Does Paul Manafort’s Attorney Represent Manafort Or Donald Trump?
Everybody deserves a competent defense. Is Manafort getting one?By ELIE MYSTAL
Oct 31, 2017 at 11:41 AM
Yesterday, Paul Manafort’s personal attorney, Kevin Downing, made a statement to the press that was right out of a mob movie. Downing’s client is facing 12 counts of conspiracy, money laundering, and failure to register as a foreign agent. In response to these serious allegations — charges that carry with them potentially decades in jail — Downing said this:
“I think you all saw today that President Donald Trump was correct. There is no evidence that Mr. Manafort or the Trump campaign colluded with the Russian government.”
What? That’s like the mob lawyer coming out and saying, “The charges against my client [the button man], have nothing to do with Mikey [the loveable mob boss], who is just an honest olive oil importer whom I also happen to represent.”
Your client is the one CHARGED here. I think he’d like you to represent his interests, not the narrative of the bigger fish trying to escape prosecution.
Of course, in the mafia situation, the lawyer’s legal fees are being paid by the boss, not the button, so it makes sense. Here, I’m positive that Paul Manafort is paying Kevin Downing a bunch of money to represent PAUL MANAFORT, not the President of the United States.
I can understand if Paul Manafort — a man who has been functionally ruined — still thinks his best bet is to maintain lockstep alliance with Donald Trump. I understand if Manafort believes that this is only happening to him because Mueller is trying to get Donald Trump. It would almost make sense for him to further believe that if people realize that they can’t get to Donald Trump, they’ll leave him alone. Hell, Manafort might even think that his buddy is going to risk impeachment by giving him a pardon — and given that Donald Trump knows that Republicans in Congress are little cowards, he just might.
But his lawyer should know better. If it turns out Mueller and all the other investigators have nothing on Donald Trump, Manafort is still going down. Yesterday provedthat Mueller is coming after him, even if that’s the only person he gets. Downing, at this point, HAS TO understand that there is a fundamental conflict of interest between his client and his president. Manafort’s interests and Trump’s interests no longer align.
|
