#MichaelCohen has reached the part of his story where news of his payment to #StormyDaniels has broken into the public sphere. This was the beginning of the end for #Trump & Cohen. All of Cohen’s previous testimony has concerned a time when they were still allies.
#criminal #law #TrumpTrial #CatchAndKill #conspiracy #ElectionInterference #HushMoney #MobTactics #StormyDaniels #KarenMcDougal
#MichaelCohen, reads texts instructing #KeithDavidson, lawyer for #StormyDaniels, to “write a strong denial” from Daniels, saying that she had not had an affair w/ #Trump. This is a statement that jurors have seen— & that Trump wrote nonsense about on social media & was fined $1k for violating of his #GagOrder.
#criminal #law #TrumpTrial #CatchAndKill #conspiracy #ElectionInterference #HushMoney #MobTactics #StormyDaniels #KarenMcDougal
Prosecutor #Hoffinger brings up the joint defense agreement #MichaelCohen was part of, which meant the atty defending him was aligned w/Trump. She makes sure Cohen tells the jurors it was an advantage for #Trump, as well as for Cohen.
Cohen testifies about the#StormyDaniels statement in which she denied having had a “sexual &/or romantic affair” w/Trump. Her lawyer, #KeithDavidson, testified this statement was technically true, bc they didn’t have a full affair.
#MichaelCohen said that he made sure to tell #Trump that he got the denial from #StormyDaniels “to get credit that I was continuing to ensure he was protected.” He wanted Trump to know that he had “stayed loyal.”
Prosecution shows texts that Cohen was trying to get Daniels booked on #SeanHannity’s #FoxNews show on 18 Jan, 2018, to deny that she'd had an affair w/Trump.
#criminal #law #TrumpTrial #CatchAndKill #conspiracy #ElectionInterference #HushMoney #MobTactics
#MichaelCohen & #SeanHannity were long friends. Cohen even supplied legal advice to Hannity.
These texts from Cohen to #KeithDavidson, Daniels's lawyer show Cohen’s relentless work on #Trump’s behalf.
Cohen is asked about the complaint letter he received from the #FEC about his payment to #StormyDaniels, which was filed by a good-government group after WSJ published an article revealing the payment. He says his response to the FEC wasn’t false, but misleading.
#MichaelCohen continues to testify about #StormyDaniels’s statements to the press at the time the #HushMoney payment became public knowledge, he has admitted to lying a number of times — he just said he knew one of the statements was a lie because he helped “craft it.” This could be helpful to the defense once cross-examination starts. But, Cohen has long admitted that he was lying for #Trump.
#criminal #law #TrumpTrial #CatchAndKill #conspiracy #ElectionInterference #HushMoney #MobTactics
Prosecution shows #MichaelCohen texting the NYT’s Maggie Haberman — who is sitting in the courtroom — as he sought to spread the news that he made the #HushMoney payment himself, & that neither the #TrumpOrganization nor the #TrumpCampaign was a part of it [note: he didn’t include Trump personally]. He also said that he was not reimbursed for the payment. He says that he had planned to give Haberman the statement first, & that he had received approval from the “big boss.”
Prosecution shows that as #MichaelCohen continued his denial tour in regard to the #HushMoney, he was texted by Jay Sekulow, a lawyer for #Trump. The text says “Client says thanks for what you do.” Cohen leaves no doubt in his testimony that “client” in the text refers to Trump, thanking Cohen for the denials.
Cohen testified earlier that he had shared his misleading statement about reimbursements w/Sekulow.
#criminal #law #TrumpTrial #CatchAndKill #conspiracy #ElectionInterference #MobTactics
#MichaelCohen says he told David #Pecker, fmr publisher of #NationalEnquirer, that he had been told that the federal investigation Cohen faced would be “taken care of” by #JeffSessions, then the #UnitedStates #AttorneyGeneral. Cohen testifies that it was #Trump who told him that.
Cohen testifies he continued to deal w/ #StormyDaniels in early 2018 w/Trump’s backing & blessing. He says that the president asked him to get a temporary restraining order against Daniels.
