Let the bodies hit the floor

[aix_xpert]

The first indictments in the Watergate Scandal were made on Sept 15, 1972 when E Howard Hunt, G Gordon Liddy and the other Watergate "burglers" were indicted by a Federal Grand Jury.

But it wasn't until July 30, 1974 until the House Judiciary Committee drafted and approved the Articles of Impeachment against Nixon, with Nixon resigning on August 8, 1974.

In the intervening 22+ months a number of others connected with the Nixon campaign or administration were indicted, convicted and investigated.

Why are you presuming that just 9 months in, that this was somehow the ultimate action that will happen in this investigation? Just like with Watergate, it's going to take some time to either exonerate or indict anyone else.

Technology and information differences between 1972 and 2017 would hopefully allow this to move slightly faster. If we are still talking about Mueller investigating Trump in 2019 with nothing more than what's come out so far, then I'll know for a fact this was nothing more than a witch hunt hoping to find something to restore the political establishment back to its perch.

 

[NZ Poke]

The head of Judicial Watch (Tom Fitton) just promoted this new National Review article.






Last two paragraphs:


"Even from Paul Manafort’s perspective, there may be less to this indictment than meets the eye — it’s not so much a serious allegation of “conspiracy against the United States” as a dubious case of disclosure violations and money movement that would never have been brought had he not drawn attention to himself by temporarily joining the Trump campaign.

From President Trump’s perspective, the indictment is a boon from which he can claim that the special counsel has no actionable collusion case. It appears to reaffirm former FBI director James Comey’s multiple assurances that Trump is not a suspect. And, to the extent it looks like an attempt to play prosecutorial hardball with Manafort, the president can continue to portray himself as the victim of a witch hunt."


Read more at: http://www.nationalreview.com/article/453244/manafort-indictment-no-signs-trump-russia-collusion

 

[aix_xpert]

I don't know if this investigation will eventually show that Trump broke the law, however, the line you have been repeating over and over on this thread is flawed for a number of reasons.

First, this is just the first indictments. You seem to be assuming the investigation is about finished, however, if you read the indictments you will see that is highly doubtful. The fact that senior Trump campaign officials were indicted this quickly is what should surprise you.

Second, the indictments of two senior Trump campaign officials is serious business. Regardless of Trump's claims (at this point) that this has nothing to do with him.

Third, the guilty plea of another campaign official is also serious and indicates that Mueller isn't playing here. He is letting it be known that you either work with him when he comes a calling or you are going to be hit with some serious indictments that will force you to either work with him or face prison time.

Lastly, looking at the Manafort and Gates indictments, it appears to be a slam dunk case for the government. All the evidence is document based, making a possible defense difficult. Manafort and Gates' options are very slim at this moment. Cooperate with Mueller or go to prison. And you can bet that is exactly how Mueller wanted it.

The idea that what has happened today is good news for Trump, or that this is all there is, or that Trump's administration might be the cleanest in D.C. sounds like wishful thinking at the point (and political spin).

This is a good post and I approve of much of this. I agree these are just the first indictments. If there are more to come then lets see them. Indictments of Trump senior campaign officials is serious. But when the indictments are for crimes from 5+ years back, then there is a pretty clear delineation between those crimes and what I thought was the mandate of determining Russian collusion. Unless you believe that Russia was playing 8-D chess and was infiltrating the Republican campaign of Trump 2 years prior to Trump even announcing he was going to run. None of the currently unsealed indictments have any bearing on the election beyond the word "Russia".

The only real item of note thats relevant to the Trump timeframe was the one campaign official who lied to the FBI about meetings that turned out to not even be illegal. Like I said, he got Dez'd.

You are right, Mueller is looking to leverage anything he can in order to get someone to 'flip' on Trump. But that just perpetuates the thought this is nothing more than a witch-hunt to me. There's clearly a lack of substantial evidence of any wrong-doing (or the charges would be there). If we twisted the screws on every cabinet member of the past dozen presidents, would any of the presidents be completely clean? Are you at least willing to admit that because its Trump (and not Clinton, Bush, Hillary or any other establishment politician) we are holding him to a much more extreme legal standard than any president before him? I mean, why didn't a special counsel get setup to investigate WMDs or the IRS targeting scandal? Heck, one of the charges is tax evasion...Obama had 3 different cabinet picks have to recuse themselves as they were identified as skirting tax laws. Yet none actually had charges filed.

