In an attempt to further distance himself from his disgraced former national security adviser, President Trump tweeted that he was in the dark about the Michael Flynn investigation before it became “common knowledge.” His claim flies in the face of former Obama administration officials who have said the former president warned Trump not to hire Flynn just two days after the 2016 presidential elections. Ex-Acting Attorney General Sally Yates also testified in 2017 that she told the White House that Flynn created a “compromise situation.” “It now seems the General Flynn was under investigation long before was common knowledge. It would have been impossible for me to know this but, if that was the case, and with me being one of two people who would become president, why was I not told so that I could make a change?” Trump tweeted Friday morning.

The tweet came a day after newly unsealed court documents showed Flynn cooperated more extensively than previously known with Special Counsel Robert Mueller and his team, and discussed top Trump campaign officials’ plans to reach out to WikiLeaks after the site published emails stolen from Hillary Clinton’s campaign manager during the 2016 presidential contest. In December 2017, Flynn pleaded guilty to lying to FBI agents about his Russian contacts and formally agreed to cooperate with Mueller’s investigation.