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Trump’s former campaign chairman, Paul Manafort, is registering himself as a foreign agent

Manafort’s Washington consulting firm worked covertly for a pro-Russian political party in Ukraine

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This file photo taken on June 22, 2016, shows Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort checking the podium before Donald Trump speaks at an event in New York City.Photo: AFP
Associated Press

US President Donald Trump’s former campaign chairman Paul Manafort will register with the Justice Department as a foreign agent for lobbying work he did on behalf of political interests in Ukraine, led at the time by a pro-Russian political party, his spokesman said Wednesday.

Manafort is the second Trump campaign adviser to have to register as a foreign agent since the election. The confirmation that he intends to register comes as the Trump administration has been facing heavy scrutiny over the foreign ties of former campaign advisers and other Trump associates.

By registering retroactively, Manafort will be acknowledging that he failed to properly disclose his work to the Justice Department as required by federal law.

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The Justice Department rarely prosecutes such violations of the Foreign Agent Registration Act, but Manafort will now have to publicly and specifically detail his foreign agent work. That includes which American government agencies and officials he sought to influence, how he was paid and the details of contracts he signed as part of the work. Before, Manafort had been able to keep much of that information out of public view.
Paul Manafort talks to reporters on the floor of the Republican National Convention at Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland last July 17. Photo: AP
Paul Manafort talks to reporters on the floor of the Republican National Convention at Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland last July 17. Photo: AP

Manafort began discussions with the government about his lobbying activities after Trump hired him in March 2016, Manafort spokesman Jason Maloni said, although it was unclear whether those conversations occurred before or after Trump forced Manafort to resign in August. Asked on Wednesday whether Manafort intends to register as a foreign agent, Maloni said: “Yes, he is registering.”

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