Donald Trump

Manafort's Light Sentence Criticized as ‘Lenient' and ‘Disrespectful'

Manafort could have been given more than two decades in prison

Legal observers were surprised by the relatively light, 47-month sentence received Thursday by President Donald Trump's former campaign chairman, Paul Manafort, who was convicted in August on charges of tax and bank fraud.

"As a former prosecutor, I'm embarrassed," said NBC News/MSNBC legal analyst Glenn Kirschner, speaking Thursday on MSNBC. "As an American, I'm upset ... I am just as disappointed with Judge Ellis. It's an outrage and it's disrespectful of the American people."

Manafort, 69, who appeared in court in Virginia in a wheelchair and who asked the judge for compassion, could have been sentenced to up to 24 years in federal prison.

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