Politics

Trump Wonders Why Mueller Hasn’t Nailed Podesta Yet

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Saagar Enjeti White House Correspondent
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President Donald Trump believes special counsel Robert Mueller will treat him fairly in his ongoing investigation, but he is curious why charges have not yet been filed against democratic lobbyist Tony Podesta.

“Whatever happened to Podesta?,” the president asked during a wide-ranging New York Times interview published Thursday. “[T]hey closed their firm, they left in disgrace, the whole thing, and now you never heard of anything.”

Trump referenced the apparent scrutiny the Podesta Group is under by Mueller’s team for lobbying work it did in the U.S. on behalf of former Ukranian leader Viktor Yanukovych. The lobbying reportedly resembles the same activity former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort was indicted for by the special counsel.

The Podesta Group, once headed by brother of former Clinton campaign chairman John Podesta, is likely to close by the end of this year. His brother, Tony Podesta, stepped down from his position at the firm in late October.

Trump demurred on the significance of charges against Manafort saying, “Paul only worked for me for a few months.”

“Paul worked for Ronald Reagan. His firm worked for John McCain, worked for Bob Dole, worked for many Republicans for far longer than he worked for me. And you’re talking about what Paul was many years ago before I ever heard of him. He worked for me for — what was it, three and a half months?”

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