CreeperBlocks
Banned
So how long has Donnie been working with Russia? Hmmm
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AP: Paul Manafort secretly worked for Russian billionaire to "benefit Putin gov."
- Thread starter chadskin
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So how long has Donnie been working with Russia? Hmmm
Darryl M R
Member
Can someone please remove the batteries from the smoke detector?
neurosisxeno
Member
Since 2006. The same year he started working for this Russian Billionaire.
Slayer-33
Liverpool-2
Never, he has nothing to do with Russia, just everyone and everything around him.
Here is the thing.
It's very possible that the PRESIDENT OF THE USA had no idea this was going on.
They keep flattering him, telling him what he hears is fake news, and that he's the best !
And this moron believes it.
Trump isn't a traitor, he's literally a puppet.
This is terrifying.
It's very possible that the PRESIDENT OF THE USA had no idea this was going on.
They keep flattering him, telling him what he hears is fake news, and that he's the best !
And this moron believes it.
Trump isn't a traitor, he's literally a puppet.
This is terrifying.
sunshine and gasoline
Banned
Yes, such a scenario isn't impossible. But it certainly is becoming more and more unlikely as time goes on.
ErasureAcer
Banned
Wow.
King Tubby
Member
I don't think this even qualifies as smoke anymore. This story in and of itself is flames.
No, it's impossible. Too many utterly implausible coincidences.
He knew exactly who he was hiring and what he was doing every step of the way.
theignoramus
Member
I'm sure we'll get evidence implicating Manafort in actual crimes, but unless they tie directly to Trump, its not hard for team Trump to throw him under the bus. The fact that they fired him midway through the campaign also gives them an additional buffer zone.
Its super terrifying that this is one of the least scariest options that still makes any sense. It's becoming more and more evident that Trump's inner circle was and is fucked to hell and back with traitors, so hopefully he is just stupid rather than a deliberate fuck.
neurosisxeno
Member
He had a guy living in his building for 10 years that was lobbying for Russian interests--and then made him Campaign Manager. He assembled a rag-tag group of the most Pro-Russia political operatives in modern history to go along with it. His campaign is on record as saying the only thing they wanted to change about the Republican Party Platform is to be softer on Russia. He actively said he wanted to lift sanctions on Russia. Despite every politician in the Government saying going easy on Russia was a bad idea, he has consistently asserted that we should play nice with Russia. He has openly praised Vladimir Putin as a strong and admirable leader. The FBI was investigating a gambling ring in his building--the same one that Paul Manafort was living in. He has lied about having met Putin, and no we see direct ties to almost a dozen people he has given positions or worked closely with.
If he's not compromised by Russia he seems to have accidentally stumbled into looking EXACTLY like someone who was. I find it almost impossible to believe that there isn't some connection there, and if there really isn't and he's just a puppet, he has to be one of the weakest minds to ever occupy the office, and should be forced from office because he clearly lacks the mental strength to execute the responsibilities of the office.
Chained Prometheus
Member
It's possible, sure, but with the way this all keeps piling up, I find that to be very unlikely.
However I definitely think that's the defense Trump and his people are going to try and offer up as all of this continues to come to the surface- they'll try to cover up any possible direct links Trump has had with Russia to make it look like he was just somehow their unwitting puppet, rather than an active cohort.
If Manafort is implicated in crimes and faces prison time, the Trump team is going to go into Defcon 5. At that point he'd be likely to rat them out.
CreeperBlocks
Banned
It feels like someone was guiding him in picking these people to hire like he didn't make the decisions alone.The Rex Tillerson one is obvious because he has very close ties to Russia.
He's already committed a felony under FARA, and Flynn has committed two felonies, since he lied on his FARA disclosure and also lied to the FBI during their investigation.
theignoramus
Member
He would probably be murdered by the Russians before he ever got to testify under oath. He could implicate them in war crimes over in the Ukraine.
They basically did.
I remember seeing lots of articles showing this guy having ties to the old Ukrainian govt and by extension the Russian govt too.
As horrible as it looks, being pro-Russia isn't going to get Trump impeached. Manafort may get in hot water for this particular issue though and rightfully so.
