READ: The Op-Ed Manafort Is Accused Of Ghostwriting With A Russian Asset

[spotthebird]

Source: TPM

...
The draft op-ed was provided to TPM by Oleg Voloshyn, a former spokesman for Ukraines ministry of foreign affairs under the strongly pro-Russian president Viktor Yanukovych. Voloshyn claims to be its author, a claim first reported Tuesday by Bloomberg.
...

The draft op-ed, which can be read in full at the bottom of this article, could be described as a love letter to Manafort, crediting him with a number of pro-Western advances in Ukraine:

[p] [O]ne shouldnt ignore the fact that Ukraine under Yanukovych made a number of major steps towards the EU and the West in general. And that Manafort was among those who made those paradoxical accomplishments real.
[p]It was that period when Ukraine finally met US requirements to get rid of the stocks of highly enriched uranium that could have potentially been used to produce nuclear weapons. Ukraine used to be the only non-NATO nation that took part in all peace-keeping and anti-terrorist operations of the Alliance world-wide.
[p] With an eye towards 2015, the Yanukovych government to the surprise of so many in Moscow managed to negotiate with the EU huge list of terms of Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area (DCFTA). No other nation had accomplished this task over such a brief period of time. Yanukovychs government had the Association Agreement initialed by March of 2012. This pace shocked Moscow.
[p]This sense of commitment to the goal is actually the reason why Russia overreacted in the summer 2013 and imposed the trade blockade with Ukraine.
[p]Following the European track created multiple challenges that would never had been solved by a Ukraine Government except for the consistent promotion of what had to be done by Paul Manafort.

Read more: http://talkingpointsmemo.com/muckraker/manafort-op-ed-kilimnik

[underthematrix]

1. This should be deleted

[sandensea]

2. Why? Spotthebird isn't endorsing Manafort or his views - and this is fairly big news currently.

At most, it should be moved to General Discussion; but surely not deleted outright.

[underthematrix]

3. It's not supposed to be public

It's under seal

[hlthe2b]

4. TPM is a reputable news site/blog and once the media has it, publishes it, there is no reason why it

cannot be further distributed.

[spotthebird]

6. It is public, so we shouldn't see it?

It's new news. Goes to Manafort's team propaganda mindset.

Not sure I understand your complaint.

[George II]

7. Let's make a deal, if TPM deletes their article then you can delete you OP....

...otherwise it's fine to me.

[spotthebird]

8. If TPM takes it down, it's all good

But the article Manafort prepared is in no way persuasive, it is a joke.

[George II]

11. Nor is it a secret now that TPM has published it.

[underthematrix]

9. Your reply demonstrates how we got to Trump. Just because you can doesn't mean you should

We used to call it an ethical and/or moral compass

[spotthebird]

10. If it isn't posted here it isn't public? Huh?

There is nothing unethical about spreading information that will be everywhere. This isn't some black site re-post, enough.

Also, if this is the best Manafort could do, it's no wonder that they got caught.

[still_one]

12. No, we got trump because Comey sent a letter to the republicans in Congress, and the MEDIA FALSELY

reported it as "the email investigation had been reopened", and they paraded every right wing Politian across their screen for the next several hours 11 days before the election.

Of course it didn't help that some self-identified progressives refused to vote for the Democratic nominee, and either voted 3rd party, or refused to vote.

Noam Chomsky said it best: "Progressives who refused to vote for Hillary Clinton made a 'bad mistake'

https://www.rawstory.com/2016/11/noam-chomsky-progressives-who-refused-to-vote-for-hillary-clinton-made-a-bad-mistake/

but what really made it the perfect storm:

Every Democrat running for Senate in the critical swing states, lost to the establishment, incumbent, republican, and most of those Democrats were quite progressive like Russ Feingold

Those who didn't have the moral compass were those that refused to vote for the Democratic nominee, and thus aided a racist, sexist, bigot to occupy the WH, and allow Garland to be on the SC

[Baconator]

15. Keep that up and you'll lose again in 2020...

[herding cats]

16. "You'll" not we?

I don't agree with your premise, but I do find that an interesting choice of wording.

[still_one]

17. Speaks volumes doesn't it.

[GulfCoast66]

18. Nice catch. Someone is getting sloppy

And there is always a ‘tell’ if they go on long enough

[Baconator]

19. I'm learning my lessons from 2016...

[vsrazdem]

13. I would think that if this was provided by the author

and he wished it to be public, they have every right to provide it publicly.

[pnwmom]

5. I don't think we should be helping to publicize a propaganda piece that Mueller put under seal.

Please consider deleting the OP.

[TomCADem]

14. For a Guy Subject to a Gag Order...

...he is working pretty hard to spin his case.