General Discussion
Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region Forumsmn9driver
(4,428 posts)I have no doubt he will not talk.
underpants
(182,868 posts)Brighton Beach. The same goes for him I think.
FakeNoose
(32,722 posts)His wife and her whole family were born in Russia. I'm guessing he speaks at least some Russian but he may not be fluent.
lapfog_1
(29,219 posts)He has two daughters. They aren't in jail or witness protection.
Grasswire2
(13,571 posts)He's a terrible, terrible man. He forced his wife to have sex with multiple men in front of him for his own jollies. His daughters hate him.
lapfog_1
(29,219 posts)And that's the threat they are under
localroger
(3,629 posts)...pretty sure I read that about the Russian mafia.
Grasswire2
(13,571 posts)...and refused to leak them. But some have been revealed and authenticated.
Grasswire2
(13,571 posts)YOHABLO
(7,358 posts)Grasswire2
(13,571 posts)LenaBaby61
(6,977 posts)Plus, his ex son-in-law says that his ex daddy-in-law is a total scum bucket, or words to that effect.
BigmanPigman
(51,624 posts)Manafort and Cohen should be fearful.
Roland99
(53,342 posts)PaulX2
(2,032 posts)Sorry assholes.
Roland99
(53,342 posts)LakeArenal
(28,837 posts)We need you.
CentralMass
(15,265 posts)proglib217
(88 posts)Franken/Warren in 2020
Talk about a dream ticket...
CentralMass
(15,265 posts)Hekate
(90,773 posts)Marcuse
(7,505 posts)pangaia
(24,324 posts)Texin
(2,597 posts)She knows that if he continues - and goes to prison- he will be killed there. And she may be in some (maybe a lot?) of physical danger herself.
LenaBaby61
(6,977 posts)When non-payment of a ruskie Oligarch goes wrong
SergeStorms
(19,204 posts)You can bet if there's a prison anywhere, there's a member of the Russian mob inside it.
Grasswire2
(13,571 posts)AlexSFCA
(6,139 posts)his two dauthers would be in immidiate danger.
Pepsidog
(6,254 posts)around with Americans on American soil.
dalton99a
(81,568 posts)4 hrs ·
Sean Spicer, who served President Trump for a very limited amount of time, described Paul Manafort as someone who played a very limited role for a very limited amount of time in the Trump campaign.
That very limited role, of course, was campaign chairman. And during Manaforts very limited time with the campaign (actually, he spent more time with the campaign than either Steve Bannon or Kellyanne Conway), he helped Trump secure and then accept the Republican nomination, and made sure that the convention platform dropped a plank that called for providing arms to Ukraine in its fight against Russia. And Manafort was there for Get-Dirt-on-Hillary meeting with the Russians at Trump Tower.
Of course, Manaforts time with the campaign wouldnt have been so limited had the media not zeroed in on his wildly lucrative consulting deal with brutal, Russian-backed Ukrainian president Viktor Yanukovych and on Manaforts shady financial ties to Ukrainian and Russian oligarchs close to Vladimir Putin.
Now that he has been convicted on multiple counts of financial misconduct, Manafort stands to spend the rest of his life in prison. As he girds himself for his next trial, most people believe that Manafort is expecting a pardon down the line from President Trump. My wife doesnt think so.
Franni has been saying for months that Trump wont pardon Manafortbecause he doesnt have to. Her theory is simple and chilling. Manafort knows that if he talks, the Russians will seek retribution. Trump knows this too, Franni believes. Perhaps, even, he and Putin discussed this in Helsinki.
PUTIN: Have no worry about Manafort talking. He knows is dead man if takes plea.
TRUMP: Wow! Good to know.
PUTIN: Same goes for interpreters. You hear me, you two?! Yuri, tell American interpreter I am serious.
RUSSIAN INTERPRETER: He means it. Hell have us both killed.
PUTIN: Very painful death.
RUSSIAN INTERPRETER: Very painful. Most likely a nerve agent.
Okay, I dont know if that actually happened. Maybe they just talked about adoptions. The point is, under Frannis theory, Trump doesnt have to pardon Manafort to keep him quiet. So, he wont.
Which would be pretty telling. Look, I dont like Donald Trump. Like many of us, I am sickened by his words and actions on an almost daily basis. And, in the grand scheme of things, his behavior towards the other sickening people he has surrounded himself with since getting into politics isnt the biggest deal. I mean, separating children from their parents at the border is infinitely worse than letting your former campaign chairman spend the rest of his life in prison. For one thing, Manafort kind of deserves it.
But, if, down the road, Trump starts pardoning every other player in this collusion scandal who didnt cop a plea, but not Paul Manafort, it will say something so deeply disturbing about Donald Trump.
I wrote in my most recent book that Trumps behavior leading up to his inauguration (refusing to divest his business interests, installing a white supremacist as his chief strategist, making up a ridiculous lie about illegal voting in order to avoid admitting that he lost the popular vote, etc.) suggested the kind of mental health problem that you would be disturbed to discover in your kids piano teacher, let alone the president of the United States of America.
Months later, that still checks out. As Michelle Obama said, Being president doesnt change who you are. It reveals who you are. Everything Donald Trump has done since becoming president tells us that he is selfish, callous, and cruel. And if Franni is right, we may be about to see just how deep the rot inside this man goes.
https://www.cnn.com/2018/08/21/politics/paul-manafort-trial-jury/index.html
KY_EnviroGuy
(14,494 posts)Dear Al,
Millions of us are right there with you every day.......
Thanks for that post. So good to hear from our beloved Senator we lost all too soon.........
Shoonra
(523 posts)Trump, being a Russian asset, can expect some help from the Russians. As long as Manafort and Cohen are alive they both present a problem: If Trump pardons them it will probably be considered an impeachable offense, and if Trump lets the prison doors close on them they might make a deal with the prosecution to testify against him. But if lightning struck them both right now, some of Trump's problems go away and he continues to be an asset to Russia. The Russians have shown some ability to bottle lightning this way.
Girard442
(6,083 posts)Laura PourMeADrink
(42,770 posts)Algernon Moncrieff
(5,790 posts)OK - he's pardoned. Now he can be subpoenaed to discuss Trump campaign issues. If those are covered in the pardon, he can't seek the protection of the 5th amendment because he can't incri.inate himself. If he remains silent, he's in contempt; if he lies, he can be prosecuted for perjury.
Trump's best hope passed when Manafort failed to escape the country.
melman
(7,681 posts)Just to do it. Just to show he can.
Crutchez_CuiBono
(7,725 posts)making russian sausage and noodles at night etc. LOTS of gangsters have done that and come out to become made men. He needs to have some more time to think bout what he's done.
As an observation/aside I noticed his wife didn't have the usual fast swaggering strut as she left the courtroom today..why the long face ?..I feel bad for her.....NAH! She knew where the cash was coming from. Just like Mrs Soprano.
workinclasszero
(28,270 posts)Keep the faith with Dotard and Putin and spend years in prison or play ball with Mr Mueller and maybe get into the witness protection program?
I have no doubt that Manafort and probably Cohan have tons of cash stashed somewhere for emergencies lol.
They cant use in a federal pen, so.....
FM123
(10,054 posts)The Velveteen Ocelot
(115,829 posts)Manafort won't talk because the Russians will whack him if he does.
YOHABLO
(7,358 posts)They get what they deserve. And I don't mean a pardon. If that should happen, you can bet on the country not being pleased.