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Donald Trump’s campaign chief Paul Manafort has a history of working with global rogues and dictators.
Mr. Manafort is reported to have helped a pro-Russian party in Ukraine route at least $2.2 million in payments to a pair of prominent Washington lobbying firms in 2012. According to the AP account, the lobbying firms did not register as foreign agents under USA law with the Justice Department, potentially obscuring from public view a foreign political party’s attempts to influence Congress.
The stories build on a major New York Times revelation from earlier in the week that revealed Manafort’s name appears in a ledger the Ukrainian government believes documents illicit cash payments made by the Party of Regions, the political organization that backed deposed Ukrainian president Viktor Yanukovych.
However, they were told by lawyers that disclosure to the Justice Department was not required because they had been assured by the centre that it had no links to Ukraine’s government or political parties.
The requirements, which are much more stringent than other lobbying requirement, fall under the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA) – a law passed during World War II due to fears that the Nazis could influence USA policy and public opinion.
The group paid at least $2.2 million to the Washington firms to push positions favorable to the party from 2012 until 2014, when Yanukovych was ousted and fled to Russian Federation, the AP said, citing sources.
Manafort helped Yanukovych fine tune his image by softening his pro-Russia rhetoric, albeit while being accused of creeping authoritarianism and as Ukraine dropped in global ratings for press freedom.
The money came from the European Centre for a Modern Ukraine, a nonprofit “governed by a board that initially included parliament members” from the ruling Party of Regions, according to AP.
Lobbyists in the United States who represent private entities – such as companies and non-profits – that are based overseas do not have to file under FARA, unless those entities receive financial support or influence from foreign leaders or governments.
The heads of both firms – Podesta Group Inc and Mercury LLC – told the AP they had concluded their work did not merit disclosure to the department, according to the report.
Kimberley Fritts, the Podesta Group’s CEO, said the non-profit signed a statement testifying to its independence from Ukraine’s government.
Rick Gates, another Trump adviser who also worked with Yanukovych, said everything that happened was legal and there was no attempt to circumvent the reporting requirements.
That might not be enough to skirt a FARA violation, if it is found that the client misrepresented the level of its ties.
The foreign agent law is enforced by a relatively small division within the counter-espionage section of the Justice Department’s National Security Division. John has not been with the firm for several years but Tony is its chairman.The AP report comes less than three months before the November 8 election and as polls show Trump slipping behind Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton.Trump’s campaign today announced a shake-up replacing Manafort as campaign manager after just two months.
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Prosecutions under FARA are exceedingly rare, in part because the enforcement system favors voluntary compliance.
