Trump defends Manafort with Capone comparisons

United States President Donald Trump on Wednesday attempted to defend his former election campaign chairman, Paul Manafort, by drawing parallels between the latter and American mobster Alphonse Capone.

Taking to his Twitter handle, Trump said, "Looking back on history, who was treated worse, Alfonse Capone, legendary mob boss, killer and 'Public Enemy Number One,' or Paul Manafort, political operative & Reagan/Dole darling, now serving solitary confinement - although convicted of nothing? Where is the Russian Collusion?"

Trump's tweet comes on the second day of Manafort's trial in a federal court, where he is facing tax evasion and bank fraud charges and has pleaded not guilty to all charges, CNN reported.

Trump and the White House have maintained that the charges Manafort is facing were pertaining to actions were allegedly committed before he was Trump's 2016 election campaign in-charge.

They have also repeatedly attempted to minimise Manafort's role in the election campaign, saying he was in-charge for mere months, although he was the chairman of the campaign during both the convention and delegate process.

Special Counsel for the US Department of Justice, Robert Mueller is currently investigating Russian meddling in the 2016 Presidential Elections and a possible collusion between Russia and Trump's campaign.

His mandate also permits him to scrutinise, "any matters that arose or may arise" from his investigation.