If this deal was made or utilised while Manafort was campaign manager? Different story.
It's possible those manipulating him pressured him into running. Found someone that already had an interest in politics and presence on the national stage, and then pushed him into running for president.
Honestly, we're all just guessing here, and as fun as it'd be to see the schadenfreude in the impeachment fallout, I'd rather have him not be found guilty of these accusations. The thought of the leader of the free world and president of my country colluding with Russia against American interests scares the absolute fuck out of me.
Sho_Nuff82
Member
A man who worked directly for Putin ended up a few months away from working in the White House.
The plane has crashed into the damn mountain.
Chained Prometheus
Member
Honestly, I don't really see any true "good answer" to this situation.
If Trump does get directly associated with this and impeached, not only does that mean we elected a traitor as the leader of our country, but we'd almost certainly be in a new Cold War with Russia too. That would be a total nightmare.
However Trump hasn't even been President for three months yet and he's already caused massive damage to the country domestically and internationally. The idea of him ultimately being determined as not directly connected to this whole affair and allowed to continue being in office until January 2021 could be quite horrific too in its own way.
We already were, and will be until Putin is dead.
Chained Prometheus
Member
That's definitely true, but we'll be in a much more "official" Cold War than we are now if Trump is revealed to be directly connected with the Russians.
Sure, it'll put broad daylight on what everyone already knows about Putin. It'll be bad for us but even worse for him.
Pretty much. Window dressing as we pass thru life.
Either way, we're going to have a hardcore republican in the White House, and whilst Pence is slightly less bad than Trump in that he's not off his meds, he's quite horrible in his own way. I've already acknowledged this and vowed to fight it as long as necessary, 4 years or 8 (or more D
. In the meantime, I'd just rather not have a traitor in the White House. One would figure that is not too much to ask, but nowadays? : /
Yeah, I don't think there's too much of a revelation going on here. The man has always had a questionable employment history. This is far from the worst revelation/link so far, I think. The worst has been Flynn and Manafort being hired by some dude in Russia to make propaganda doesn't even come close to that.
I think that's the worst at least? I somewhat stopped following this closely after the whole "US Senator met with foreign ambassador" thing. That one was just ridiculous.
This is a direct quote from Manafort talking about how he wants to help Putin, a year before he moved into Trump tower.
donkey show
Member
Yeah. "They talked me into it!" is not an argument that would hold up in court at all. With that said, Trump's motives are still unclear. He doesn't strike me as an ideological type of guy. I think it's more likely that he started doing shady business deals with Russians, they roped him in, now they are blackmailing him and he is in very deep. Taking all that into consideration though, it still makes me wonder if he tried to sabotage his own campaign at times. He obviously didn't want to win.
The eventual book written on this is going to be a hell of a read.
KernelPanic
Member
I get the feeling investigators are closing in
Trump is a terrible businessman, he likely had money issues after many failed ventures, got in bed with the only people willing to bank role him to retain his persona and lifestyle, Russians took their opportunity, put him in a situation so he could also be blackmailed as is known to be a common tactic and he has been in their pocket ever since. I really don't doubt it.
Where is this Manafort guy at this present time, in America?
Where is this Manafort guy at this present time, in America?
Manafort has been working with Trump even after his "resignation".
http://theslot.jezebel.com/hacked-texts-suggest-manafort-continued-to-play-a-role-1793469844
http://theslot.jezebel.com/hacked-texts-suggest-manafort-continued-to-play-a-role-1793469844
”Hahaha you're so silly. It's all just pr."
Of course this had to be a ruse. We're really living in a blockbuster movie plot at this point.
KernelPanic
Member
Manafort giving Stone a run for his money in the "who's the more crooked Trump adviser"
Nazgul_Hunter
Member
There's no contest. Manafort is pure evil
Ether_Snake
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Will Manafort be arrested for treason?
SolarPowered
Member
oh yes
Most likely not.
I believe the IRS will be investigating, I doubt he declared the money on his tax return. Also, failing to register as a lobbyist. And the state and city of New York.
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