Federal judge decides Robert Mueller has the authority to prosecute Paul Manafort after all
U.S. District Judge T.S. Ellis III raised the hopes of President Trump's former campaign chairman Paul Manafort in May by aggressively questioning whether Special Counsel Robert Mueller had the authority to prosecute him for bank fraud, tax evasion, and other alleged financial crimes, saying he saw no connection between the Manfort case and "anything the special counsel is authorized to investigate." Ellis dashed those hopes Tuesday, finding that "upon further review," Mueller's team had properly "followed the money paid by pro-Russian officials" to Manafort, and the case could go to trial in Virginia next month.
This is bad news for Manafort, the only one of four Trump campaign officials who chose to fight Mueller's charges rather than cooperate. But "it also hobbles a favored talking point of Trump and his legal team as they repeatedly attack Mueller's investigation as overly broad and seek to undermine its legitimacy," The Associated Press notes. In his 31-page ruling, Ellis reiterated his concerns about the broad scope of special prosecutors generally, warning that "those involved should be sensitive to the danger unleashed when political disagreements are transformed into partisan prosecutions." But he said "no interpretive gymnastics are necessary to determine that the investigation at issue here falls within" Mueller's mandate.
Mueller is also prosecuting Manafort for money-laundering conspiracy, acting as an unregistered foreign agent, and other alleged crimes in federal court in Washington, D.C., and the judge in that case, Amy Berman Jackson, affirmed Mueller's authority to pursue the charges last month.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.
-
Why au pairs might become a thing of the past
Under The Radar Brexit and wage ruling are threatening the 'mutually beneficial arrangement'
By Chas Newkey-Burden, The Week UK Published
-
'A direct, protracted war with Israel is not something Iran is equipped to fight'
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
By Harold Maass, The Week US Published
-
Today's political cartoons - April 17, 2024
Cartoons Wednesday's cartoons - political anxiety, jury sorting hat, and more
By The Week US Published
-
Puffed rice and yoga: inside the collapsed tunnel where Indian workers await rescue
Speed Read Workers trapped in collapsed tunnel are suffering from dysentery and anxiety over their rescue
By Sorcha Bradley, The Week UK Published
-
More than 2,000 dead following massive earthquake in Morocco
Speed Read
By Justin Klawans Published
-
Mexico's next president will almost certainly be its 1st female president
Speed Read
By Peter Weber Published
-
North Korea's Kim to visit Putin in eastern Russia to discuss arms sales for Ukraine war, U.S. says
Speed Read
By Peter Weber Published
-
Gabon's military leader sworn in following coup in latest African uprising
Speed Read
By Justin Klawans Published
-
Nobody seems surprised Wagner's Prigozhin died under suspicious circumstances
Speed Read
By Peter Weber Published
-
Western mountain climbers allegedly left Pakistani porter to die on K2
Speed Read
By Justin Klawans Published
-
'Circular saw blades' divide controversial Rio Grande buoys installed by Texas governor
Speed Read
By Peter Weber Published