Donald Trump’s campaign chairman, Paul Manafort, resigned from his position on Friday morning following a staff shakeup earlier in the week and increasing scrutiny over his ties to Russian Federation and Ukraine.
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Lewandowski could not immediately be reached for comment, but said on CNN that Manafort is “a true professional” and he wishes him the “absolute very best”.
Manafort joined the campaign during the Republican primaries to manage Trump’s delegate operation.
Manafort had come under fire in recent weeks for his past political activity in Ukraine, which included consulting for Ukraine’s former prime minister Viktor Yanukovych.
The New York Times reported on Monday that Ukrainian anti-corruption investigators were examining ledgers containing references to US$12.7 million in cash payments to Manafort over a five-year period linked to his work for the Party of Regions.
Earlier this week, Trump turned to Bannon to head the floundering campaign and named veteran pollster Kellyanne Conway as campaign manager.
This is second change at the top of Trump’s campaign in little more than two months.
Manafort had also become an additional distraction for the campaign, with reports surfacing this week of his secret lobbying in Washington on behalf of pro-Russian officials in Ukraine, and the failure of Manafort and his deputy, Rick Gates, to disclose their representation of foreign entities – a federal offense.
A pair of Republican congressman have also called for investigations into Manafort’s business past.
Conway told ABC’s “Good Morning America” that Trump personally made a decision to express “regret” over comments that may have offended people during a Thursday evening rally in North Carolina.
“Trump still has to answer serious questions hovering over his campaign given his propensity to parrot Putin’s talking points”, Mook said in the statement.
“Sometimes in the heat of debate and speaking on a multitude of issues, you don’t choose the right words.and believe it or not, I regret it, particularly where it may have caused personal pain”, he told supporters in Charlotte, North Carolina.
A statement from the Trump campaign confirmed that he had resigned as campaign chairman today. He pointed to delegates like himself; Stratford attorney Ben Proto, who now works for the Trump campaign in Connecticut; Justin Clark of West Hartford, who managed Tom Foley’s gubernatorial campaign and took a job with Trump; and Chris Healy, another former state party chairman.
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Clinton has no campaign events today.
