Some of Ellis’ rationale just make my brain hurt. He led a “credible”/”blameless” life but for his criminal tax fraud? He had no prior criminal conviction? Every criminal was a first time offender at one point, and lots and lots get stiffer penalties for much less severe offenses.

Then he says that at the heart of it, Manafort’s tax evasion was tantamount to robbing the American people. If he had stolen millions of dollars through hacking a bank, would Ellis have been so abhorrently lenient? Of course not.

To give Manafort less than what his defense team was requesting, even after Manafort literally showed no contrition in his statement to the Court was deeply depressing and saddening.