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The first two weeks of the trial of former Donald Trump presidential campaign chairman Paul Manafort on 18 counts of tax evasion and bank fraud charges have failed to implicate Trump or his campaign in any alleged criminal conduct. Prosecutors working for Special Counsel Robert Mueller – who is investigating Russia’s interference in the 2016 presidential election – are expected to call their final witness Monday at Manafort’s trial in U.S. District Court in Alexandria, Virginia. If convicted on all counts, Manafort could face a maximum sentence of 305 years in prison. So far we’ve learned that the prosecution’s star...

An unexplained delay Friday in the criminal trial of former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort put court proceedings behind schedule as the case extends into its third week. Prosecutors were planning to call their final witness on Friday, but lengthy discussions between Judge T.S. Ellis III and attorneys from both sides during the morning hours pushed back witness testimony for the day into the afternoon. Neither the jury nor courtroom attendees were privy to the nature of the talks, and Ellis gave no explanation once the trial resumed, prompting speculation ranging from a possible plea deal to restricting testimony from...

A majority of U.S. adults do not know that Paul Manafort is not on trial for “collusion with Russia,” a new poll by The Economist/YouGov Poll reveals. […] Democrats were the most likely (29%) to erroneously think that Manafort is on trial for collusion with Russia, compared to 17% of Independents and 13% of Republicans. In all, 20% of survey respondents cited “collusion.” Another 41% of those surveyed said they were “not sure” what charges Manafort is facing. When those who weren’t sure are added in, 63% of Democrats, 66% of Independents, and 61% of all respondents did not know...

Paul Manafort’s criminal trial on bank and tax fraud charges was held up for several hours on Friday as the federal judge presiding over the case repeatedly met with federal prosecutors and Manafort’s defense attorneys. Judge T.S. Ellis III, who has otherwise placed a priority on the trial moving quickly, pushed the start of witness testimony in the trial until Friday afternoon, according to multiple media reports. Ellis began the day by holding a bench conference with attorneys from both sides before the jury was called into the courtroom, and held a second conference before leaving the room “to consider...

(snip) -- In the past several days a name has resurfaced, only this time with some more attention than in prior reports. The name is Oleg Deripaska, a Russian billionaire who is likely much more of a central figure than previously explained. (snip) -- This story, as told from the perspective of Adam Waldman -Deripaska’s lawyer/lobbyist- is important because it highlights a connection between Robert Mueller and Oleg Deripaska; a connection Mueller and the DOJ/FBI never revealed on their own.

ALEXANDRIA, Va. (AP) — The Latest on the bank fraud and tax evasion trial of former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort (all times local): 10:50 a.m. The judge in Paul Manafort's trial has called a recess without explanation. U.S. District Judge T. S. Ellis lll huddled with attorneys from Special Counsel Robert Mueller's office and Manafort's defense lawyers, as well as court security officers, for more than 20 minutes before calling the recess. The judge then exited the courtroom toward the jury room. The recess comes as prosecutors are preparing to finish their case Friday. Manafort faces charges of bank...

Sean Hannity said Friday that President Trump’s attorneys Jay Sekulow and Rudy Giuliani would be guest hosting his syndicated radio show. The Fox News host made the announcement from his Twitter account, linking to a story quoting Sekulow as saying there is an “unprecedented level of corruption” in special counsel Robert Mueller’s probe into Russian election interference.

A majority of Americans have fallen into “Russia fatigue,” and want the probe into Moscow’s influence in the 2016 ended, according to a new survey provided to Secrets. The latest Zogby Analytics online survey found that 52 percent of voters believe that “it is time” for investigator Robert Mueller to wrap up his probe. Some 30 percent do not want it ended. The poll also found that a third of Democrats also want the investigation ended. The poll analysis said it was “shocking” that 32 percent of Democrats want Mueller to deliver his results. “Voters might have Russia fatigue,” said...

Thursday, August 9, 2018 BIGGER THAN WATERGATE! IT IS GOING TO BLOW! On Wednesday evening, Rudy Giuliani, attorney for President Trump, appeared on the Fox news show Hannity. Giuliani said on the show that the "real story" is that the Mueller case isn't going to fizzle, "it's going to blow up on them," referring to the Mueller team. "There's a lot more to what they did that nobody knows about yet," he added. "A lot more to the obstruction of justice, to the collusion, to the fake dossier," Giuliani added. President Trump this morning sent out this mysterious tweet: Hmm,...

Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) told a protester at a town hall event in New York City on Wednesday that she would look into whether Special Counsel Robert Mueller was involved in covering up the role Saudi Arabia played in the 9/11 terrorist attacks while serving as FBI director. In a video posted from the town hall on YouTube, the protestor asked Gillibrand if she would support legislation proposed by Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) calling for the “federal government to declassify thousands of remaining documents related to the 9/11 terrorist attacks.” The protestor accused Gillibrand of knowing that Mueller was involved...

