Former Trump campaign chair Paul Manafort faces 30 charges arising out of special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation into collusion between the Trump campaign and Russia in 2016. Rather than consolidating the cases, Manafort chose to fight the charges in two different federal jurisdictions. He argued—in both courts—that Mueller’s authority didn’t extend to bringing charges against Manafort for transgressions like money laundering. He’s now 0-2.
While Judge Amy Berman Jackson of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia tore Manfort’s overreach argument apart, the federal judge in the Eastern District of Virginia, T.S. Ellis III, initially seemed receptive. In May, the Reagan appointee criticized Mueller from the bench.
"I don't see what relation this indictment has with what the special counsel is authorized to investigate," Ellis said during an hourlong hearing in Alexandria, Virginia. "You don't really care about Mr. Manafort's bank fraud. ... What you really care about is what information Mr. Manafort could give you that would reflect on Mr. Trump or lead to his prosecution or impeachment."
Yet on Tuesday Ellis rejected Manafort’s bid to get the charges thrown out. Granted, his ruling makes clear he’s not a fan of the special counsel process: He wants us to know that his decision “should not be read as approval of the practice of appointing Special Counsel to prosecute cases of alleged high-level misconduct.”
Ellis elaborated on the concerns he first articulated in May in the conclusion:
The appointment of special prosecutors has the potential to disrupt these checks and balances, and to inject a level of toxic partisanship into investigation of matters of public importance. This case is a reminder that ultimately, our system of checks and balances and limitations on each branch’s powers, although exquisitely designed, ultimately works only if people of virtue, sensitivity, and courage, not affected by the winds of public opinion, choose to work within the confines of the law. Let us hope that the people in charge of this prosecution, including the Special Counsel and the Assistant Attorney General, are such people. Although this case will continue, those involved should be sensitive to the danger unleashed when political disagreements are transformed into partisan prosecutions.
This is a big loss for Manafort, who’s out of options: It’s fight the charges or cooperate with the prosecution. Manafort may have been banking on prevailing on his jurisdictional argument in at least one of the two districts. Now, instead, he’s fighting a war on two fronts, presumably shelling out considerably more cash. More importantly, Manafort’s also harmed his shot at a good plea deal by splitting the charges. I suppose someone facing the prospect of spending the rest of his life in prison gets a little desperate.