Discussion: Tax Preparer Testifies On Manafort And Gates' Denials About Foreign Bank Accounts

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“I thought I was checking not no”

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TOTALLY busted!

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Following the WP again, if I were on the jury, I would be putting the butter dish out. It seems like he is toast.

But having sat on a jury in a trial that seemed a cinch for the prosecutors and then it did a 180, things can change radically at this point.

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Sweating yet, Dotard?

You should be. Mr. Mueller has been fastidious in documenting criminal activity, and your up next in the battered box…

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True - But how does something like this spin.

Not a lawyer but trying to imagine such a line: Evidence that the wife really does have and control a bank account that was used to buy the house, and it just so happens that the specific account was in Cyprus. Oh, and she opened (and closed it) just around the time of the purchase of the house - so technically she didn’t have to declare it on her taxes?

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Does Manafort’s wife testify? I was under the impression they’re not on good terms.

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Did she know the size of his clothes budget before now ? Hers can hardly have been larger…

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No idea. I am trying to see how they can pin this on Gates and Manafort was just the poor, unsuspecting rube. Seems pretty clear to me he was hiding his wealth. The Odd invoices still puzzle me in how they might be used.

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He cheated on her with at least one other person, but on the other hand she has been in the court-room, and if she’s there to gloat she’s also hiding it fairly well.

Anyway, asking her to support his lies about the purchase of this house would be … risky. Yes, the purchase was done via an LLC owned by the family, but the $3,000,000 payment was made in cash, and every cent can be traced to an account in Cyprus that his wife may not even have known about. He may try to blame Gates, but even that would be ridiculous in this instance.

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Inflating value of items to be sold on the black market (through a third party of course) - and voila laundered money at an inflated rate?

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I think the judge is wrong in blocking pictures of Manafort’s extravagance.

Manafort’s defense is that Gates handled the money while Manafort bon vivanted around the globe on business.

The photos will show a level of attention to detail that will cast doubt on a defense that he was indifferent about the handling of his millions.

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That confused me a bit. Some of those invoices were for services. I thought they might be used to pad business expenses somehow for tax purposes. I could see your point on inflating the improvements to a property for later sale in the regard.

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Paulie is toast.

In Mueller I trust.

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Any wonder why Prez Con is freaking out while watching his henchman’s tax returns exposed in court?

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Look, a lot of very good people don’t declare their foreign bank accounts. And not paying taxes helps to “starve the beast” so maybe he deserves a medal. And, if he does it, it’s not a crime, it’s a fake crime. We all know that there are no witches, just fake witches. So the witch hunt has found a fake crime done by a fake witch.

Where’s Trey Gowdy? He’s just the guy to look into this.

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Pure speculation, based on initial reporting (and speculation) when Manafort was first indicted. I have no idea either.

Perhaps he was laundering for Oligarchs - and needed to inflate/pad to receive his “cut”/“fee” for the laundering service?

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Best Part: Manifort tax evasion and money laundering case is shake down cruise for the Trumpster inner circle.

How many law, revenue and intelligence personnel- New York, Federal and international- saw Orange Pustule Hitler ride down escalator and had thought bubbles like: “HAY, THAT JACKASS CAN’T BE PRESIDENT, HE IS FRIGGIN’ CROOK!- AND I HAVE TO BOXES OF EVIDENCE IN THE OFFICE?”

My guess, more that several score.

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Awaiting the “Steve Martin defense”: “I forgot!!”

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He is aghast of the indecency of exposing tax returns. Not Done !

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