So, aside from the fact that the former head of DIA was a security risk (not only by his sympathies for the Russians, but by lying and thus putting himself in the position of being compromised), there's the mystery of why this administration just burned their own guy. /1

The list of suspects who'd want Flynn ratted out on this is long, from Pence on down. Who knows. Someone in the West Wing who didn't want Flynn showing up on their doorstep? Dunno. But they figured these documents couldn't be made to go away, so it's a Friday night drop. /2

Too many people know about the documents and what's in them. This day was inevitable. So they signaled to the loyalists that this was coming, let them prep the "Logan Act, it was all bullshit" rationalizations, and lanced the boil. And here we are. /3

By November, no one will care, Flynn will be old news, and we'll be on to something else. As a purely political move, it makes sense - because there was no way to make the documents go away or make people forget what was in them. So they figured: Take the hit, and move on. /4x