Mueller authorized to probe Manafort’s Ukrainian ties

Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein specifically asked special counsel Robert Mueller to investigate Paul Manafort’s ties to Ukrainian politicians as part of Mueller’s probe into Russian interference in the 2016 U.S. presidential election. Rosenstein’s instructions to Mueller, revealed in a legal filing released Monday, included investigating allegations that Manafort “committed a crime or crimes by colluding with Russian government officials.” Last year, Mueller’s team indicted the former Trump campaign manager for various financial crimes and acting as an unregistered foreign agent on behalf of Ukrainian interests. Manafort’s lawyers asked a judge to dismiss the charges, insisting Mueller overstepped his mandate by investigating actions not directly tied to the Trump campaign. But federal prosecutors note Manafort’s relationship with Ukrainian politicians could have influenced his decisions while working for Donald Trump. Mueller’s investigation would “naturally look into any interactions they may have had before and during the campaign to plumb motives and opportunities to coordinate and to expose possible channels for surreptitious communications,” they wrote in Monday’s court filings. “And prosecutors would naturally follow the money trail from Manafort’s Ukrainian consulting activities.” None of the charges against Manafort include conspiring with Russian officials to influence the U.S. election.