As the left and the media ramp up their Manafort-ian mania against Trump, it appears the trail of destruction from special counsel Mueller"s probe has spread to Democratic power-lobbyist Tony Podesta.
As we explained in Aug 2016, Paul Manafort - now under indictment on 12 charges - and his deputy Rick gates previously worked with the Podesta Group, run by Tony Podesta, the brother of Hillary Clinton campaign chairman John Podesta.
...emails obtained by the Associated Press showed that Gates personally directed two Washington lobbying firms, Mercury LLC and the Podesta Group, between 2012 and 2014 to set up meetings between a top Ukrainian official and senators and congressmen on influential committees involving Ukrainian interests. Gates noted in the emails that the official, Ukraine"s foreign minister, did not want to use his own embassy in the United States to help coordinate the visits.
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And this is where the plot thickens, because while the bulk of the press has so far spun the entire Ukraine lobbying scandal, which led to Manafort"s resignation, as the latest "proof" that pro-Moscow powers were influencing not only Manafort but the Trump campaign in general (who some democrats have even painted of being a Putin agent), the reality is that a firm closely tied with the Democratic party, the Podesta Group, is just as implicated.
As AP further adds, the European Center for a Modern Ukraine, a Brussels-linked nonprofit entity which allegely ran the lobbying project, paid Mercury and the Podesta Group a combined $2.2 million over roughly two years. In papers filed in the U.S. Senate, Mercury and the Podesta Group listed the European nonprofit as an independent, nonpolitical client. The firms said the center stated in writing that it was not aligned with any foreign political entity.
And now, just hours after Manafort and Gates handed themselves over to the feds, Politico reports, the founder of the Podesta Group, is stepping down from the lobbying shop that bears his name after coming under investigation by Special Prosecutor Robert Mueller.
Perhaps Podesta knows what is likely to happen next. Podesta announced his decision during a firm-wide meeting Monday morning and is alerting clients of his impending departure.
“[Tony] was very magnanimous and said, “This is an amazing group of people,” a source said of Podesta’s remarks.
Podesta also told staff he “doesn’t intend to go quietly, or learn how to play golf.” He said he “needs to fight this as an individual, but doesn’t want the firm to fight it.”
Fritts also addressed the gathering, telling staff that she is “thrilled at this opportunity” and that, “This is not about me, this is about y’all.”
Several other senior staff spoke about their excitement about the future of the firm. The meeting ended with a standing ovation for Podesta.
One thing is clear, both sides of the swamp should probably control themselves in any premature celebrations as this appears to be far from over.
Here"s one reason why we suspect more than a few on the left are now concerned...
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