Mueller Team Believes Potential Trump Pardon Tainted Manafort's Cooperation

[DonViejo]

By Josh Kovensky
February 11, 2019 11:30 am

Last week’s release of the court transcript of a pre-sentencing hearing offered a rare view inside special counsel Robert Mueller’s Russia investigation.

But like jazz, what the document doesn’t say is arguably more important than what’s spelled out.

The transcript shows that Mueller’s team was deeply concerned that Manafort – after he had pleaded guilty and agreed to cooperate them – continued to lie in hopes of receiving a pardon from President Trump.

As special counsel prosecutor Andrew Weissmann explained to U.S. District Judge Amy Berman Jackson regarding why the government decided that Manafort has breached his plea agreement, “there was an unusual factor.”

more
https://talkingpointsmemo.com/muckraker/paul-manafort-trump-pardon-robert-mueller-cooperation

[Bleacher Creature]

1. There's no way he's not getting some sort of signal from the Trump people.

Which is textbook obstruction of justice.

[RockRaven]

2. Since pardon-for-lies is obstruction, which is illegal, can Mueller&Co use crime-fraud exemption to

void Manafort's attorney-client privilege and get their hands on Manafort's comms w/ his lawyers, or his lawyers' comms with Trumpland? Use that data to prove a case of obstruction against Trump?