President Donald Trump responded immediately once the official announcement was made that former campaign chairman Paul Manafort had been charged by Robert Mueller’s Special Counsel that is investigating possible Russia connections.
Trump responded almost immediately, furiously tweeting, “Sorry, but this is years ago, before Paul Manafort was part of the Trump campaign.”
Sorry, but this is years ago, before Paul Manafort was part of the Trump campaign. But why aren't Crooked Hillary & the Dems the focus?????
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 30, 2017
….Also, there is NO COLLUSION!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 30, 2017
Charges were also filed against Rick Gates, Manafort’s associate. Both have surrendered themselves after 12 charges were filed, which included making false statements, conspiracy against the U.S., and other crimes.
Gates and Manafort have worked together since the mid-2000s. Interestingly, all charges were unrelated to the Trump campaign.
These charges involve questions about $3 million allegedly wired between companies Manafort “controlled” and American businesses, dating back to 2012 and 2013. The 13 wire transfers of interest to federal law enforcement officials are from when Manafort helped a Ukrainian regime that was close to Russian President Vladimir Putin. The Ukrainian president at the time, Viktor Yanukovych, is widely thought to be corrupt and was ousted in 2014 and lives in exile in Russia.
President Trump’s question is an important one: Hillary Clinton’s links to the false opposition document and the Uranium One scandal should be front and center. Manafort was clearly part of the D.C. swamp and was dismissed by the campaign. But his alleged crimes are nothing compared to the outright criminal behavior and treason of Hillary Clinton’s willingness to sell access to the State Department via contributions to the Clinton Foundation.
This is a breaking news story. We will have more updates as they become available.