In the end, if we are going to go full anal probe on our politicians, I'd prefer it done to all of them, and not just the one that the establishment doesn't like.

 

[CowboyJD]

"The only real item of note thats relevant to the Trump timeframe was the one campaign official who lied to the FBI about meetings that turned out to not even be illegal. Like I said, he got Dez'd."

How have you come to the conclusion that the facts Papadopolous pled to "turned out to not even be illegal"?

Simply the fact that they didn't charge him?

 

[anon_xl72qcu5isp39]

I agree these are just the first indictments.

There's clearly a lack of substantial evidence of any wrong-doing (or the charges would be there).

Well which is it?

Attempted collusion is already proven -- in writing. By Trump, Jr. In a published email.

 

[Alpha Poke]

"In the end, if we are going to go full anal probe on our politicians, I'd prefer it done to all of them, and not just the one that the establishment doesn't like."

It should be a requirement for all levels of Govt work. With regular checkups.

That happens after everyone on the Govt teet gets a visit from the Bobs and have a good answer for "What is it you'd say you do here?"

 

[davidallen]

What does Manafort crimes from 4 or 5 years ago have to with Trump Russia collusion?

"BuzzFeed News has learned that investigators have been scrutinizing at least 13 wire transfers between 2012 and 2013."

http://dailycaller.com/2017/10/29/f...to-do-with-russian-collusion-in-the-election/

Simply not much, in the long run though leverage over Manafort has the potential to translate into substantive information of a more recent nature. It's like this is all new for some of you guys...

 

[davidallen]

Get back to me when they have something that connects Trump to Russia election collusion or obstruction of justice.

Will be sure to do so...

 

[anon_xl72qcu5isp39]

Will be sure to do so...

LOL His former campaign manager and his right hand guy just got indicted. One of his foreign policy advisers he bragged about just got indicted and already pled guilty, probably because he's already singing. Biff fired Comey to keep this very thing from happening.

 

[Marshal Jim Duncan]

Simply not much, in the long run though leverage over Manafort has the potential to translate into substantive information of a more recent nature. It's like this is all new for some of you guys...

The leverage is the clear intent of the indictment.

 

[Headhunter]

Will be sure to do so...

LOL His former campaign manager and his right hand guy just got indicted. One of his foreign policy advisers he bragged about just got indicted and already pled guilty, probably because he's already singing. Biff fired Comey to keep this very thing from happening.

Pled guilty for misremembering the date of a meeting. BFD. They're using some nobody to try and get somebody big. Total desperation move.

I swear if Donald Trump farted you'd claim he just nerve gassed an orphanage.

 

[CowboyJD]

Pled guilty for misremembering the date of a meeting. BFD. They're using some nobody to try and get somebody big. Total desperation move.

I swear if Donald Trump farted you'd claim he just nerve gassed an orphanage.

Did you even read the factual summary in the plea?

It was more than "misremembering the date of a meeting.

 

[anon_xl72qcu5isp39]

Pled guilty for misremembering the date of a meeting. BFD. They're using some nobody to try and get somebody big. Total desperation move.

I swear if Donald Trump farted you'd claim he just nerve gassed an orphanage.

Good lord man. That spin is indefensible. Where did you hear that one?

And if Trump farts in an orphanage, for now I'm just saying that somebody needs to check on the orphans.

 

[Headhunter]

Pled guilty for misremembering the date of a meeting. BFD. They're using some nobody to try and get somebody big. Total desperation move.

I swear if Donald Trump farted you'd claim he just nerve gassed an orphanage.

Did you even read the factual summary in the plea?

It was more than "misremembering the date of a meeting.

I was taking liberty with the offense to emphasize that this non paid, 30 year old nobody isn't the big deal poeple who want to get Trump think it is.

How is the Trump campaign taking a few meetings thinking they might get Russian dirt a bigger deal than Hillary and the DNC paying for Russian dirt?

 

[davidallen]

Pled guilty for misremembering the date of a meeting. BFD. They're using some nobody to try and get somebody big. Total desperation move.

I swear if Donald Trump farted you'd claim he just nerve gassed an orphanage.

What does "DO SOMETHING" say to you? DJT is in full panic mode. Amusing to see...

 

[gopokes2003]

Will be sure to do so...

