President Trump’s former national security adviser, Michael Flynn, has requested immunity from prosecution in return for an interview about Russia’s ties with the election. The Senate Intelligence Committee promptly rejected the request. Flynn’s desire for immunity shows the hypocrisy of the situation surrounding the entire Trump administration.

In September, Flynn discussed aides to Hillary Clinton during the 2016 election on Meet the Press. He told Chuck Todd, “When you are given immunity, that means you’ve probably committed a crime”. However, now that he is asking for immunity, it is only for personal protection against the “witch hunt” by the Democrats. Flynn’s lawyer, Robert Kelner, said in a statement on Thursday that “no reasonable person, who has the benefit of advice from counsel, would submit to questioning in such a highly politicized, witch-hunt environment without assurance against unfair prosecution.”

So in Michael Flynn’s world, if his opponent requests immunity, it is a blatant sign of guilt. But when he requests immunity, it is a completely logical and formal move just meant to assure that he is not unfairly prosecuted. Adam Schiff, a Democrat from California and member of the House Intelligence Committee, described Flynn’s request as a “grave and momentous step” for a “former National Security Adviser to the President of the United States to ask for immunity from prosecution.” It is not a reassuring sign that someone formerly a top adviser in the area of national security has to ask for immunity before being investigated.

This comes around the same time that it was revealed that Flynn failed to mention payments from a Russian news source and payments with Russian-linked companies in the first of two financial disclosure forms released by the Trump administration. The first financial disclosure form was filed before his resigning from his post as national security adviser. The payments that he withheld included $45,000 for a speaking fee from RT, a Russian news source. RT is a state sponsored and considered by the U.S to be a propaganda outlet. The second, amended version of the financial report was filed last week, and it included the payments from RT and the other companies. Flynn has given no explanation as to why there is a discrepancy between the two reports.

Flynn may be trying to cover up any ties with Russia, so that he could claim that he had no contacts with the nation. He also has a history of dishonesty. Earlier this year, he was forced to resign from his position as Trump’s national security adviser for lying about discussions he had with the Russian ambassador Sergey Kislyak. After Flynn had already been caught in a lie, he did not have much a choice in amending his income disclosure. The willingness of Flynn to be dishonest does not portray him in a good light for the upcoming investigation.