#MichaelCohen describes the #FBI’s raid on his Park Ave hotel room in April 2018. He says federal agents took his cell phones — including the one w/the recording on it that jurors already heard — & many of his documents. He says he was frightened, despondent & angry.
This was a major news event at the time, & now Cohen can reflect on his feelings about it in front of a courtroom full of reporters. He says he received a call from #Trump after the raid.
#MichaelCohen testifies that #Trump said: “Don’t worry. I’m the president of the United States. There's nothing here. Everything’s going to be ok. Stay tough. You’re going to be OK.” It was the last time they spoke.
Cohen is now reading tweets from April 2018 in which Trump defended him & attacked reporters, including Maggie Haberman. Trump says in the tweets that he doesn’t see Cohen lying or making up stories, “despite the horrible Witch Hunt & the dishonest media!”
#criminal #law #TrumpTrial
These same tweets were among the potential instances of #obstruction of #justice that were reviewed by Robert #Mueller, the special counsel who at the time was investigating the #Trump campaign’s possible ties to #Russia.
At this point in the narrative in 2018, #MichaelCohen was looking for reassurance that Trump was going to take care of him. He would soon lose that sense of security, as the #TrumpOrganization stopped paying some of Cohen’s #legal bills.
#MichaelCohen testifies that it was his understanding that #Trump wanted him to refrain from cooperating w/the government — you know the one he was in charge of — & “certainly not to provide information or flip.”
#criminal #law #TrumpTrial #CatchAndKill #conspiracy #ElectionInterference #HushMoney #MobTactics
#MichaelCohen is testifying again after the court took a short break. “Distraught, nervous, concerned” are the emotions he describes having felt as he met at the Loews Regency on Park Ave w/a new lawyer, Robert Costello, a #criminal defense lawyer who Cohen had been told was very close w/ #RudyGiuliani. This was immediately after the #FBI raided his hotel room there, & so Cohen’s emotions were in tumult.
Costello has said that Cohen appeared suicidal at this meeting.
#MichaelCohen says he was told #Costello had worked for #Giuliani at #SDNY. By this time, Giuliani was about to become a lawyer for #Trump on the #Mueller investigation. Cohen testifies that Costello told him this would be a way to have a “backchannel” to #Trump.
In the middle of this Costello backchannel between Cohen & Trump, Cohen says, was Rudy Giuliani. [no bueno]
#criminal #law #TrumpTrial #CatchAndKill #conspiracy #ElectionInterference #HushMoney #MobTactics
#MichaelCohen testifies that #Costello told him not to reach out to Trump directly. So while Costello & #Giuliani formed a link between #Trump & Cohen, they also acted as a buffer, which may have grated on Cohen, particularly given that he used to report to Trump directly — & loved it.
Prosecution shows an email from Costello to Cohen from April 2018, in which Costello informs Cohen that Giuliani has just joined the Trump legal team.
#criminal #law #TrumpTrial #conspiracy #ElectionInterference
The emails from #Costello go a long way toward supporting #MichaelCohen’s description of their meeting. Cohen said that Costello recommended he hire him because his relationship w/ #RudyGiuliani would help him access to #Trump.
In 1 email, Costello tells Cohen that his relationship w/ #Giuliani could be useful to him. In a 2nd, he talks about a “back channel” for communication. In a 3rd, the not-so-subtle msg: “Sleep well tonight, you have friends in high places.”
#MichaelCohen just testified that the #Costello emails came in perfect synchrony w/ the #Trump tweets is support of Cohen.
The NYTimes wrote an article in 2019 about the awkward role Robert Costello served here. He had intended to be Cohen’s lawyer, & spent countless hours on the phone w/him, but was never formally retained.
#criminal #law #TrumpTrial
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/04/21/us/politics/michael-cohen-trump.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share&referringSource=articleShare&sgrp=c-cb
We still haven’t had anything directly tying #Trump to the structure of the false business records outside of #MichaelCohen’s testimony on the stand, which the defense will aggressively challenge. But the risk for the defense is that the jury holds Trump accountable for all of the various mucky conduct that is being described here, & has been described throughout the trial.
