The White House is in clean-up mode after Paul Manafort’s guilty plea today. Shortly after the plea deal was announced Donald Trump’s attorney, Rudy Giuliani, issued a statement that he changed minutes later.
Giuliani in first statement after Manafort plea deal:
“the President did nothing wrong and Paul Manafort will tell the truth.”
Minutes later Giuliani revised the statement:
“the President did nothing wrong.”
— MSNBC (@MSNBC) September 14, 2018
In separate press statements, White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders and Trump attorney Rudy Giuliani both said Manafort’s guilty plea has “nothing to do with” the president. It’s worth appreciating the fact, however, that based on what we now know, Manafort was committing a variety of felonies when Trump hired him to lead his political operation.
The big question today is what story does Manafort have to tell. Whatever story it is one thing is clear, Trump thought this day would never come. Just a few weeks ago he wrote this…
I feel very badly for Paul Manafort and his wonderful family. “Justice” took a 12 year old tax case, among other things, applied tremendous pressure on him and, unlike Michael Cohen, he refused to “break” – make up stories in order to get a “deal.” Such respect for a brave man!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 22, 2018
Reminder of what President Trump told @FoxNews last month: “One of the reasons I respect Paul Manafort so much is he went through that trial—you know they make up stories. People make up stories. This whole thing about ‘flipping’ they call it… It almost ought to be outlawed.”
— Monica Alba (@albamonica) September 14, 2018
No tweet from Trump yet today, but we know he is following this news closely.
President Trump is in the White House residence right now watching TV coverage of the Manafort plea deal, a source tells @jeffzeleny
— Sarah Westwood (@sarahcwestwood) September 14, 2018
Here’s some insight into how Manafort’s deal could include Trump in some way, even if it’s indirectly.
2/ The DOJ does not let defendants cooperate as to some people but not others. If a defendant cooperates, they have to provide the government with truthful and complete answers to any question and be willing to testify in any matter they are asked to be a witness in.
— Renato Mariotti (@renato_mariotti) September 14, 2018
After more than four decades of lobbying on behalf of Republican politicians, foreign dictators, and oligarchs, Paul Manafort is flipping on his last client: President Donald Trump.
The president’s former campaign chairman has agreed to cooperate with Special Counsel Robert Mueller in the investigation of a potential conspiracy between the Trump campaign and Moscow, prosecutors said in court on Friday, and has already proffered information to the Justice Department.
With Manafort agreeing to cooperate, prosecutors are now “in the room” for the 2016 Trump Tower meeting with the Russian lawyer who promised dirt on Hillary Clinton.
— Savannah Guthrie (@SavannahGuthrie) September 14, 2018
Paul Manafort is the first person, as far as we know, who attended the infamous Trump Tower meeting in June 2016 who has agreed to cooperate with Mueller’s probe.
That element of his plea deal might especially trouble the Trump legal defense team.
Trump and Manafort have spent months sharing information about the Russia investigation. Now, Manafort has decided to help the government. Here's a snapshot of what they could discuss (in addition to the Trump Tower meeting): https://t.co/YjmJZdmwRs pic.twitter.com/5gR7hWfceq
— Natasha Bertrand (@NatashaBertrand) September 14, 2018
My #FridayFeeling is the following:
-No way @realDonaldTrump can pardon Manafort now
-Mueller will find out what happened at Trump Tower
–@POTUS & his associates will have more sleepless nightsBONUS: Manafort's forfeitures more than pay for the entire costs of Mueller probe. https://t.co/l5VZyPDNDk
— Ted Lieu (@tedlieu) September 14, 2018
And how is this for irony? Manafort’s plea also involved his giving up his apartment in Trump Tower. USA Today says:
As part of his plea deal with special counsel Robert Mueller, Manafort is going to have to surrender a lot of valuable real estate to the government, including a condo in Trump Tower.
