MICHAEL COHEN/PAUL MANAFORT/ROBERT MUELLER/RUSSIA INVESTIGATION/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “The special counsel’s office and President Trump found themselves in rare agreement on Friday [11-30-18] over Mr. Trump’s former campaign chairman Paul Manafort: Nothing is off the table. Prosecutors for the special counsel, Robert S. Mueller III, said in court that they have not decided whether to charge Mr. Manafort with additional crimes after accusing him this week of lying to investigators in violation of his plea agreement…As for Mr. Trump, upon hearing that Mr. Manafort was facing more prison time, he had said earlier this week that while he had not specifically discussed pardoning Mr. Manafort, he ‘wouldn’t take it off the table.’ The two prospective opposing outcomes for Mr. Manafort — possible additional charges, or a pardon wiping away the 10 felony crimes he has pleaded guilty to or been convicted of — helped cap a week of significant developments in the special counsel investigation. In addition to accusing Mr. Manafort of lying to federal investigators, Mr. Trump’s former personal lawyer and fixer, Michael D. Cohen, pleaded guilty on Thursday to lying to Congress about the depth of Mr. Trump’s involvement in talks about a potential business deal in Russia while he campaigned for president.”
–Eileen Sullivan and Sharon LaFraniere, “Manafort’s Fate Is Open-Ended. On This, Trump and the Mueller Team Agree.,” The New York Times online, November 30, 2018