WASHINGTON (AP) – Paul Manafort says he’s registering with the Justice Department as a foreign agent. Michael Flynn already has. In both cases, the filings by these associates of President Donald Trump come late – after the lobbying has already taken place – and accompanied by an admission that they violated federal law.
The high-profile filings are putting a spotlight on the Foreign Agents Registration Act, a law enacted before World War II with the goal of unmasking foreign influence campaigns in the U.S.
The idea was simple: Lobbyists and others who work on behalf of a foreign government or political interest must disclose their work to sway public opinion and U.S. policy to the Justice Department and to the public.
But the cases of Manafort, who was forced out as Trump’s campaign chairman, and Flynn, who was fired as the president’s national security adviser, have raised questions, particularly in light of the continuing scrutiny of the foreign entanglements of several Trump associates. A few answers:
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