LOL His former campaign manager and his right hand guy just got indicted. One of his foreign policy advisers he bragged about just got indicted and already pled guilty, probably because he's already singing. Biff fired Comey to keep this very thing from happening.

He was head of the campaign for all of 3 months. Manafort was fired once his involvement with Ukraine started to come out. The only thing Trump is guilty of is not properly vetting Manafort. This is nothing but a witch hunt, just like Benghazi and whitewater before it.

 

[PervisEllison]

I was taking liberty with the offense to emphasize that this non paid, 30 year old nobody isn't the big deal poeple who want to get Trump think it is.

How is the Trump campaign taking a few meetings thinking they might get Russian dirt a bigger deal than Hillary and the DNC paying for Russian dirt?

Papadopolous was not a nobody in this campaign. Asked by the Washington post who was advising him on foreign policy in the campaign, Trump named him third. He was tasked with being a spokesperson on Trump's Russia policy, appearing on international tv as his representative in this capacity, and was trusted with the responsibility to travel to Israel to discuss Trump's foreign policy positions with government and business elites. His ability to have direct access to the highest ranking individuals in the campaign and the faith they placed in him with his responsibilities shows him to be an important piece in the campaign. His status, however, isn't nearly as important as his ability to produce evidence since he began cooperating with Mueller after his July arrest, and I don't think we've seen the half of it. There is good reason to believe Mueller has had him wear a wire at some point.

 

[PervisEllison]

He was head of the campaign for all of 3 months. Manafort was fired once his involvement with Ukraine started to come out. The only thing Trump is guilty of is not properly vetting Manafort. This is nothing but a witch hunt, just like Benghazi and whitewater before it.

He didn't vet Manafort? Do you think he didn't know the guy? Do you think he didn't know the guy had been lobbying for scum like Mobutu and Ferdinand Marcos to say nothing of the kremlins puppets in Ukraine? Because that's on his Wikipedia page, along with a lot else. He is a bad guy who does business with other very bad guys and this was not a secret to anyone who recognized the name or bothered to look.

Oh, and Manafort has lived in ****ing Trump Tower since 2006.

 

[CowboyJD]

I was taking liberty with the offense to emphasize that this non paid, 30 year old nobody isn't the big deal poeple who want to get Trump think it is.

How is the Trump campaign taking a few meetings thinking they might get Russian dirt a bigger deal than Hillary and the DNC paying for Russian dirt?

Taking liberties?

I'll say.

You need to do your research on PapaD.

Oh wait, Pervis did it for you.

Papadopolous was not a nobody in this campaign. Asked by the Washington post who was advising him on foreign policy in the campaign, Trump named him third. He was tasked with being a spokesperson on Trump's Russia policy, appearing on international tv as his representative in this capacity, and was trusted with the responsibility to travel to Israel to discuss Trump's foreign policy positions with government and business elites. His ability to have direct access to the highest ranking individuals in the campaign and the faith they placed in him with his responsibilities shows him to be an important piece in the campaign. His status, however, isn't nearly as important as his ability to produce evidence since he began cooperating with Mueller after his July arrest, and I don't think we've seen the half of it. There is good reason to believe Mueller has had him wear a wire at some point.

My bet is you didn't know this guy existed before today.

 

[CowboyJD]

How is the Trump campaign taking a few meetings thinking they might get Russian dirt a bigger deal than Hillary and the DNC paying for Russian dirt?

One group contracted with an American firm whom contracted with a British National whom dug up dirt.

One group met directly with Russian nationals known or believe to be representatives of the Russian government.

You really don't see any difference in those two?

I think you do, and you're just whistling through the graveyard/frantically grasping at straws. Maybe I'm giving you too much credit and you really can't suss out how those might be different and one might be a bigger deal.

 

[gopokes2003]

He was head of the campaign for all of 3 months. Manafort was fired once his involvement with Ukraine started to come out. The only thing Trump is guilty of is not properly vetting Manafort. This is nothing but a witch hunt, just like Benghazi and whitewater before it.

He didn't vet Manafort? Do you think he didn't know the guy? Do you think he didn't know the guy had been lobbying for scum like Mobutu and Ferdinand Marcos to say nothing of the kremlins puppets in Ukraine? Because that's on his Wikipedia page, along with a lot else. He is a bad guy who does business with other very bad guys and this was not a secret to anyone who recognized the name or bothered to look.

Oh, and Manafort has lived in ****ing Trump Tower since 2006.

