Let us hope that the Untouchables’ witness protection detail is rock-solid.
Who are these people, tried Google on a couple of them, coming up with that looks like no one.
I don’t know these people…and google is of little help. Anyone know?
Cindy Laporta appears to be a CPA in DC:
https://www.kwccpa.com/people/cynthia-laporta/
Dennis Raico appears to be a mortgage banker from Federal Savings Bank in Chicago:
https://www.zoominfo.com/p/Dennis-Raico/-1923425688
https://www.linkedin.com/in/dennis-raico-5458a174
So, Mueller wanted them anonymous until they testify and TPM is divulging their names.
Why?
There’s a Conor O’Brien in the DC area who is a director at a cyber security consulting firm.
Edited to add: before moving to the cyber security firm, this O’Brien was very much in the investment banking industry…
It’s in the very first sentence of the article.
A federal judge unsealed their names. Afraid this wasn’t the result of TPM super-sleuths.
Because “a federal judge Monday unsealed the names of five witnesses granted immunity by special counsel Robert Mueller”, as the article says right at the beginning. Their names are now a matter of public record.
Because the Judge revealed them
Bunch of financial/corporate functionaries, by the looks of it. Money-laundering or bank fraud involves instructing people to open and close bank accounts, corporate entities, sign contracts etc; and to agree to perform certain financial transactions while turning a blind eye to the nature of the transactions. If you’re one of these people, you want to get immunity before you disclose your part in the proceedings. Relatively straightforward to craft the requisite immunity deals. I would guess that these witnesses will be most cooperative, out of sheer self-preservation. We’ll find out soon enough.
The trial starts Wednesday so the press only has a day or two to run them down. If they are really important witnesses and Mueller thinks they might be tampered with, I am sure he has them under wraps.
The article says a Federal Judge unsealed the names. So it is now public info.
I had a couple of jolts of excitement for a moment reading that list. Conan O’Brien is testifying against Manafort??? Oh wait., Conor O’Brien. John Brennan is being given immunity??? Oh, James Brennan. Never mind.
The judge found Mueller’s squeezing Manafort for evidence he can use agains Trump “distasteful”? Just how would he characterize Trump’s behavior since Trump first announced his candidacy?
When I lived up there, we spent a lot of time guessing. There was a contest for day and time. Right now, things feel very much like that. Not if, but when this all begins to break. I hear cracks.
Doesn’t appear that many read down through the comments …either —
Can’t wait to hear Conan O’Brien’s testimony. That dude is hilarious. Hope Mueller pulls in Colbert as the surprise guest witness and then ends it all with Trump being frogmarched in with his two dopey sons. It’d be the best trial ever.