After his international lobbying cojones were snipped by the Justice Department, Paul Manafort has been confined to an Alexandria jail cell, reportedly cooperating with his federal tormentors. But in captivity, Manafort has exacerbated Special Counsel Robert Mueller, according to ABC.
Although prosecutors have requested answers from Manafort on a range of topics, sources told the publication President Trump’s former campaign chairman is not giving Mueller’s team “what they want,” leading to increased frustration “over whether Manafort is fully providing the information he agreed to offer.” The questions presented to Manafort are said to involve the former lobbyist’s professional relationship with roger stone—who himself is under close scrutiny by prosecutors for his communications with Wikileaks during the 2016 election.
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Any lack of cooperation could be fatal for Manafort during his sentencing.
“Should it be judged…that the defendant has failed to cooperate fully, has intentionally given false, misleading or incomplete information or testimony…the defendant will not be released from his pleas of guilty but the Government will be released from its obligations…” reads the plea deal Trump’s campaign manager entered.
Although Mueller is finalizing his report on the question of Russian influence in the 2016 election, many Democrats are concerned the findings will be squashed by Trump loyalists. Chuck Schumer, Nancy Pelosi and other leading Democratic politicians have called on acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker to recuse himself from the investigation over his past criticism directed at Mueller.
