Politics

President Trump suffered twin setbacks with two ex-advisers facing prison sentences - and one of them saying Trump told him to commit a crime - possibly hurting his Republican Party’s election prospects and widening a criminal probe that has overshadowed his presidency.

In the most dramatic day yet in the investigation into Russian meddling in the 2016 U.S. presidential election, federal prosecutors secured the conviction of Trump’s former campaign manager and a plea agreement from the president’s longtime attorney.

Paul Manafort’s $15,000 ostrich skin jacket and other evidence of the former Trump campaign chairman’s conspicuous consumption grabbed the headlines during his tax and bank fraud trial. But it was the detailed and methodical testimony of an FBI forensic accountant who traced Manafort’s money that may have sealed his fate.

Commentary

The messy meaning of the Manafort and Cohen cases. The mixed verdict in the trial of Paul Manafort, Donald Trump’s former campaign manager, along with the guilty plea on campaign finance violations by the U.S. president’s former lawyer, Michael Cohen, point to a broader destabilization in U.S. politics, writes Reuters global affairs columnist Peter Apps. Trump is “getting better at manipulating Washington’s levers of power,” and as he relies on whipping up his electoral base ahead of the November midterms, “he’s increasingly likely to turn the latest legal developments to his advantage.”

The right way to sanction Putin’s Russia. This week the United States unveiled new sanctions against Russia, and is expected to impose even more in the future. But as Washington weighs its options, it should bear in mind that sanctions are most effective if they offer an incentive to good behavior – without isolating Russia from the rest of the world, writes William Courtney.

World

Religion is still deeply embedded in the Irish countryside - roadside grottos with statues of the Virgin Mary are a feature of almost every Irish town and village, with most erected in 1954 when the Vatican called for a Marian year of celebration and devotion. As Ireland prepares for a visit from Pope Francis that they hope will bring back the young believers that have deserted the Catholic church after decades of scandal.

A senior Iranian cleric warned Washington that if it attacked Iran, the United States and allied Israel would be targeted, as a war of words escalated after the United States reimposed sanctions on Iran.

Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull clung to power as rebel Liberal party lawmakers pressed for a second leadership contest just a day after he narrowly survived a challenge from former home minister Peter Dutton.

Taiwan’s last diplomatic ally in Africa, the Kingdom of eSwatini, said it had no intention of switching ties to China, after a Chinese diplomat said he expected it to ditch Taipei soon amid a bitter diplomatic dispute.

Two @Reuters journalists have been detained in Myanmar since December 12, 2017. See our coverage of the case: https://reut.rs/2Bw7erw

4:42 AM - AUG 22, 2018