White House says Manafort plea is 'totally unrelated' to Trump's 'victorious' campaign

Rudy Giuliani.
(Image credit: Getty Images)

The former chairman of President Trump's campaign has pleaded guilty to two federal crimes and is reportedly cooperating with Special Counsel Robert Mueller. The White House says this doesn't have anything to do with the president whatsoever.

Paul Manafort, who worked on the Trump campaign from March to August 2016, pleaded guilty Friday to one count of conspiracy to defraud the United States and one count of conspiracy to obstruct justice, The Washington Post reports. He is accused of avoiding $15 million in taxes by storing his money in offshore accounts, as well as witness-tampering and working as an unregistered lobbyist on behalf of Ukraine before his time with the Trump campaign.

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Brendan Morrow

Brendan worked as a culture writer at The Week from 2018 to 2023, covering the entertainment industry, including film reviews, television recaps, awards season, the box office, major movie franchises and Hollywood gossip. He has written about film and television for outlets including Bloody Disgusting, Showbiz Cheat Sheet, Heavy and The Celebrity Cafe.