Former President Donald Trump's fixer Michael Cohen left his New York apartment this morning.
Seth Wenig/AP
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Seth Wenig/AP
Former President Donald Trump's fixer Michael Cohen left his New York apartment this morning.
Seth Wenig/AP
Michael Cohen returned to the stand for his second day of witness testimony against former President Donald Trump. Once Trump's “fixer” and staunch “protector,” the now staunch critic testified about receiving payments that prosecutors claim are false business records. did.
After weeks of testimony, jurors on Monday heard Cohen confirm two key details on the stand. In other words, Trump knew about the out-of-court settlement with former adult actor Stormy Daniels to hide her alleged affair from the press ahead of the 2016 election, and Trump told Cohen: He directed her to pay $130,000 because of the election. When she cross-examines Trump, Trump's lawyers will likely debunk Cohen's testimony and resurface her own conviction of her lying under oath. would be.
Throughout the morning, Cohen spoke out about how he lied to Congress after Trump took office, misled the Federal Election Commission, and lied to reporters that he was the only person authorized to pay hush money. He testified about how much he had done to “protect” Trump. To Mr. Daniels.
Later that morning, Cohen testified about how the law caught up with him. On April 9, 2019, Cohen's home, office, and hotel where he and his family were staying were raided by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Shortly after, Cohen said he and then-President Trump spoke for the last time.
“He said to me, 'Don't worry, I'm the president of the United States…you'll be fine,'” Cohen recalled from the stage.
“I feel relieved that the president of the United States is protecting me,” Cohen said, looking the jury straight in the eyes. “I'm going to stay in camp.”
But that didn't last long. A lawyer with ties to former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani, who was Trump's lawyer at the time, approached Cohen, but Cohen didn't believe him. Four months later, when presented with an 80-page indictment that also included his wife, Mr. Cohen said he had decided to plead guilty to lying to banks, tax evasion and campaign finance violations. This last crime was committed on behalf of and for the benefit of Donald Trump, Cohen said.
“My family, my wife, my daughter, my son, all said, 'Why do you hold on to this loyalty? What are you doing? We're supposed to be the first loyalists,'” Cohen said. He talked about how he came to his decision. decision to plead guilty. “It’s about time we listened to them.”
To close out the direct investigation, Cohen said he has no regrets about working for the Trump Organization. But because he “broke my moral code, I, as well as his family, received great punishment.”
Mr. Cohen testified that Mr. Trump knew about the payments.
On the stand Tuesday, Cohen explained how the payments were repaid to Daniels, noting they were not for legal services rendered. Prosecutors briefed Cohen on several bills at the center of the trial. One of Trump's main arguments is that he was simply paying his lawyers.
Mr. Cohen has said numerous times, including after news broke that he had reached a settlement with Mr. Daniels, that he lied and did damage control to protect his then-boss.
Mr. Cohen then read back to statements he first made when trying to quash media reports about the payments — including what he now claims is a false claim that President Trump did not know about the deal. It also included the content of
In Monday's testimony, Mr. Cohen testified that his conversations with Mr. Trump were intended to show that Mr. Trump was not only aware but was influencing the negotiations with Mr. Daniels. He testified that he directly negotiated the payment to Daniels, but said he kept Trump updated every step of the way.
Mr. Cohen testified about various conversations he allegedly had with the former president regarding the deal. Trump and other Trump Organization executives will also receive $420,000 to cover reimbursement of payments to Daniels, $50,000 for certain technology services, $60,000 in bonuses, plus tax rebates. He also testified about how he promised to pay additional money over a two-year period. Year. Cohen said Trump approved it, and later testified that the former president said “it's going to be a tough ride in Washington, D.C.”
The jury has heard a lot. Mr. Cohen's testimony came days after Mr. Daniels took a stand against the former president.
Jurors also heard from former people national inquirer Mr. Pecker, the publisher, testified for the first time detailing the deal made to flag articles that could be damaging to Mr. Cohen and Mr. Trump. Jurors then heard from Keith Davidson, the lawyer who negotiated a non-disclosure agreement and settlement for Daniels and former Playboy Playmate Karen McDougall. Mr. McDougall is not expected to be called to testify.
Mr. Davidson also testified that he believed Mr. Cohen was delaying payments, a suspicion Mr. Cohen admitted on the stand.
Mr. Cohen said of Mr. Trump, “I was instructed to postpone it until after the election.'' “I was following instructions.”
Several former and current employees of President Trump's major companies and administrations have testified to the process by which Trump received personal bills and paid personal checks, including the check he used to repay Mr. Cohen.
Mr. Trump faces 34 felonies, alleging that reimbursing Mr. Cohen for payments to Mr. Daniels violated campaign finance laws. President Trump has maintained his innocence and denied allegations of his extramarital affair.
Andrea Bernstein contributed to this article
