WTF Community

Day 512

General Discussion
#11

Maybe it is a protective feature, this kind of news is hard to take. :disappointed_relieved:

I had been copying articles from the beginning because of all the jaw-dropping news, so I can just do a search in my computer. The kink about saving his emails via drafts I did remember, especially from his daughters emails (even though they were hacked.)

“Cavelier, crass, mindblowing behavior from T…” as heard on MSNBC on Chris Hayes show just now.

Yes, we are all TOO FULL of this horrendous situation. :unamused:
It would be nice to clear the this c%#p outta here!

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#12

Go Dianne Feinstein! :eyes: Watching and :calling:calling (said thank you because they were already on it​:sunglasses:)

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#13

Well, here’s a happy thought: the once-rich & used-to-the-finer-things Manafort will be sleeping with cockroaches tonight. :rofl: (they said the place he’s going is known for them everywhere, hee hee!)

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#14

Yup, he has been downgraded …but to a VIP-1 room. You have to wonder whether he’ll be subjected to more degradation than just the scampering of large bugs. He seems pretty hard-headed to me.

@kylegriffin1 (nbc news)
Paul Manafort has been locked up in a Virginia jail tonight.

An inmate database shows that Manafort was booked into the Northern Neck Regional Jail in Warsaw, Virginia, at 8:22 PM.

Jail records listed his housing unit as “VIP-1.” https://www.nbcnews.com/news/crime-courts/paul-manafort-headed-jail-after-witness-tampering-allegation-n883596

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#15

Well, well, well…

A judge in New York City has ruled in favor of a bar that kicked someone out for wearing a “Make America Great Again” hat. According to the New York Post, Philadelphian Greg Piatek was booted from The Happiest Hour in January of 2017, just after Donald Trump’s inauguration, because he was wearing a red MAGA cap.

So the 31-year-old sued the place, claiming the incident “offended his sense of being American,” according to the lawsuit. But according to The Happiest Hour’s lawyer, Elizabeth Conway, political beliefs are not protected from discrimination by law - only religious beliefs are.

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#16

Thanks for the lead. I don’t know why, but I’m completely fascinated by this. The NBC News article you posted led me to the jail’s website and the inmate database. This is the record for Prisoner 45343:

manafort's%20prisoner%20record
manafort's%20prisoner%20record1170×953 57.6 KB

I see you can visit Paul on Fridays.

OK, I’m officially cheesed off. I patiently clicked on every single page of the database (obviously I have way too much time on my hands) and determined that, in this entire facility, Prisoner 45343 is the only inmate listed with a location of “VIP” – to my mind, that stinks. Why does he alone deserve a “VIP” location? I can understand the need to separate violent inmates from nonviolent ones, but there are plenty of other nonviolent prisoners in this facility. I don’t see why he merits his own special location. I sure hope they’re not preparing special meals for him and delivering them to his VIP location – he should eat the same meals in the same dining area as everyone else.

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#17

Foldering…hmm. Now the world knows how to hide messages people don’t want recorded, interesting. The s#%&t storm seems to have increased in intensity is that a physics sign I wonder? Are we near a crest? Maybe Giuliani and Sessions should join Mr. Manafort for awhile.

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#18

But he’s had a hand in killing people too, even if he kept his own hands “clean”. He sure isn’t MY idea of a VIP either! He needs the full prison “experience” IMO.

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#19

Well, true if he’s been given possible special treatment…and he’s guilty of white collar crimes, as well as treasonous ones…he is still locked up, wearing orange prison garb…and from what I see, it is NOT a picnic. He is being held against his will, and can not access WhatsApp etc.

Ours is not to question why here perhaps…but I see why people might find it irksome. it is a STEP towards punishment.

Read from this WhiteCollar advice column on imprisonment…

My day was non-negotiable. It was my routine, my structure enabling me to prepare for all the obstacles that would await me

my early weeks who were literally watching paint dry. Others would just watch TV all day until mail call came.

There are aspects of imprisonment that are uncomfortable.

