Here is the one hundred fifty-first article in our Republicans on Parade series, featuring individuals who personify what the Republican Party has become. Today’s winner is a Republican Judge TS Ellis. He is so honored for goose-stepping by sentencing Trump’s Collusion Specialist, Paul Manafart, to far less than he deserves.
The sentencing of Paul Manafort, former chairman of President Trump’s campaign, was highly anticipated, capping a significant chapter in Robert S. Mueller III’s special counsel investigation. But it was an unlikely candidate to become the latest example of a conflict that has vexed legal professionals and activists for decades: systemic inequality in the criminal justice system.
Yet, as a federal judge handed down his sentence in jam-packed Alexandria, Va., courtroom Thursday, and observers digested the judge’s decision — 47 months — Manafort’s case was immediately perceived as a high-profile instance of the justice system working one way for a wealthy, well-connected man, while working in another, harsher, way for indigent defendants facing lesser crimes.
“Paul Manafort’s lenient 4-year sentence — far below the recommended 20 years despite extensive felonies and post-conviction obstruction — is a reminder of the blatant inequities in our justice system that we all know about, because they reoccur every week in courts across America,” said Ari Melber, a legal analyst for NBC News, in a Thursday-night tweet…. [emphasis added]
Inserted from <Washington Post>
Rachel Maddow spent 29 minutes in her opening segment on Manfart.
Even the conservative Forbes Magazine said Ellis has a conservative pedigree.
As a result, Democrats have said he should have recused himself, as this video shows.
Fortunately, in spite of Ellis’ goose-stepping, Manafart will get a fair sentence in his other trial. The Judge there us Amy Berman Jackson, an Obama appointee.
RESIST!!
15 Responses to “Republicans on Parade – 3/8/2019”
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Unreal !! I couldn’t believe what I heard on the news yesterday. Ellis should have recused himself! After what he’s (Manafort) has done, he got a ‘walk in the park’, compared to a first time offender who is caught by the federal government with 200 grams of heroin for sale, he or she faces 5 to 40 years in federal prison and a fine of up to $5 million. *criminal. find law.
Let us hope that Manafor’s too-light sentence is spent in a privately-run prison with rotten food, inadequate medical attention, and underpaid guards who have shitty attitudes and the compassion of buzzards.
I think what gripes me in a way even more than the sentence itself was the phrase “blameless life.” (Nameless I gather had the same reaction, and I hope can share here the photo he used at Daily Kos.) Nothing about Manafort’s life has been blameless. Nothing.
Now, there once was a fellow named Judas, who actually DID live a blameless life … until he didn’t.
“The Atlantic Monthly” has a good article covering SOME of Manafort’s malfeasances in his “otherwise blameless life”.
Well, Judas can be seen as helping the Christian God fulfill his plan, at that God’s behest. So, if there is a heaven, he may be one of the angels.
I think everyone does serve God – but HOW it is done has consequences.
I’ve kept a close eye on TS Ellis behavior since I read his court nickname is “The Rocket Docket”. I have little tolerance for those imperial judges who view it as “MY courtroom”.
It is NOT “your” courtroom – it’s the peoples’ courtroom. And you are our employee – so comport yourself appropriately and act with some decorum. His “Judge Judy” type of showboating is an affront to our judicial system.
I hope Judge Jackson gives Manafort the maximum sentence – and makes them run consecutively, rather than concurrently.
Yeah! . . . just like Trump says “My administration”! A pair of right wing mental gnats (my apologies to the insect gnats of the world.)
BTW, I totally agree with your last thought — max to run consecutively. Had my mother been in the courtroom, Manafart would have received the max sentence! She was a tough JP when she had to be.
I was appalled when I heard the sentence Judge Ellis handed down. I too hope Judge Jackson hands down the maximum sentence for Manafort to serve consecutively.
This clown of a judge was appointed by St. Reagan. How about that for a pedigree?
Yes, no concurrent sentencing for Mr. Blameless.
I didn’t follow this too closely during the past weeks, but when I heard Manafort got the lowest sentence possible from this Virginian judge, my first reaction was: That judge must be a Republican. No rocket science needed to come to that conclusion, was there. It is all to clear that judge T.S. Ellis III (the name is a give-away of sorts) would have been much happier if the jury has been hung on all counts, not just 10, so he did what he could to minimize the damage.
Judge T.S. Ellis III had already shown some very biased behaviour during the trial, which must have had some influence on the jury too, enough to recuse himself based on that behaviour. But he didn’t and now it would be pertinent for some investigative journalist to dig a bit deeper into Ellis’ background, into the people he has communicated with over this trial en perhaps even into some flow of money. Ellis surely has put himself up for that.
Let’s hope judge Amy Berman Jackson will hand down a more fair sentence to Manafort next week, but I hate to be in her shoes right now. Her reasoning for any sentence, low or high in years and consecutive or not, must be exemplary to maintain her credibility and not lose it as Judge T.S. Ellis III did.
This so-called judge is a joke. 47 months for what they were originally saying he could get up to 25 years or more was a slap on the hand. With these types of clowns in our courts who are continuing to make decisions like these, it’s going to make us the laughing stock of the world.. A real disgrace.
Nothing like having a partisan judge! But then, there is SCROTUS too! It is one thing to be conservative in judging cases. It is quite another to be partisan. Forty-seven months for Manafart’s list of crimes? Undeniably a partisan decision. The decision was a Heil Drumpfenfarten salute! I hope Judge Berman Jackson is fair but does not cave to right wing partisan shenanigans! I somehow think she will be fair and give Manafart a substantial consecutive sentence. But will the Fuhrer pardon him?
Parade definitely warranted. Ellis, the “Rocket Docket” Judge should be sanctioned for going well below the minimum recommended sentence.
BTW, you had TS Elliot in several places so I changed to TS Ellis. Ellis defames Eliot, one of my favourite poets. My favourite poem was about cats and I remember writing an English paper on it and Eliot. From Wikipedia:
needed more punishment! he is hoping to be Pardoned!
Thanks, Hugs, and Amen to all.
I suspect Jackson will go 8 – 10 concurrent.