Trump Blames FBI for Not Warning Him About Paul Manafort

“[W]e should have been told that Comey and the boys were doing a number on him.”

Bill Clark/CQ Roll Call/Newscom via ZUMA

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President Donald Trump has been known to boast about only hiring the best people, but in hindsight says he could’ve used some help. On Sunday, Trump complained that the FBI didn’t inform him that his own campaign chairman was under investigation during the 2016 presidential campaign. Trump downplayed the role of Paul Manafort, who has been indicted by special counsel Robert Mueller on multiple counts of money laundering, fraud, and conspiracy against the United States, and said “we should have been told that Comey and the boys were doing a number on him.” 

If only there had been some way for the Trump campaign to know that Manafort, a resident of Trump Tower—who’d made his fortune as a political consultant to dictators and had largely been absent from Republican politics for two decades—was involved in some shady business. Like, say, Google.

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BEFORE YOU CLICK AWAY!

“Lying.” “Disgusting.” “Scum.” “Slime.” “Corrupt.” “Enemy of the people.” Donald Trump has always made clear what he thinks of journalists. And it’s plain now that his administration intends to do everything it can to stop journalists from reporting things they don’t like—which is most things that are true.

No one gets to tell Mother Jones what to publish or not publish, because no one owns our fiercely independent newsroom. But that also means we need to directly raise the resources it takes to keep our journalism alive. There’s only one way for that to happen, and it’s readers like you stepping up. Please help with a donation today if you can—even a few bucks will make a real difference. A monthly gift would be incredible.

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