Trump and Manafort coordinate in the Russian probe

Until now, Manafort is the only American charged by Mueller who chose to go to trial rather than cooperate, and he is already facing jail years as a result of his sentencing to Alexandria, in Virginia, last month. He is preparing for another trial in Washington, DC, next week, on multiple charges, including the absence of registration as a foreign agent, falsification of witnesses and money laundering.

His agreement with Trump did not prevent him from seeking a plea agreement in this case, or even overthrowing the president in return for a lighter sentence, according to legal experts. Manafort is still resisting pressure to help federal prosecutors, according to ABC News, and is seeking an agreement that would reduce his sentence but would not force him to turn to Trump. It's not a rare request, said Honig, but a good prosecutor would reject it. "Federal cooperation, with very few exceptions, is not selective," he said. "In general, it's all or nothing."

Manafort may be seeking, beyond plea, Trump's complete grace (or, later, commutation). Honig was skeptical that Trump's lawyers would use this agreement to evade forgiveness in exchange for Manafort's silence: doing so could be a hindrance to justice and thus be subject to professional secrecy. "They have to be somewhat cautious because they know that Manafort, or whoever in a joint defense agreement, could choose to switch at any time," Honig said.

Even though, as Cotter noted, the deal provides Manafort with a valuable channel for Trumpworld, a channel that could help him get a pardon if that's what he's looking for. In the end, "it's not a bad result," said Cramer. "As we have seen in Trump's past pardons, Manafort does not need to wait for career prosecutors or [White House’s] rehabilitation office to make a recommendation. It's just waiting for the whims of the president. "