Manafort plea deal

So the question always appears to go back to "what does this mean for the President".  Oddly, it really doesn't seem to matter what is actually taking place, for some people, every event will prompt them to ask "what does this mean for the President."

I got nothing on Russian collusion, but I know all about Brett
 Kavanaugh's evil obsession with locking young girls in rooms.

But let's put all of that aside for a second and look at reality.

Manafort was charged with multiple counts and multiple charges for basically the same underlying action. By all accounts if he had been found not guilty of the crimes he faced in the first D.C. trial, it would have been much more difficult for Mueller to garner any guilty verdicts in the second  trial. Likewise, now that he has been found guilty in the first trial, Manafort's chances of beating the charges in the second trial were slim to none.

But moreover, given the fact that the charges were all related to what accounts to the same criminal activities, there was almost "no" chance that either Judge would sentence Manafort to any sentences that would have run consecutively. Given that Manafort had already been found guilty of the charge that provided the longest sentence (Bank Fraud - 30 years), most observers  believe that more guilty verdicts from another trial would not have been worth the time and effort. Yes, Manafort would have had more convictions, but it probably would not have resulted in a substantially longer prison sentence (if it even effected it at all).

So the second trial would have been little more than a big waste of time and money for both parties involved. From all accounts, the Prosecutors have agreed to a ten year prison cap for Manafort. In exchange Manafort is giving up multiple things of value, including four houses, and multiple bank accounts. He will no doubt have to sign an affidavit admitting the crimes in question. I would not be surprised to see some "generic" agreement to cooperate in any other investigations.

However, the idea that Manafort has something to provide Special Counsel in regards to Russia or Trump has no logical merit. If Manafort had something to provide, he would have provided it a long time ago, back when he had some leverage.  This plea makes perfect sense for everyone involved, and that perfect sense has nothing to do with Russian collusion.

_______

Update: As I stated earlier, there was always a better than good chance that Manafort would provide an agreement to "cooperate" with Special Counsel.  This same agreement to cooperate was made by George Papadopoulos, by General Flynn, and by Rick Gates. In as much as all of them have "agreed to cooperate" there is not any rumors that any of them have actually cooperated with any actual real information.

Most legal experts believed that Manafort was looking at eight to ten years to begin with. His plea does not reduce that prison sentence, nor did it allow him to be released pending sentencing (which was apparently something he was asking for). Add to it, the fact that he is giving up substantial accumulated wealth (four houses and numerous bank accounts), this deal does not look like one that has greatly benefited Manafort. Reports that he (at age 69) simply did not want to deal with the stress of another trial, and that both sides felt it was a waste of time, seems more likely the reason why this deal doesn't seem to benefit anyone.

Generally if Manafort had something to provide Mueller, you would have seen the same sort of "plea" Mueller made with Papadopoulos or Flynn, that did not include any specifics. That way Mueller could press Manafort for information with the both promise of a reduced sentence and the threat of tossing out the plea agreement if he didn't get what he wanted.