Oh please. We've heard for over a year how this campaign/administration is incompetent and didn't "properly" hire people and didn't have the staff available to vet these people.

 

[aix_xpert]

"The only real item of note thats relevant to the Trump timeframe was the one campaign official who lied to the FBI about meetings that turned out to not even be illegal. Like I said, he got Dez'd."

How have you come to the conclusion that the facts Papadopolous pled to "turned out to not even be illegal"?

Simply the fact that they didn't charge him?

The meeting he lied about was the meeting with the Russian regarding opposition research gathering which wasn't illegal. Much like Dez lying about a meeting with Deion that wasn't against the rules.

 

[CowboyJD]

The meeting he lied about was the meeting with the Russian regarding opposition research gathering which wasn't illegal. Much like Dez lying about a meeting with Deion that wasn't against the rules.

That's your legal conclusion....that meeting with representatives of foreign governments to get dirt...from "thousands of e-mails" (does that ring a bell? Russians? Emails? Hillary?)...could in no way possibly be illegal?

Okay...I guess.

 

[CowboyJD]

The meeting he lied about was the meeting with the Russian regarding opposition research gathering which wasn't illegal. Much like Dez lying about a meeting with Deion that wasn't against the rules.

He lied about several things...not just one meeting.

 

[CowboyJD]

He was head of the campaign for all of 3 months. Manafort was fired once his involvement with Ukraine started to come out. The only thing Trump is guilty of is not properly vetting Manafort. This is nothing but a witch hunt, just like Benghazi and whitewater before it.

Did you just say Benghazi and Whitewater were nothing but witch hunts?

In defense of Trump?

 

[gopokes2003]

He was head of the campaign for all of 3 months. Manafort was fired once his involvement with Ukraine started to come out. The only thing Trump is guilty of is not properly vetting Manafort. This is nothing but a witch hunt, just like Benghazi and whitewater before it.

Did you just say Benghazi and Whitewater were nothing but witch hunts?

In defense of Trump?

Yes, they were witch hunts. One Benghazi investigation was enough. The fact that her winning was a condition to continue the investigations proved it. Also, whitewater was being investigated by a shit head. So spare me your holier than thou attitude about this whole issue.

 

[CowboyJD]

Yes, they were witch hunts. One Benghazi investigation was enough. The fact that her winning was a condition to continue the investigations proved it. Also, whitewater was being investigated by a shit head. So spare me your holier than thou attitude about this whole issue.

lol.

Trump doesn't think they were witch hunts.

Holier than thou? With a bold strategy Cotton meme?

Somebody is a little tense about everything going on. Maybe lay of the caffeine for a while.

 

[anon_xl72qcu5isp39]

Witch hunt? Manafort's ridiculous spending and no-tax paying and Ukraine work began an investigation (predictably) well before the campaign.

A secret order authorized by the court that handles the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) began after Manafort became the subject of an FBI investigation that began in 2014. It centered on work done by a group of Washington consulting firms for Ukraine's former ruling party, the sources told CNN.

 

[Alpha Poke]

I've read everything from every outlet on this subject and after ruminating I can confidently say "We are boned."

Policy and justice are bought and paid for and in no way affected by the democratic process. That's not how this is supposed to work.

I don't see how you can pick a side here.

 

[anon_xl72qcu5isp39]

I've read everything from every outlet on this subject and after ruminating I can confidently say "We are boned."

Policy and justice are bought and paid for and in no way affected by the democratic process. That's not how this is supposed to work.

I don't see how you can pick a side here.

Which of the counts in the Manafort indictment should not be filed in a republic with equal application of the law?

 

[Alpha Poke]

Throw the book at that dick and if you don't hit him throw it again.

I'm speaking to all the dirty bullshit accomplished by lobbyists who actually make the sausage. I probably should've referenced that, but I know my readers are top of the food chain and can make connections out of the vapor.

 

[purkey]

I don't know if this investigation will eventually show that Trump broke the law, however, the line you have been repeating over and over on this thread is flawed for a number of reasons.

First, this is just the first indictments. You seem to be assuming the investigation is about finished, however, if you read the indictments you will see that is highly doubtful. The fact that senior Trump campaign officials were indicted this quickly is what should surprise you.

Second, the indictments of two senior Trump campaign officials is serious business. Regardless of Trump's claims (at this point) that this has nothing to do with him.

