C.R.E.A.M. Open Thread: Manafort Trial, Day Two

Day Two: The Judge In Paul Manafort's Case Is Pissed At Prosecutors For Focusing Too Much On His "Luxury" Lifestyle https://t.co/1I4l2N46A6 pic.twitter.com/L5utMRVh8A

— Zoe Tillman (@ZoeTillman) August 1, 2018

… Prosecutors have countered that the evidence about Manafort’s lifestyle is relevant because it goes toward showing how much income he was bringing in during the years in question — income that Manafort is charged with underreporting in his income tax returns.

Manafort is facing 18 counts in Virginia, including filing false income tax returns, failing to report foreign bank accounts, and bank fraud. He is separately facing charges in the US District Court for the District of Columbia; that trial is scheduled to start in September.

On Wednesday morning, the jury heard from Daniel Rabin, a political media consultant who testified that he worked with Manafort in Ukraine to produce dozens of television ads. Before Rabin took the stand, Ellis questioned how much evidence prosecutors needed to put into the record to establish that Manafort did, in fact, do a lot of work in Ukraine — that wasn’t contested, the judge said. Ellis on Tuesday also questioned the amount of evidence prosecutors were asking to put before the jury detailing the extent of Manafort’s work in Ukraine.

The jury heard from FBI Special Agent Matthew Mikuska, who was involved in the search of Manafort’s condo in Alexandria. The judge appeared agitated as Assistant US Attorney Uzo Asonye asked Mikuska to read the contents of documents that agents seized, saying the agent didn’t know anything about the substance of the documents, only that they were found in Manafort’s home.

Mikuska described Manafort’s property as a “luxury” unit, estimating it was about 2,000 square feet. Asonye highlighted a series of documents agents seized from the condo, including financial statements with the names of accounts in Cyprus that prosecutors claim Manafort controlled and failed to report to US authorities, and invoices for home renovations at properties Manafort owned in New York and Florida.

As Asonye had Mikuska describe documents that referred to Manafort’s longtime associate Rick Gates, Ellis questioned why that was necessary, since Gates was expected to testify. (Gates was originally charged with Manafort last fall, but later pleaded guilty and agreed to cooperate with Mueller’s office.) Asonye said there was a chance Gates wouldn’t testify, prompting a stir in the courtroom — much of Manafort’s defense is about blaming Gates for any financial issues, per the opening statement Tuesday from Manafort’s team.

Asonye clarified that as evidence came in, the government was evaluating all of its witnesses, not just Gates…

Protip: don’t roll your eyes. An unctuous shit-eating grin is the safest way to mock a judge.

“why yes, certainly, Your Honor.”https://t.co/OIiPJ5q2Hn

— QHatSecretMessages (@Popehat) August 1, 2018

I agree that that's inappropriate behavior, but I also think it's freakin' hilarious that Manafort's own lawyers are among those doing it. That's gotta make him feel better as he sits in his jail cell.

— SpideyTerry (@SpideyTerry) August 1, 2018

Good profile of Judge Ellis, now presiding over the Manafort trial. I had some hearings before Ellis way back when I was a Special AUSA, and he was tough on lawyers but also super sharp. https://t.co/ND18Y9WTXb

— Orin Kerr (@OrinKerr) August 1, 2018

…As the federal judge in Alexandria oversees the trial of President Trump’s onetime campaign chairman on tax and bank fraud charges, his sharp demeanor comes as no surprise to lawyers who appear before him often.

“He has torn my head off in front of my wife multiple times,” said Kevin Mikolashek, who recently left the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Alexandria to start his own consulting firm.

With degrees from Princeton, Harvard and Oxford and 31 years on the bench, Ellis is formidably sharp. And although he might scold prosecutors for not meeting his high standards, in trials Ellis often uses his intellect to their benefit.

“It’s important for him that everyone in the courtroom knows he is the smartest person in that courtroom, and just be aware that he usually is,” defense lawyer John Zwerling says he warns lawyers who are new to the District. “So you better be on your A game.”

Ellis regularly interrupts trial testimony with his own questions and demands that certain lines of inquiry be cut short, clearing up ambiguity that defense attorneys hoped to create. More than one lawyer has tried to block him from doing so with pretrial motions or mid-case demands for a mistrial. Several have appealed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit, arguing that Ellis’s interventions made a fair trial impossible.

The appeals court has repeatedly struck down those claims, saying Ellis’s questions were posed in the service of clarity…

In sentencing hearings, Ellis preaches a gospel of personal responsibility, giving the same speech to every guilty party, from American Taliban fighter John Walker Lindh to a low-level drug dealer: “Life is making choices and living with the consequences of the choices we make.”…

Sounds like Trump’s worst nightmare, doesn’t he?

When you're trying a "paper case" and you've got all the paper, there ain't a lot to debate.

Paulie Walnuts could be toting around his first set of convictions with two weeks.

That may not sway Manafort to flip – yet – but it's sure gonna send a message to other Trumpies. https://t.co/g90AY40tzq

— The Hoarse Whisperer (@HoarseWisperer) August 1, 2018

We've wrapped up for the day (early!) One significant thing from the govt: They say they're ahead of schedule (the judge has *really* been pushing them to be speedy), and expect to finish up their case in chief next week.

— Zoe Tillman (@ZoeTillman) August 1, 2018

In fairness, that wasn't an entirely cockamamie scheme.

— (((drbloor))) (@docbloor) August 2, 2018

“Contributing Editor at National Review”:

"man up and pardon him" pic.twitter.com/tnjj758d4k

— Foe to Princes ? (@ifthedevilisix) August 2, 2018

A reminder:

As we tuck in for the eve&reflect upon Manafort’s day in court- Let’s remember, In 1980, Manafort &Roger Stone started a lobbying firm.
DJT was 1 of their 1st clients &employed them into the 1990s.
When Manafort joined the campaign, @realDonaldTrump knew EXACTLY who Manafort was

— Stephanie Ruhle (@SRuhle) August 1, 2018