Manafort Plea Arrangement

On Friday as was reported @ The News Blender the one-time former campaign chairman for President Trump, Paul Manafort, reached a plea deal with Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s office. 

Part of the deal is Manafort has agreed to cooperate with Mueller’s office regarding the Russian Investigation into collusion to conspire against the U.S. by members of the Trump campaign or other individuals. 

The plea deal has been released to the public and can be found here. 

Highlights from the plea arrangement: 

Crimes pg 1-2: Conspiracy against the U.S. which include money laundering, tax fraud, failure to file Foreign Bank Account Reports, violations of Foreign Agents Registration Act, and lying to the Department of Justice. He has also pleaded guilty to attempting to commit obstruction of justice in the form of witness tampering.

Cooperation pg 6-7: This section includes, but according to the agreement is not “limited to the following”:

Waivers pg 8-10: Manafort has agreed to the following, not to challenge the venue in “District of Columbia,” Statue of limitations, meaning if the government finds other crimes, not covered under this agreement, they can file charges without time constraints. Manafort has also waved his trial and other rights, such as discovery. He has agreed to wave his right to appeal in the D.C. case and in the Eastern District of Virginia. Manafort has waved his right to collateral attack, which means he gives up his right to challenge the conviction entered, except in the case of “ineffective assistance of counsel.” 

Of Note: The agreement is seventeen pages long, and includes detailed information about what properties Manafort will forfeit, what happens if he breaches the agreement, and the “Defendant’s [Manafort] Acceptance.” of the plea deal. 

Why It Matters

Paul Manafort while working as President Trump’s, then candidate-Trump’s campaign chairman, attended the now infamous Trump Tower meeting, in which Donald Trump Jr. arranged in order to get information on Hillary Clinton, and according to reports, Manafort took detailed notes of said meeting.