--- description: Michael Flynn, a general who was fired by Obama, will speak in support of Donald Trump at the Republican National Convention title: Meet the General Supporting Donald Trump at the RNC image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt3c1b703eaf694b3f/69889c6ebc6cfcf62e3ddd73/068d09861b4e45c1a56704e22b667047-0.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [Politics](/section/politics/) ## Politics Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [Republican National Convention](/tag/republican-national-convention/) ## Republican National Convention Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Meet the Retired General Supporting Donald Trump at the RNC by [Will Drabold](/author/will-drabold/) ## Will Drabold Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Jul 19, 2016 12:56 AM CUT  In this Feb. 11, 2014 file photo, then-Defense Intelligence Agency Director Lt. Gen. Michael Flynn testifies on Capitol Hill in Washington. In this Feb. 11, 2014 file photo, then-Defense Intelligence Agency Director Lt. Gen. Michael Flynn testifies on Capitol Hill in Washington.Lauren Victoria Burke—AP by [Will Drabold](/author/will-drabold/) ## Will Drabold Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Jul 19, 2016 12:56 AM CUT [In the past month](http://time.com/4402714/michael-flynn-field-of-fight/ "undefined"), retired Lt. Gen. Michael Flynn has simultaneously blasted the Obama administration for how it is fighting terrorism and diligently worked to promote a new book. Now, Flynn will take the stage at the Republican National Convention to argue for a different approach to fighting terrorists. Flynn was head of the [Defense Intelligence Agency](http://www.dia.mil/About/ "undefined"), an arm of the Defense Department’s military intelligence apparatus, until he was fired in late 2014\. Earlier this month, Flynn [argued he was fired](http://nypost.com/2016/07/09/the-military-fired-me-for-calling-our-enemies-radical-jihadis/ "undefined") because he believed the United States needed to identify terrorists as radical Islamists and specifically target the extreme doctrine followed by terrorists. “Knowing the current administration will not challenge them, our enemies will press hard to gain every possible advantage before a new president, potentially with the will to win, takes office,” Flynn wrote in an op-ed [published in TIME](http://time.com/4402714/michael-flynn-field-of-fight/ "undefined") that also promoted his new book, _The Field of Flight_. Flynn was reportedly being vetted as a vice presidential for Donald Trump. But the general [stumbled earlier this month](http://time.com/4400202/vice-president-picks-sunday-shows/ "undefined") on abortion and gay marriage, espousing views that seemed to be at odds with the Republican establishment. Nevertheless, Flynn will look to bring credibility to Trump’s message that he is better equipped to handle foreign threats than Hillary Clinton on the opening day of the Republican National Convention. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4411699/rnc-general-michael-flynn-donald-trump/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4411699/rnc-general-michael-flynn-donald-trump/"},"headline":"Meet the Retired General Supporting Donald Trump at the RNC","datePublished":"2016-07-19T00:56:10.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-22T23:20:29.687Z","description":"He'll aim to bring military credibility to Donald Trump","url":"https://time.com/4411699/rnc-general-michael-flynn-donald-trump/","keywords":["Republican National Convention","RNC"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt3c1b703eaf694b3f/69889c6ebc6cfcf62e3ddd73/068d09861b4e45c1a56704e22b667047-0.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Will Drabold","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/will-drabold/"}],"articleSection":"Politics","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt3c1b703eaf694b3f/69889c6ebc6cfcf62e3ddd73/068d09861b4e45c1a56704e22b667047-0.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Michael Flynn","caption":"In this Feb. 11, 2014 file photo, then-Defense Intelligence Agency Director Lt. 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