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Defense lawyer Kevin Downing and prosecutor Greg Andres spent the first hour of Paul Manafort's trial on Tuesday trying to distract the jury and one-upping the other's set of questions for star witness Rick Gates.

Downing kicked off the questioning with a focus on what Gates told the FBI and Justice Department years before he was charged.

Ten minutes later, it was Andres' turn to attempt to reverse damage done, since Gates had recounted throughout Tuesday a host of crimes he committed against Manafort, against the government. He admitted in detail to his own personal moral failures.

Did Gates have any doubt that if he lied in court or to the prosecutors, "the Special Counsel's Office would rip up your plea agreement?" Andres asked in his final minute question Gates before handing the reins back to the defense. "No doubt at all," Gates said.

Gates' testimony is among the most important of the trial: It pits the longtime right-hand man and the boss face to face for the first time publicly since Gates flipped.