Trump on Manafort verdict: 'Nothing to do with Russia collusion'

Source: The Hill | August 21, 2018 | Jordan Fabian

President Trump on Tuesday sought to distance himself from his former campaign chairman Paul Manafort’s criminal conviction, saying it did not involve his presidential bid.

“This has nothing to do with Russian collusion,” Trump told reporters in West Virginia, where is he scheduled to hold a campaign rally. “It’s a witch hunt and a disgrace.”

The president said he feels “very badly” about Manafort’s conviction and called him a “good person.” But he also stressed that the crimes Manafort was found guilty of committing were not related to his work on the Trump campaign.

“Doesn’t involve me but I still feel, you know, it’s a very sad thing that happened,” Trump said.”This has nothing to do what they started out looking for Russians involved in our campaign. There were none.”

Trump broke his silence roughly an hour after Manafort was convicted on eight counts of bank and tax fraud in federal court stemming from his work for the pro-Russian former leader of Ukraine.

While the crimes did not involve Trump, the verdict provided a major boost for special counsel Robert Mueller, who continues to investigate alleged ties between the Trump campaign and the Kremlin’s interference in the 2016 campaign.

It also raised questions about Trump’s judgment, given that he hired Manafort after the alleged crimes were committed. Manafort, a longtime GOP operative who in recent years turned to foreign lobbying, led Trump’s presidential campaign during a crucial three-month stretch that included the Republican National Convention.

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