President Trump suffered a one-two punch on Tuesday that was unprecedented even for his tumultuous tenure in office. And the reaction on Twitter served as a reminder why the troubled social network remains useful when big news breaks.
Trump’s former personal attorney Michael Cohen pleaded guilty in federal court to eight criminal counts Tuesday, admitting, among other things, that he coordinated with President Trump to pay former porn star Stormy Daniels to stay silent during the presidential campaign.
Within minutes, news broke that a federal jury had separately convicted Trump’s former campaign chairman Paul Manafort on eight counts of tax and bank fraud. Without Trump’s intervention, Manafort’s only hope for leniency would be to cooperate with Mueller’s probe.
The news sent pundits, journalists, and politicians into overdrive with their reaction to the events. The initial responses ranged from the analytical to the wry.
Trump’s Updated Scorecard:
1. Paul Manafort, Trump Campaign Chairman: Guilty
2. Michael Cohen, Trump's lawyer: Guilty
3. Michael Flynn, National Security Advisor: Guilty
4. George Papadopoulos, Trump Adviser: Guilty
5. Rick Gates, Trump Adviser: Guilty
— Keith Boykin (@keithboykin) August 21, 2018
It's wild to think Cohen and Manafort probably would've gotten away with this—all they had to do was not get their boss elected president of the United States.
— Sahil Kapur (@sahilkapur) August 21, 2018
Paul Manafort, you get federal prison sentence! And, Michael Cohen, you get a federal prison sentence! And… pic.twitter.com/hafCIiDqZ3
— Jeffrey Wright 🥜 (@jfreewright) August 21, 2018
Trump, who is often vocal on Twitter, had not published any tweets about the day’s court events. However, reporters who questioned him Tuesday afternoon received familiar replies from the president about the Mueller probe.
TRUMP right now on tarmac: "This has nothing to do with Russian collusion…absolutely nothing to do with Russian collusion…this is a witch hunt, a disgrace."
— Michael M. Grynbaum (@grynbaum) August 21, 2018
Members of Congress, meanwhile, were quick to chime in—although Democrats were more vocal while Republicans, for the most part, remained silent in the immediate aftermath of the reports.
Senator @MarkWarner and I released the following statement today on Michael Cohen’s testimony before the Senate Intelligence Committee: pic.twitter.com/0UyEP21qkI
— Richard Burr (@SenatorBurr) August 21, 2018
Not a witch hunt.
— Mark Warner (@MarkWarner) August 21, 2018
The allegations against Cohen are serious & continue to reflect the culture of corruption & illegality surrounding the President. Cohen has made the right choice by taking responsibility for his actions. He must now cooperate with fed investigators. Https://t.co/qrlIyZy2dj
— Richard Blumenthal (@SenBlumenthal) August 21, 2018
Manafort’s conviction shows that Mueller’s investigation is far from a witch hunt, as Trump falsely repeats as a mantra. It also shows his campaign and Administration were rife with people with a history of unscrupulous business dealings and concerning ties to overseas interests.
— Adam Schiff (@RepAdamSchiff) August 21, 2018
Guilty, guilty, guilty, guilty, guilty, guilty, guilty, guilty
Trump’s former campaign chair is now a convicted felon. Https://t.co/qMgAUXY3kh
— Karine Jean-Pierre (@K_JeanPierre) August 21, 2018
The discussion quickly turned to what’s likely to happen next, with some raising the possibility that Trump may quickly move to issue a pardon, and others calling for Congress to pass laws protecting Mueller.
Source close to the White House says what a lot of people are thinking, with Trump on his way to W. Va.: "What if he pardons Manafort live on television? This is crisis PR firms worst nightmare.."
— Tarini Parti (@tparti) August 21, 2018
With the Cohen and Manafort news today, it’s more important than ever that Congress act immediately to protect the Mueller investigation.
— Tim Kaine (@timkaine) August 21, 2018
Today's verdict puts a decisive end to @realDonaldTrump's fiction that the Mueller investigation is a witch hunt. I call on @SenateMajLdr to bring the Senate Judiciary Committee's bipartisan bill to protect the Special Counsel and his investigation to the Senate floor for a vote.
— Senator Mazie Hirono (@maziehirono) August 21, 2018
So the Senate is just gonna rush ahead to confirm the president's nominee to the Supreme Court amidst all this? Really?
— Chris Hayes (@chrislhayes) August 21, 2018
Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey has faced his own storm of criticism over the social network’s handling of trolls and misinformation. For a couple of hours Tuesday, the newsfeeds on Twitter resembled the vision that Dorsey once had for his service, where one can “look out the window and figure out what’s happening.”