I am completely confused for the first time ever. Trump announced as clearly as possible that he intended to pardon Manafort, and Trump said as clearly as possible that it was because Manafort was not a "rat." Manafort has jeopardized his chances of getting a pardon. A pardon was his only chance to avoid going to jail. Why did he do it?
I can think of three possibilities, none of which are very convincing. First, Manafort may have reached an agreement that avoided forfeiture of his entire fortune. Asset forfeiture would have been a punishment for his crimes if he were convicted. Second, Mueller may have been able to work out something on the state crimes for which Trump cannot pardon Manafort. The state crimes, for those of you who don't know, would include the same tax fraud. If you cheat on your federal taxes, then you need to cheat on your state taxes too so that the two are consistent. Third, it may have something to do with avoiding legal jeopardy for Manafort's spouse or children.
I think there must be something more to it. Some secret so dark and terrible that it exceeds my imagination.