The Witch Hunt Nabs Another Warlock: Angling for Pardons
Make no bones about it. Paul Manafort and Roger Stone are angling for a pardon. Why else would these two shady operatives so brazenly defy and taunt the justice system? A close read of their court indictments leaves one with an unerring conclusion: guilty as hell.
Bob Mueller's team of whiz attorneys has put together solid, air tight evidence against the two Trump acolytes in indictments of pythagorean rigor. Their cornucopia of lies to Congress, the FBI and the Special Counsel's office beam as bright as the Milky Way on a clear summer night. I'm not a lawyer, but as I read the evidence (largely emails, texting and public statements) matched with the slam-dunk charges of lying and misdirection on the part of the defendants, I let out a long whistle while shaking my head and mutter, "Woo-ee, your geese are cooked."
Though legally irrelevant, these guys are comically villainous - like characters in a Batman movie. As such they invite ridicule. I even wrote a blog post titled, Will Paul Manafort's Colorist Visit Him in Jail? Dashed off in a hurry months ago, it's attracted more than 4,000 reads (over 500 today alone). Not one to wallow too much in schadenfreude, I'm nonetheless tempted to crack wise about the choice of prison garb for a peacockish dandy like Stone, or speculate about the nature of the "swinger" scene in a federal pen. But I won't go there. I'm too good for that. Really.
Manafort, 69, appeared in court this week leaning on a cane, his dyed hair now gone naturally gray. He's puffy and unsteady and facing what effectively may well be a life sentence in the slammer. Stone, 66, is an owlish practitioner of the political dark arts - stuff like spreading false rumors and lies about political opponents. A sartorial dandy and denizen of sex classifieds, he has the look and demeanor of an accountant given to practical jokes. Halloween lurks eternal in his black soul. Neither strikes one as Rambos incarnate, spitting fire into their tormentors' faces. They are country club Republicans, soft men who've spent their lives in posh surroundings hobnobbing with well-heeled plutocrats. They are the last you'd expect to see on the TV show "Lockup."
So, why then did Manafort brazenly pull a fast one on Bob Mueller - committing to cooperating, but then lying to the special counsel like there was no tomorrow? It only brought more charges and likely more jail time on him. Stone stood defiant outside the court house where he was booked, arms outstretched in that awkward "V" for victory signature posture of his terminally maladroit idol Richard Nixon. "I will not bear false witness against President Trump!" he bellowed. Nothing is more embarrassing than old men flaunting false bravado. Felons at that.
Trump dangled a possible presidential pardon for Manafort last November. Former acting Solicitor General Neal Katyal has said in interviews this week that he believes it is clear Stone is also angling for one. But they are playing a high stakes, long odds game. Trump has pardoned the likes of Obersturmfuehrer Joe Arpaio and that betrayer of CIA deep cover officers and Dick Cheney poodle, Scooter Libby. Being utterly conscience-free, Trump wouldn't bat an eye waving his presidential magic pardon wand over the heads of Manafort, Stone and others nailed for violating U.S. code to keep them from testifying if he were certain it wouldn't destroy what's left of his presidency. He's seeing the consequences of withholding a pardon with Michael Cohen, whose upcoming congressional testimony clearly scares Trump witless. And the full extent of Gen. Michael "Benedict Arnold" Flynn's cooperation with Mueller has yet to be revealed. Stone's indictment is probably the last stepping stone up to the grave charge of conspiracy to collude with Moscow. Treason may be tightly defined in the constitution, but most of us know it when we see it.
Six key Trump officials have been convicted or indicted thus far. As Mueller closes in, the odds are good that the final dragnet will sweep up Steve Bannon, Don Jr. and Jared Kuschner and, who knows? - Ivanka? Will this final sweep trigger some sort of nuclear option on the part of the president - a Saturday night massacre-style firing of Mueller, Rosenstein, et al., either preceded or followed by impeachment? At the least, expect us to veer into constitutional crisis territory.