Reports that former national security adviser Michael Flynn may have cut a deal with the FBI in special counsel Robert Mueller's Russia collusion probe won't mean liability for President Donald Trump, as he didn't cooperate with Russia himself, his first campaign manager, Corey Lewandowski, said Friday.
"This is a narrative that the mainstream media wants to perpetuate the last year," Lewandowski told Fox News' "Fox & Friends" program.
"The bottom line is, if Michael Flynn did something wrong by not disclosing the relationships he had with Turkey and other governments, then he should be held accountable for that."
The same holds for people like another former campaign manager, Paul Manafort and his deputy manage, Rick Gates, if they "haven't followed the rules," he added, but "that's where it ends."
"There is no liability to the president, because he didn't collude, cooperate, or coordinate with Russia in any way or form," said Lewandowski.
Lewandowski's comments come on the heels of a report in The New York Times that said Flynn's attorneys have told Trump that they will no longer share information on Mueller's probe, a sign that the retired general is either negotiating a plea or cooperating with the FBI.
Tax reform is the Trump administration's current priority, said Lewandowski, but the media wants to talk about Flynn.
"Look, Mike's not a bad guy," said Lewandowski. "He served his country for a long time. But if he didn't fill out the paperwork properly and wasn't honest with the FBI like anybody else, he should be held accountable.
"But that's where it stops, and there are has been never any indication that the president of the United States or anyone else within that circle of the president of the United States has done anything wrong. And so if Mike Flynn did something wrong, he should be held accountable."
Also on Friday, Lewandowski ridiculed Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., after the former presidential candidate issued a Thanksgiving message calling 2016 a "horrendous year" because of the stream of White House news that is "embarrassing, that is destructive, that is horrific."
Lewandowski pointed out that the markets are hitting record highs and unemployment is "the lowest it has literally been in a lifetime."
"When you look at the metrics of what this the president has done, he's bringing people back to work, he's bringing manufacturing back," said Lewandowski.
"You look at any measure that's actually achievable, and this president is better, the people of this country are better off today than they were a year ago because of this administration."