#criminal #law #TrumpTrial #CatchAndKill #conspiracy #ElectionInterference #HushMoney
#MichaelCohen did not say that #Trump personally falsified the records, or even that he explicitly instructed someone else to do so. He did, however, testify that Trump knew the records would disguise the reimbursement as ordinary #legal expenses.
Importantly though, under NY #law, the concept of #AccessorialLiability does a lot of heavy lifting for the prosecutors, they only have to show that Trump intentionally aided his employees to falsify the records.
Prosecutors can argue that if #Trump knew about the false records & did not stop them, as #MichaelCohen says, then he aided the #crime.
The synchronization of the Trump tweets & Robert #Costello's outreach to Cohen helps to reinforce the idea that Trump was no longer communicating w/ Cohen directly, but he was still trying to make sure that his embattled fixer was under his thumb.
#criminal #law #TrumpTrial #CatchAndKill #conspiracy #ElectionInterference #HushMoney
#Costello came to despise #MichaelCohen & testified before a grand jury last yr in hopes of undercutting Cohen’s credibility. The grand jury nonetheless indicted #Trump.
Cohen testifies, w/emails on the screen, that Costello continued a fierce pressure campaign to keep Cohen loyal. Cohen says he understood Costello to be telling him not to cooperate w/ #law enforcement after the FBI raid.
The message from the then president of the United States was “stay in the fold, don’t flip, don’t speak.”
#MichaelCohen was in the midst of testimony about weighing whether to retain loyalty to #Trump, painting it as a very difficult decision, as he considered whether he would be loyal to his family, his country or Trump.
As he spoke, #VivekRamaswamy & a several other politicians supporting Trump walked back into the courtroom.
Never seen a display like that in proceedings — several ofcls marching in during testimony — it was indisputably disruptive.
#MichaelCohen looks down and takes a beat before turning to the #jury & talking about his family. He says he discussed w/ his family what he should do & they said: “Why are you holding onto this loyalty? What are you doing? We’re supposed to be your first loyalty.”
Cohen looks like he’s struggling to hold it together here as he recalls talking to his family about whether to stay #loyal to #Trump or to cooperate w/ investigators.
#criminal #law #TrumpTrial #conspiracy #ElectionInterference
#Hoffinger, the prosecutor, asks #MichaelCohen why he paid the money to #StormyDaniels. Cohen says he did so to #influence the #election, & that he did so at #Trump’s direction. This is a summary of the key themes & may signal that direct examination is coming to an end soon.
Trump’s lawyers are on edge thru this part of Cohen’s testimony. #Blanche & #Bove pass notes.
Trump, however, appears to be dozing peacefully. #NodFarter
As #MichaelCohen repeats that he worked w/David #Pecker & others at his company to do so, he again repeats that he took action at #Trump’s direction. The prosecutors use that testimony to lead into Cohen’s #guilty pleas in the federal case against him in 2018. Some of the charges against him were related to the #HushMoney payment.
#criminal #law #TrumpTrial #CatchAndKill #conspiracy #ElectionInterference #MobTactics #StormyDaniels #KarenMcDougal
#MichaelCohen reads aloud the tweets #Trump put out when Cohen pleaded guilty, saying that he felt “very badly for #PaulManafort & his wonderful family” & praising #Manafort for refusing to “break“
“Such respect for a brave man.”
A sitting president was tweeting these things.
Also shown: Trump's tweets attacking Cohen saying if anyone wants a good lawyer, he doesn’t recommend Cohen. He contrasts Cohen & Manafort, a #loyal ally, & criticizes Cohen for “breaking.”
Prosecutor #Hoffinger asks #MichaelCohen about committing federal #crimes, she also emphasizes the key themes of the prosecution's case, having him testify that he committed them on Trump’s behalf.
