The Trump White House can credibly argue that Paul Manafort was just convicted for a lot of crimes he committed before he was involved with President Trump in any way. As it always seemed, the Russia angle was never going to be a serious problem for Trump.
On the other hand, the hush-money payments that Trump allegedly directed attorney Michael Cohen to pay to Stormy Daniels and Karen McDougal are a lot harder to spin. They demonstrate the very sort of personal sleaze and possible illegality that Trump has exuded ever since the Trump University scandal was still in the air. Not that it should come as a surprise: The man was, after all, a proud philanderer who had boasted about his exploits (surely exaggerating) and about his ability to (ahem) take liberties with women afforded by his celebrity status.
