For Peace
VoteVets
Washington Defender Association
Western States Legal Foundation
Win Without War
Women’s Action for New Directions