GOP Rep. Devin Nunes was secretly recorded telling supporters that the Republicans have to keep control of the House to protect President Trump in special counsel Robert Mueller’s Russia probe, according to a report. “If [Attorney General Jeff] Sessions won’t unrecuse and Mueller won’t clear the president, we’re the only ones,” Nunes, chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, said at a private fundraiser July 30, NBC News reported Wednesday. “Which is really the danger. … I mean we have to keep all these seats,” he continued. “We have to keep the majority. If we do not keep the majority, all...

The judge presiding over Paul Manafort’s criminal trial has granted a request by special counsel Robert Mueller to seal portions of a sidebar conversation between the judge and attorneys during Richard Gates’ testimony this week. “Sealing a limited portion of the sidebar conference is necessary because it would reveal substantive evidence pertaining to an ongoing government investigation,” Mueller’s team wrote in the motion to seal portions of the transcript on Thursday. U.S. District Judge T.S. Ellis granted the request, sealing the requested portions of the conversation “until the relevant aspect of the investigation is revealed publicly, if that were to...

With his constant commentating and public negotiating, Trump lawyer Rudy Giuliani is setting up unmeetable expectations for special counsel Robert Mueller — a kind of insurance policy with the president's base. What he's saying: The former New York mayor told Fox News' Sean Hannity in an interview last night that the investigation should be "over by September," and that Mueller's case "isn’t going to fizzle. It's going to blow up on them." He added, "[T]here's a lot more to what they did that nobody knows about yet ... a lot more to the obstruction of justice, to the collusion, to...

Mueller’s prosecutors filed a formal complaint against Judge T.S. Ellis this week claiming he violated protocol by ‘unfairly’ blasting the prosecutors over a witness. Mueller’s team of liberal hack lawyers are becoming increasingly frustrated with Judge Ellis to the point of being pushed to tears.

President Donald Trump on Thursday appeared to threaten to fire special counsel Robert Mueller’s team of investigators — or perhaps Mueller himself — in his latest tweet attacking the probe into Russian election meddling and potential collusion with his campaign. “This is an illegally brought Rigged Witch Hunt run by people who are totally corrupt and/or conflicted. It was started and paid for by Crooked Hillary and the Democrats. Phony Dossier, FISA disgrace and so many lying and dishonest people already fired. 17 Angry Dems? Stay tuned!” he tweeted. While the meaning of “Stay tuned!” was not immediately clear, the...

Special counsel Robert Mueller filed a formal complaint against the judge presiding over Paul Manafort’s tax fraud case this week; claiming T.S. Ellis III violated protocol while ruling against the prosecution’s star witness. According to Politico, Mueller’s team is increasingly frustrated with the “cranky judge” who has rebuked the special counsel’s office on multiple occasions. [T]he judge’s condescending attitude [could give] the jury the impression that the prosecution’s case is dubious “[T]he judge’s condescending attitude [could give] the jury the impression that the prosecution’s case is dubious,

Real Title: Bruce Ohr Emails Show Links Among Obama DOJ, Steele, Simpson… And Russian Oligarch Oleg Deripaska Snip~~ New emails obtained by investigative journalist Byron York show Christopher Steele may have been working on behalf of Russian Oligarch Oleg Deripaska at the same time he was compiling his dossier in 2016–and Obama’s Justice Department, along with Fusion GPS’s Glenn Simpson may have been a part of the conspiracy.

Rudy Giuliani, attorney for President Trump, appeared on Hannity Wednesday night to explain why the legal team rejected special counsel Robert Mueller's term for an interview. Giuliani said the "real story" is that the case isn't going to fizzle, "it's going to blow up on them," referring to the Mueller team. "The reality is, the real story is not that this case isn’t going to fizzle," he said to host Sean Hannity. "It's going to blow up on them. The real question is, what we talked about before, there's a lot more to what they did that nobody knows about...

The weaponization of the FBI's counterintelligence operations on behalf of Hillary Clinton's presidential candidacy is the greatest political scandal in American history. The dramatic story is unfolding before our eyes, and the key point to remember is that declassification of key documents is controlling the pace of the story – and President Trump has the ability to declassify anything he sees fit to share with the American public. This alone should be enough to strike terror in the heart of anyone implicated in this scheme. But when you consider that Donald Trump is the most successful reality television producer in...

Interesting. As previously said: the biggest takeaway from the documents today, showing the 2017 communication between Christopher Steele and Bruce Ohr, is the fact that Steele viewed Robert Mueller as part of the soft coup team. In this interview Rudy Giuliani goes further than ever before in calling out the nature of the DOJ/FBI investigation; and specifically outlining the Robert Mueller team as part of the larger conspiracy group to take-down President Donald Trump. According to Giuliani this information/evidence will surface over the next year to year-and-a-half, and will lead to a fundamental change in the institutions of the Department...