Greg Craig’s Wild Ukrainian Adventure With Paul Manafort

WINSTON SALEM, NC - JUNE 3: John Edwards' defense attorney Greg Craig of Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom speaks to a crowd of reporters on June 3, 2011 in Winston Salem, North Carolina. A federal grand jur... WINSTON SALEM, NC - JUNE 3: John Edwards' defense attorney Greg Craig of Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom speaks to a crowd of reporters on June 3, 2011 in Winston Salem, North Carolina. A federal grand jury indicted John Edwards, the former senator and presidential candidate, on charges that he used campaign contributions to hide an affair. (Photo by Steve Exum/Getty Images) MORE LESS

April 11, 2019 4:47 p.m.

In 2012, two years after Gregory Craig stepped down from his job as White House counsel to Barack Obama, he had found work with a new president in a new country: Viktor Yanukovych of Ukraine.

But the job was markedly different. Craig was working in a fetid political system with political operative Paul Manafort to whitewash the prosecution of Yanukovych’s main political opponent, former Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko. He was indicted on charges relating to that work today.

I covered this story when I was working in Ukraine, after Craig’s role slowly emerged from documents found in the sauna of an official overthrown in the 2014 Ukrainian revolution and from information revealed during the prosecution of Paul Manafort.

This is a members-only article

Small Team. Big Results.

We’re proud of what our small newsroom has accomplished and it’s not hyperbole when we say that without our members, none of this would be possible.

Become a TPM Member

Free memberships available for students and those experiencing financial hardship.

Already a member? SIGN IN