PD Editorial: Robert Mueller's systematic pursuit of collusion in the 2016 election

Say this for the indictments unveiled Monday by Special Counsel Robert Mueller: They aren’t fake news or the product of a partisan witch hunt.

There is no smoking gun, but the detailed indictment naming two high-ranking former campaign officials, and the guilty plea of a campaign adviser, are evidence that Mueller is making steady progress in his investigation of possible collusion between the Trump campaign and Russian officials seeking to influence the outcome of the 2016 election.

That’s bad news for Trump and anyone else who wants to downplay the investigation or deny that Russian meddling took place.

The 31-page indictment of former campaign chief Paul Manafort and his associate Rick Gates demonstrates that Mueller and his team are methodically assembling a record of business and political ties between Trump campaign officials and Russian operatives that, at the very least, suggests plenty of shared interests.

But the biggest headline may be that Mueller has recorded his first conviction: George Papadopoulos, a foreign policy adviser for Trump’s campaign.

While news of the pending indictments dominated the weekend talk shows and prompted another presidential Twitter storm, it turned out that Papadopoulos already had pleaded guilty to lying to federal agents. Among other things, he admitted lying about contacts with an operative who told him the Russian government had “dirt,” including thousands of emails, on Trump rival Hillary Clinton, long before public disclosure of a hack at the Democratic National Committee. Court papers say Papadopoulos kept superiors at the campaign informed of his activities.

It’s a near-certainty that Papadopoulos’ plea agreement requires his cooperation with prosecutors in return for a recommendation of leniency when he is sentenced.

Mueller probably would welcome similar arrangements with Manafort and Gates as he tries to determine whether Trump or others close to him colluded with the Russians.

Manafort and Gates are charged with a dozen felony counts of money laundering, conspiracy and making false statements in connection with their representation of a pro-Russian regime in Ukraine. The indictment describes in minute detail their alleged use of shell companies and banks spanning the globe to transfer money and finance lavish lifestyles while evading U.S. income taxes.

The only elections directly related to the indictment took place in Eastern Europe, but the prospect of a long prison sentence and forfeiture of real estate and other property could be an incentive for Gates and Manafort to cooperate.

We don’t know where Mueller’s investigation will lead. It’s possible that there won’t ever be an unambiguous answer to the collusion question.

And the risk remains that, as the Wall Street Journal recommended in a recent editorial, Trump will fire Mueller just as he did FBI director James Comey. Or he could abuse his pardon powers to try to undermine Mueller’s efforts to persuade defendants to cooperate with the investigation. But such outrageous tactics surely would undermine Trump’s claims that there was no collusion.

This much is certain: Papadopoulos’ conviction reinforces the conclusion of U.S. intelligence agencies that the Russians meddled with last year’s election. So, as Mueller moves forward with his investigation, a vigorous effort is needed in Washington and in state capitals to protect the integrity of future elections, beginning with next year’s mid-term election.