Third, the guilty plea of another campaign official is also serious and indicates that Mueller isn't playing here. He is letting it be known that you either work with him when he comes a calling or you are going to be hit with some serious indictments that will force you to either work with him or face prison time.

Lastly, looking at the Manafort and Gates indictments, it appears to be a slam dunk case for the government. All the evidence is document based, making a possible defense difficult. Manafort and Gates' options are very slim at this moment. Cooperate with Mueller or go to prison. And you can bet that is exactly how Mueller wanted it.

The idea that what has happened today is good news for Trump, or that this is all there is, or that Trump's administration might be the cleanest in D.C. sounds like wishful thinking at the point (and political spin).

dude, you're not gettin' it. All this shit means nothing. Nothing will come from it associated with trump and it just a last ditch effort to try to cause more upheaval that craters and backfires...much like all the russia bs that has been going on all along. I wouldn't hold my breath on anything but a misdemeanor charge of tiddlywinks. It's all a bunch of smoke and I guarantee this whole mess is about to come to an end. Sure they cheated, lied, and stole....so what? It doesn't matter anymore. The game is rigged.

 

[my_2cents]

This is a good post and I approve of much of this. I agree these are just the first indictments. If there are more to come then lets see them. Indictments of Trump senior campaign officials is serious. But when the indictments are for crimes from 5+ years back, then there is a pretty clear delineation between those crimes and what I thought was the mandate of determining Russian collusion. Unless you believe that Russia was playing 8-D chess and was infiltrating the Republican campaign of Trump 2 years prior to Trump even announcing he was going to run. None of the currently unsealed indictments have any bearing on the election beyond the word "Russia".

The only real item of note thats relevant to the Trump timeframe was the one campaign official who lied to the FBI about meetings that turned out to not even be illegal. Like I said, he got Dez'd.

You are right, Mueller is looking to leverage anything he can in order to get someone to 'flip' on Trump. But that just perpetuates the thought this is nothing more than a witch-hunt to me. There's clearly a lack of substantial evidence of any wrong-doing (or the charges would be there). If we twisted the screws on every cabinet member of the past dozen presidents, would any of the presidents be completely clean? Are you at least willing to admit that because its Trump (and not Clinton, Bush, Hillary or any other establishment politician) we are holding him to a much more extreme legal standard than any president before him? I mean, why didn't a special counsel get setup to investigate WMDs or the IRS targeting scandal? Heck, one of the charges is tax evasion...Obama had 3 different cabinet picks have to recuse themselves as they were identified as skirting tax laws. Yet none actually had charges filed.

In the end, if we are going to go full anal probe on our politicians, I'd prefer it done to all of them, and not just the one that the establishment doesn't like.

I disagree with you that one can know these indictments have no bearing on the election. I don't think one can make such a statement at this point unless one is trying to defend Trump.

Also, the fact that a special counsel is trying to establish leverage doesn't mean this is a witch-hunt. That is what prosecutors and investigators do. People are often not forthcoming with the truth and therefore, pressure has to be brought to bear. Mueller is doing his job.

There is also no need to change the conversation to what other politicians or individuals did and the standard they faced. There have been plenty of investigations of past politicians. Trump is not being held to some different standard or being treated unfairly. The attempt to change the conversation to Clinton, or Bush, or Obama, or anyone else is deflection. Trump and his team are under investigation. No need to talk about others.

It seems aix that you are just repeating what Trump tweets out in his moments of frustration. You are using very similar terms that he uses, "witch-hunt", and engaging in the same defenses, "what about Clinton".

 

[Medic007]

Which of the counts in the Manafort indictment should not be filed in a republic with equal application of the law?

That has me laughing out loud.

Maybe they should get James Comey to draft an exoneration letter months before interviewing key players who were central subjects in the investigation but were given immunity deals. Then Comey, the director of the investigative bureau, can make a public announcement that there was extreme carelessness that no reasonable prosecutor would prosecute despite not sending any of the case information to the agency that does prosecutions because the head of that agency tried to meet secretly with the husband of the target of the investigation but got busted so Comey had to scramble to try to protect what little integrity he had left.

 

[CowboyPhil]

The reason people bring up Clinton, Podesta, Obama admin and DoJ is because they were doing just as much if not maybe more shady stuff while in office.

And they need to be prosecuted also. Same with Flynn and whoever else is dirty. I want them all to be hung out. Not just 1 party or the other.

