Does that mean he really has been working as an asset all of this time when dealing with Eastern Europe Mafia members?
What are you talking about?
Anytime you try to purchase oil on the international market, you deal with rough characters.
A Suezmax ship holds up to 3,000,000 bbl, barrels of oil. Sign a contract for it to be shipped to Houston or Rotterdam and collect fees and commissions of $5 per barrel and that is $15,000,000 to your brokerage. Do that once or twice a month and it is very profitable. In order to be in a position to do it, you must be recognized as being in high position, connected. Otherwise, you are shut out.
And the Arabs, Venezuelans, Mexicans, etc. you deal with in the process are all rough guys.
Manafort is a loyal, patriotic American who had the position to make vast amounts of money for his brokerage. Yes, he is privileged. There are thousands of such Americans. Should Creep Mueller be raiding them all?
Manafort is not the bad guy here, Mueller is. Mueller is Mr. Uranium, Deep Uranium. He sold it everywhere covertly, illegally. Investigate his ass!