Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., said Friday he hopes former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort can testify in Congress soon now that he has pleaded guilty to charges brought by special counsel Robert Mueller and has agreed to cooperate.
“If he cooperates fully and truthfully on all matters within the scope of the special counsel’s investigation, Manafort may provide important information and insight into the Trump campaign’s links to and possible cooperation with Russia,” Schiff said in a statement. “I would also hope that his cooperation includes testifying before congressional committees.”
Manafort entered into a plea agreement with federal prosecutors Friday that includes a 10-year cap on prison time in the former lobbyist’s sentence. Additionally, the plea allows him to serve time from two cases concurrently and throws out 10 charges that jurors in Manafort’s August trial were unable to reach a consensus on in exchange for his “successful cooperation” with Mueller.
[Opinion: Don’t pardon Paul Manafort]
Schiff indicated that Manafort may now be able to help lawmakers get to the bottom of whether Trump’s campaign worked with Russians to defeat Hillary Clinton. But it was unclear on Friday whether the agreement has anything to do with the president or if it is focused on Manafort providing information about others who could face later charges.
Those close to Trump have tried to convince him that pardoning Manafort would be a misstep. Trump’s attorney, Rudi Guiliani, has previously said that Trump has agreed not to pardon Manafort, at least until the midterm elections are over.
Giuliani on Friday called Manafort’s plea deal more evidence that Mueller’s investigation has no evidence of collusion between those within the Trump orbit and Russia.
“Once again, an investigation has concluded with a plea having nothing to do with President Trump or the campaign. The reason: the president did nothing wrong and Paul Manafort will tell the truth,” Giuliani said after news broke of the plea agreement.
Giuliani was joined by White House press secretary Sarah Sanders, who told reporters that the deal “had absolutely nothing to do with the president or his victorious 2016 presidential campaign.”
Still, Schiff said the Manafort decision was a big win for Mueller.
“Paul Manfort’s belated decision to plead guilty, admit allegations against him, and agree to cooperate with prosecutors is a significant victory for special counsel Robert Mueller,” Schiff said. “Mueller not only secures another set of convictions against Trump’s campaign manager, but the plea and cooperation agreement free up time for Mueller’s team to focus on other critical parts of the investigation.”
The former Trump campaign chairman was found guilty in late August of eight of the 18 charges Mueller brought against him. Manafort was found guilty of five counts of tax fraud, one count of failure to file reports of foreign bank and financial accounts, and other charges.
