After Paul Manafort was pardoned by Donald Trump, it was tempting to think the scandal-plagued operative would quietly disappear from national headlines.
That clearly has not happened.
It was about a month ago, for example, when Manafort was removed from a plane at Miami International Airport before it departed for Dubai because he was carrying a revoked passport. A couple of weeks later, he was the featured guest at a “Truth & Freedom Dinner” hosted by a pro- DeSantis/Trump group in Florida.
Two weeks ago, Manafort made headlines again, announcing that he was getting back into the consulting business.
But as NBC News reported, Trump’s former campaign chairman was back in the news yesterday, though he probably wishes he weren’t.
The Justice Department is suing … Manafort over allegations he failed to report interest in foreign bank accounts. The Justice Department is seeking $2.9 million from Manafort, accusing him of failing to report consulting income from Ukrainian sources that was deposited into accounts he is alleged to have directed to be opened in Cyprus, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, and the United Kingdom.
In case anyone needs a refresher, Trump has surrounded himself with quite a few criminals since entering politics, but Manafort has long stood out as special. Manafort, of course, oversaw Trump’s political operation in 2016, before he was convicted of a variety of felonies, including tax fraud and bank fraud, and he even served some time in federal prison — right up until Trump pardoned him shortly before Christmas 2020, rewarding his former aide for failing to cooperate with law enforcement. But as we were reminded yesterday, federal law enforcement isn’t done with him just yet. A Politico report added: During a 2018 jury trial in Alexandria, Va., on some of the various criminal charges, Manafort was found guilty of failing to file a Foreign Bank Account Report for 2012, but the jury failed to reach a verdict on the same charge for 2013 and 2014. Jurors split 11-1 in favor of convicting Manafort on those counts, according to the verdict sheet and juror interviews. The Justice Department’s suit signals that federal attorneys have concluded that Trump’s pardon does not cover the 2013 and 2014 charges, as well as the other eight counts the jury failed to reach a unanimous verdict on.
Manafort’s attorney accused the Justice Department of trying to “embarrass” his client. Time will tell whether the case succeeds, but unlike a couple of years ago, the defendant will not be able to turn to the White House for assistance.
Steve Benen is a producer for "The Rachel Maddow Show," the editor of MaddowBlog and an MS NOW political contributor. He's also the bestselling author of "Ministry of Truth: Democracy, Reality, and the Republicans' War on the Recent Past."
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