2/ Manafort agrees not to appeal his EDVA matters. Each count to which he is pleading guilty carries a maximum term of 5 years (some of these counts “group” under the federal sentencing guidelines). 
3/ Manafort is factually stipulating as TRUE the facts alleged in the EDVA remaining charges and the Statement of the Offense to this plea (will review later in this thread). The Gov’t agrees to dismiss FBAR, FARA, money laundering and other charges in consideration.
4/ The plea sets forth the sentencing range under the federal guideline computation: 210-262 months WITHOUT the benefit of the 5k.1.1 reduction, which we will discuss next.
5/ Manafort has agreed to provide the following cooperation, in exchange for which, the Gov’t will file a request for a downward departure of his sentence under the federal sentencing guidelines under 5K1.1.
Here is Section 5K1.1 under the US Sentencing Guidelines.
7/ Getting a 5K1.1 departure can be a golden ticket if the Government and court agree that the defendant’s cooperation was substantial. The court may reduce the sentence substantially below the guideline range. (ussc.gov/sites/default/…)
8/ So, backing up ... Manafort has agreed to provide “undercover activities” 👀 and it has been reported that Manafort has been cooperating with Mueller’s team for some time already.
9/ I do apologize but I must pause thread for a while to catch my breath. Lupus pneumonitis slows me down. Will be back in a bit.
10/ The plea sets out the standard waivers agreed to by defendants taking federal pleas.
11/ The forfeiture provisions are quite extensive.
15/ No state prosecuting authorities were made party to this agreement. Manafort remains liable under state laws. But what is very odd is this agreement is not binding on the US Attorney’s Office. I’ve never encountered this & will defer to others more knowledgable to interpret.
16/ Let’s now turn to the statement of the offense: What did Manafort know, and when? Count 1: Conspiracy Against the US. Manafort and his co-conspirators furthered a conspiracy in violation of FARA law.
17/ The conspiracy was accomplished via Manafort’s lobbying firm. “From 2006 to 2015, Manafort led a multimillion dollar lobbying campaign in the US, at the direction of” (Putin puppet) Yanukovych.
18/ I posted this to Facebook a week before the NYT ran its Ukraine ledger story, on August 6, 2016.
19/ If you could have seen my dining room that summer ...
21/ Lobbyists know no political loyalty. They go where the money takes them, and Manafort bought some powerful DC lobbyists. He also coopted members of the media to put forth propaganda which was counter to US interests in Ukraine. They used anti-Semitic messaging.
22/ Manafort “and others” set up an NGO which retained US firms and falsely represented that the NGO was not run by Ukraine’s Party of Regions (Yanukovych).
23/ Federal prosecutors weigh charges against Democratic powerbroker in Manafort-linked probe cnn.com/2018/09/14/pol…
24/ Emails give new detail about Mercury, Podesta role in Manafort's lobbying politico.com/story/2018/09/…
25/ Conspiring to Obstruct Justice and Misleading False Statements to the DOJ: Manafort’s prior attorneys lied to the DOJ on his behalf. NOT WISE!
29/ Trump’s own DOJ attorney Michael Dreeben said Manafort had served as Trump’s campaign chairman.
“He had long-standing ties to Russia-backed politicians,” Dreeben told Jackson. “Did they provide back channels to Russia? Investigators will naturally look at those things.”
“He had long-standing ties to Russia-backed politicians,” Dreeben told Jackson. “Did they provide back channels to Russia? Investigators will naturally look at those things.”
30/ The money laundering took place between 2006 and 2016, which means some of these crimes occurred while Manafort served on Trump’s campaign.
These facts are not alleged in Manafort’s indictment. #Firtash 🤣🤣🤣
Let’s continue ...
33/ Manafort used offshore and overseas accounts to hide funds and he designated funds as “loans” rather than income to avoid paying income taxes. He misled his bookkeeper and tax accountants.
34/ Forfeiture facts detailed again.
35/ The witness tampering facts are specified. Recall, Konstantin Kilimnik is affiliated with the Kremlin GRU.
36/ Do not let anyone persuade you that this has nothing to do with Trump or his campaign:
https://twitter.com/smittywrite/status/863603454232719360?s=21
42/ Manafort conspired to commit bank fraud in the EDVA and in the DC circuits. Of interest is there is no mention of loans from Tom Barack’s First Republic Bank. 🤔
45/ I have some news on this fella coming soon.
https://twitter.com/smittywrite/status/973516659909636098?s=21
48/ Manafort received $16M in loans made by Fed Savings Bank, where Trump fmr campaign adviser Steve Calk serves as CEO cbsnews.com/news/report-ex…
49/ In a nutshell, the Kremlin planted Manafort into the Trump campaign. When he was discovered and hounded by USIC, Trump and the GOP arranged to pay Manafort with a golden parachute by setting up bogus loans for millions of dollars. Manafort’s cases are just the beginning.
50/ To be clear: USIC knew about Manafort long before he joined the Trump campaign. When I say “when he was discovered,” I mean when Ukraine went public with the ledgers.
https://twitter.com/smittywrite/status/1024415391089610758?s=21
51/ Manafort was being blackmailed and Trump is right in the middle of Manafort’s mess.
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