 

[PervisEllison]

Oh please. We've heard for over a year how this campaign/administration is incompetent and didn't "properly" hire people and didn't have the staff available to vet these people.

It's not as if the campaign itself actually needed to "vet" Manafort to know he shouldn't be touched by a serious campaign. This was common knowledge in Washington. Recall that Manafort had managed to put himself on John McCain's radar in 2008, not for the position of campaign manager, but just for the job of organizing the convention, and he concluded that Manafort was too shady and too much of a liability to be trusted with the job almost ten years ago. His reputation has not exactly improved since then.

The press was also on this when Trump brought Manafort aboard. This link is from April of last year, before Trump elevated Manafort to the head of his campaign.

https://www.bloomberg.com/view/arti...al&utm_source=twitter.com&utm_campaign=buffer

Without stating it directly, this article reveals something we would later come to know - that Manafort had already been on the FBI's radar years ago due to his dealings with international fugitive Dmitry Firtash, who financed the rise of the former Kremlin puppet President of the Ukraine, for whom Manafort worked for years.

 

[PervisEllison]

I just want more bodies from both sides of the aisle. Whether Mueller will give us that, we'll see.

It looks like he will.

 

[anon_xl72qcu5isp39]

Maybe they should get James Comey to draft an exoneration letter months before interviewing key players who were central subjects in the investigation but were given immunity deals. Then Comey, the director of the investigative bureau, can make a public announcement that there was extreme carelessness that no reasonable prosecutor would prosecute despite not sending any of the case information to the agency that does prosecutions because the head of that agency tried to meet secretly with the husband of the target of the investigation but got busted so Comey had to scramble to try to protect what little integrity he had left.

Faulkner, is that you? A little punctuation for the reader maybe?

The reason people bring up Clinton, Podesta, Obama admin and DoJ is because they were doing just as much if not maybe more shady stuff while in office.

And they need to be prosecuted also. Same with Flynn and whoever else is dirty. I want them all to be hung out. Not just 1 party or the other.

Yes, if only we had thorough investigations into the last two democrat administrations. Seven different Benghazi investigations, I believe?

I disagree with you that one can know these indictments have no bearing on the election. I don't think one can make such a statement at this point unless one is trying to defend Trump.

Also, the fact that a special counsel is trying to establish leverage doesn't mean this is a witch-hunt. That is what prosecutors and investigators do. People are often not forthcoming with the truth and therefore, pressure has to be brought to bear. Mueller is doing his job.

There is also no need to change the conversation to what other politicians or individuals did and the standard they faced. There have been plenty of investigations of past politicians. Trump is not being held to some different standard or being treated unfairly. The attempt to change the conversation to Clinton, or Bush, or Obama, or anyone else is deflection. Trump and his team are under investigation. No need to talk about others.

It seems aix that you are just repeating what Trump tweets out in his moments of frustration. You are using very similar terms that he uses, "witch-hunt", and engaging in the same defenses, "what about Clinton".

Kelly Ogle bringing some truth to the board today? Usually his two cents on TV are like, we should all be nice or sunshine feels good in the winter.

 

[PervisEllison]

The leverage is the clear intent of the indictment.

This is essentially the decision you face if you are Manafort, who is 68 - the amount of money involved in the financial crimes will set the sentencing guidelines in something like you are going to die in prison territory, and the special counsel's case is based on documentary evidence. Mueller will pressure him to flip on bigger fish in exchange for leniency. On the other hand, you can be absolutely certain that Trump has given pardon assurances. In addition to any direct communication, I believe this to have been the purpose of the White House leaking that Trump had instructed his staff attorneys to begin researching the extent of his pardon powers.

We'll see what he chooses.

 

[anon_xl72qcu5isp39]

This is essentially the decision you face if you are Manafort, who is 68 - the amount of money involved in the financial crimes will set the sentencing guidelines in something like you are going to die in prison territory, and the special counsel's case is based on documentary evidence. Mueller will pressure him to flip on bigger fish in exchange for leniency. On the other hand, you can be absolutely certain that Trump has given pardon assurances. In addition to any direct communication, I believe this to have been the purpose of the White House leaking that Trump had instructed his staff attorneys to begin researching the extent of his pardon powers.

We'll see what he chooses.

Because of Biff's pardon powers, the New York AG is going to weigh heavily into all this, too.