The squeeze on Manafort

Politico has posted the 12-count indictment handed up against Paul Manafort and Richard Gates on Friday by the Washington grand jury hearing evidence brought before it by Robert Mueller’s team of all-star prosecutors. The charges all relate or derive from Manafort’s business activities that predate Manafort’s involvement with the Trump campaign (although various related deceptions are alleged to date). I don’t believe that Gates ever had any involvement with the Trump campaign to begin with.

The charges have nothing to do with collusion. As Andrew McCarthy anticipated this past August, they are evidently intended to put the squeeze on Manafort to provide evidence against principals in the Trump campaign.

UPDATE: A man described as a former foreign policy adviser to Trump’s 2016 campaign has also now been revealed secretly to have pleaded guilty earlier this month to lying to the FBI about his outreach to Russian officials. The former foreign policy adviser is one George Papadopolous, whom I have never previously heard of. He reportedly suggested that Trump meet with Russian leaders. I take it that his efforts were unsuccessful but that his guilty plea is indicative of cooperation with prosecutors. The Statement of the Offense has also been posted online.

MORE: Andrew McCarthy specifically addresses the indictment here.

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