LEGAL/PAUL MANAFORT/ROBERT MUELLER/TRUMP PEOPLE: “We’ve reached the end. Paul Manafort’s defense team has rested, presenting no evidence and calling no witnesses to testify, including President Donald Trump’s former campaign chairman himself. Wednesday [8-15-18] morning, special counsel Robert Mueller’s team and Manafort’s defense lawyers will deliver their closing arguments — sure to be impassioned, detailed speeches that look back over the 10 days of testimony. Then the jury will deliberate the 18 criminal bank fraud, tax and foreign banking charges. This is the first case brought to trial by Mueller, who is currently leading the probe into allegations of Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election…Without a doubt, the prosecution will try to convince the jury that Manafort sent fake documents to banks, lied to his accountants and bookkeeper, signed federal disclosures that failed to report his foreign banking to federal agencies, and pushed his Ukrainian lobbying money into lavish purchases, avoiding income taxes on millions of dollars…it’s not entirely clear yet how Manafort’s lawyers will crystallize the testimony from 10 days of witnesses. In the opening statement to the jury July 31, defense attorney Thomas Zehnle described how Manafort trusted his banking and tax contacts, his bookkeeper, even Gates ‘to make sure things were done right.’ It appears then, based on the opening statement, that the defense will point the finger at the people around Manafort who admitted in court they did wrong on his behalf. The defense team will reuse the witness’ statements, making clear to the jurors that they should doubt Manafort’s crimes were his alone, done willfully.”
–Katelyn Polantz, “What Mueller and Manafort need to do in closing arguments,” CNN Politics, CNN.com, August 14, 2018 7:17 pm