And if Friday’s in the afternoon for an hour visit is it, that’s gotta be a well like being in prison. Just saying. :open_mouth:

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#20

True. I was just looking up some of Manafort’s former clients, among them the brutal strongman Mobutu Sese Seko of Zaïre (you don’t even want to read about some of the heinous acts he has perpetrated). I came across the thoroughly researched report by the Center for Public Integrity, titled “The Torturers’ Lobby,” that ranked the lobbying firm of Black, Manafort, Stone and Kelly among the top five firms supporting regimes that abuse human rights and practice torture for the years 1991-1992 (p. 7). And this is the guy Trump hired as his Campaign Chairman.

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#21

Yes, you’re right. It’s got to be quite a step down from a luxury condo to a jail cell and from an Armani suit to orange overalls.

Something else I was thinking about: it’s especially important to look out for his safety since he is a crucial potential witness in the Trump-Russia investigation. I said I thought he should be eating the same food as everyone else; now that I’ve taken a deep breath and given it further consideration, I’m thinking the jail authorities do know best and are probably screening his meals, considering how many powerful people, both here and in Russia, would like to see Manafort absent from the witness pool.

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#22

I’ve been thinking along the same lines…that he’s afraid to flip because of those in his underworld connections (including our “dear” POTUS, I might add) that certainly want him silenced…and now that it looks like he’s at least some risk, they just might try anyway. There have been suspicious deaths on our shores too…he’d not be the first.

#23

Good point…keep an eye out for those who would want to do him harm.

You might wonder as well, if he might have his own poison pill. Would he?

Yes, authorities are keeping a GOOD :policewoman::eye: on him.

#24

With his connections he could get something smuggled in I’m sure. Also Russian intelligence has lots of methods. His brazen actions to witness tamper says a lot IMO, he suspects at least a pardon possibly in exchange for?

What was in the shredded documents Cohen had?

#25

http://www.mcclatchydc.com/news/politics-government/article213115049.html

Another indication that Cohen may flip on Trump.

A lawyer who turned down overtures from Cohen’s camp said he did so because he wasn’t experienced in plea deals, which he said was one of the areas of strength Cohen had been seeking in new legal representation.

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#26

While Mueller has handed off to the SDNY the investigation of a host of financial crimes by Cohen, Mueller’s team continues hot on the trail of Cohen’s alleged collusion with Russia in our Presidential election.

“My personal opinion is that Michael Cohen is the target of this investigation,” Andrii Artemenko said in an interview with ABC News on Thursday. “I can’t share with you the details of the questions, but from my understanding, they’re keeping going with this investigation.” . . .

He said he concluded that investigators remain interested in Cohen because they spent so much time asking him about his relationship and meetings Cohen, both in interviews and during his sworn appearance before the grand jury.

If Artemenko’s observations are correct, they suggest Mueller could have a separate, parallel probe looking at Cohen’s ties to Russia. Cohen has repeatedly professed his innocence and denounced the Mueller investigation as a witch hunt.

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#27

This isn’t new. Remember David Petraeus?

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/worldviews/wp/2012/11/12/heres-the-e-mail-trick-petraeus-and-broadwell-used-to-communicate/?utm_term=.daabbd589f9e

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#28

@Matt Great find! The article you linked to about “foldering” mentions that this technique was used in the 2008 spy film “Traitor.” That has to be where Manafort got the idea. :wink:

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#29

Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) said on Monday that he will back legislation to prevent the separation of immigrant families along the border, solidifying Democratic support for the bill.

Manchin’s decision means all 49 members of the Democratic caucus, which includes independent Sens. Bernie Sanders (Vt.) and Angus King (Maine), are signing on to the legislation.

While this legislation may die in the House, it’s still very important that we get the Republicans on the record with an up or down vote before midterms.

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#30

In this post above about Manafort’s jail status, I linked to the jail’s inmate database that allowed you to see Manafort’s entry (Prisoner 45343). The jail has taken down Manafort’s listing saying it was a mistake that it was posted in the first place since they normally keep high-profile inmates “under wraps.” They also claim that Manafort is not being given preferential treatment and I hope that is true. At the same time, I hope they are taking particular care to keep him safe both for his sake and the sake of the Trump-Russia investigation.

(I intentionally posted this in Friday’s thread (Day 512) since it seems to fit here.)

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