The message --
I'm glad @BuzzFeedNews and I and CNN spent nearly two years litigating for thousands of FBI interview summaries like this one from the Mueller probe so that the public can read what Rick Gates said Paul Manafort told him way back in 2018.
— Jason Leopold (@JasonLeopold) December 24, 2020
"Sit tight" "we'll be taken care of" pic.twitter.com/gLONUkHtF8
“The message of these pardons: Lying is trivial. Public corruption matters less than personal loyalty. Government operatives can kill foreign civilians with impunity. This the legacy that Trump leaves us.”
— EJ Dionne (@EJDionne) December 24, 2020
That says it.
@RuthMarcus https://t.co/zcvTxRCDcC
On top of people like Libby, D’Souza, Hunter, and Arpaio, the message is that there are no crimes if you’re Republican.
— Ben Rhodes (@brhodes) December 24, 2020
Every significant Mueller defendant who refused to cooperate (or started but then stopped) has now been pardoned.
— Elie Honig (@eliehonig) December 24, 2020
Only Rick Gates and Michael Cohen - both of whom testified publicly, in court or Congress - have not been pardoned.
This math isn’t hard to do.
It's not over --
Manhattan DA Cy Vance's office: "This action underscores the urgent need to hold Mr. Manafort accountable for his crimes against the People of New York as alleged in our indictment, and we will continue to pursue our appellate remedies."
— Kyle Griffin (@kylegriffin1) December 24, 2020
Paul Manafort, after his pardon, can no longer assert his Fifth Amendment rights in connection to questions about Russia and what @realDonaldTrump knew. Investigators next year should question Manafort. Congress should as well. https://t.co/JMtoDnkBRx
— Ted Lieu (@tedlieu) December 24, 2020
Easy enough to beat Trump at his game: put Stone and Manafort in the grand jury after 1/20/21 to get at what they have hidden from the government about Trump- and if they then lie, they can be prosecuted for perjury and obstruction.
— Andrew Weissmann (@AWeissmann_) December 24, 2020
Imagine that --
... imagine telling someone from five years ago about a day when over 3,000 died in the u.s. from a pandemic, the president left DC for christmas w/out signing an aid bill tied to that pandemic after he threw the bill chaos -- but not before pardoning a bunch of cronies.
— fake st. nick ramsey 🎄 (@nick_ramsey) December 24, 2020
