"Reasons yet to surface" I think should be pretty obvious. Those charges of bank fraud and money laundering were sure to get Gates many years in prison. By making the deal, he's avoided those charges altogether.In a statement Friday, Manafort continued to assert his innocence.
"Notwithstanding that Rick Gates pled today, I continue to maintain my innocence," he wrote. "I had hoped and expected my business colleague would have had the strength to continue the battle to prove our innocence. For reasons yet to surface he chose to do otherwise. This does not alter my commitment to defend myself against the untrue piled up charges contained in the indictments against me."
LA Times
Manafort's probably got more on Trump than any of those who've already pleaded guilty. Manafort's ties to Trump include Russian mob connections and money laundering. Maybe he's expecting a pardon.The special counsel's office has proved adept at securing cooperation from top figures in Trump's orbit. Former White House national security advisor Michael T. Flynn pleaded guilty on Dec. 1 to lying to investigators about his communications with a Russian diplomat during the presidential transition. He admitted to discussing sanctions that former President Obama had implemented to punish Moscow for meddling in the campaign.
There have been other guilty pleas as well.
George Papadopoulos, a former campaign foreign policy advisor, pleaded guilty to lying last year. He had falsely denied contacts with Russians who claimed to have "thousands of emails" on Hillary Clinton.
In addition, Alex van der Zwaan, a former lawyer at a prominent law firm who worked on a report on behalf of Ukraine's pro-Russia government, pleaded guilty on Tuesday. He lied to investigators about his communications with Gates.
...but hey, do what you want...you will anyway.
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