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Special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation into possible collusion between President Donald Trump’s presidential campaign and Russia is complete, and it doesn’t look like there will be any more indictments.
But after nearly two years of work, we know that five key Trump associates committed crimes — because they’ve pleaded guilty to them.
Congress may soon have a chance to see the final report — or at least a summary of its findings — and learn if the president and others around him, may have been involved.
But for now, it’s worth remembering that people close to Trump actually did admit to doing criminal things.
Here’s the list:
- Michael Flynn, Trump’s national security adviser, on one count of lying to the FBI
- Rick Gates, Trump’s former deputy campaign manager and Manafort protégé, on one count of conspiracy against the United States and one count of making false statements to FBI agents
- George Papadopoulos, a low-level Trump foreign policy adviser, for making false statements to the FBI about his contacts with Russians during the campaign
- Michael Cohen, Trump’s former lawyer and fixer, who pleaded guilty to lying to Congress about a possible Trump Organization real estate project in Moscow that was under consideration during the 2016 presidential campaign.
- Paul Manafort, Trump’s former campaign chair, who pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy against the US and one count of conspiracy to obstruct justice.
Let’s be clear about what all of this means: There are now five people who worked for Trump — both at the very top and near the bottom — who have admitted to committing serious crimes (none of which, crucially, are about colluding with Russia during the 2016 presidential election).
But it’s also very possible that this list will grow when and if Mueller’s report becomes public. Roger Stone, a longtime Trump friend and adviser, is currently on trial for his alleged interactions with WikiLeaks, the organization that released emails from the Clinton campaign stolen by Russia.
As of now there is no public evidence that Trump himself committed a crime. But it’s increasingly clear that when he hired people, he wasn’t hiring the best.