Prosecutors had to have Cohen address his crimes — if defense brought them up first, it may have looked as if prosecutors were hiding them. Hoffinger managed to use that part of testimony to restate the DA’s case, reminding jurors why they’re here: To assess #Trump’s guilt, not Cohen’s.
#MichaelCohen testifies about his 2019 testimony before the #House of Representatives, one hearing of which was televised. During that hearing, he sealed his split w/ #Trump, calling him a #racist & a #ConMan who was #unfit for office.
Cohen recaps his apology to the public during that testimony. Cohen is one of the only Trump allies or advisers who actually served time in #prison.
#criminal #law #TrumpTrial #CatchAndKill #conspiracy #ElectionInterference #HushMoney #MobTactics
#MichaelCohen’s testimony at the Congressional hearing is certain to come up during cross-examination, including his assertion that he didn’t want a job in the WH.
Cohen is now discussing his meetings w/ Robert #Mueller, the special counsel investigating the #Trump campaign's ties to #Russia.
#criminal #law #TrumpTrial #CatchAndKill #conspiracy #ElectionInterference #HushMoney #MobTactics
#MichaelCohen is asked, over an objection by the defense, about how he was sent home on furlough from federal #prison in 2020, during the height of the COVID pandemic.
He was ultimately returned to prison bc he was planning to publish a book later that year & refused to sign a letter from #Trump AG Bill Barr saying he wouldn’t publish. A judge later called the move “retaliatory” by the federal govt, & he was freed.
#criminal #law #TrumpTrial #CatchAndKill #conspiracy #ElectionInterference
#MichaelCohen, for only the second time this trial, is getting angry as he remembers what he clearly sees as an #injustice. He testifies that not only was he sent back to #prison, he was put in #solitary confinement.
#criminal #law #Trump #TrumpTrial #CatchAndKill #conspiracy #ElectionInterference #HushMoney #MobTactics
#MichaelCohen testifies about meeting w/various #law enforcement agencies, including the Manhattan DA’s office. His story is coming full circle as he talks about cooperating w/the prosecutors in this case.
#Hoffinger, the prosecutor, takes him all the way to March 2023, when Cohen testified in the grand jury. #Trump was indicted later that month.
#criminal #law #TrumpTrial #CatchAndKill #conspiracy #ElectionInterference #HushMoney #MobTactics
#Hoffinger asks if #MichaelCohen has sought a reduction for his sentence, & if he asked the DA’s office for help.
The answer to both questions is yes. Hoffinger makes clear that the Manhattan DA’s office was willing to provide a letter to help him in 2021, if federal prosecutors at the SDNY would accept it as a reason to reduce his sentence. But the federal prosecutors — who deeply dislike Cohen — wouldn’t accept it & no letter was provided.
#Hoffinger makes clear that #MichaelCohen chose to testify & help the case despite not getting what he wanted.
Hoffinger, preparing for the defense's cross-examination, asks Cohen about the cell phones from which #evidence was pulled. The defense has tried to raise questions about when those phones were obtained & whether the evidence on them may have been manipulated.
Hoffinger asks if Cohen altered or modified the recording he made of #Trump.
He responds: “No, ma’am.”
In 2023, during #MichaelCohen’s testimony at #Trump’s #civil #fraud trial, the defense was able to trip him up while asking him about one of his federal guilty pleas. There, he seemed to suggest that he wasn’t actually #guilty of one of the #crimes he had pleaded guilty to. Ever since, Trump’s lawyers have accused him of perjury.
Hoffinger asks Cohen about that now.
#criminal #law #TrumpTrial #CatchAndKill #conspiracy #ElectionInterference #HushMoney #MobTactics #StormyDaniels #KarenMcDougal
#Hoffinger asks #MichaelCohen about that now. He says now he did not dispute the underlying facts of the case, but BELIEVED — & still does — that he should not have been criminally prosecuted for that specific offense, #tax evasion. He says that he felt pressured & felt that he was charged w/that particular #crime, which was not related to the #HushMoney payment, unjustly.
#duress #criminal #law #Trump #TrumpTrial #CatchAndKill #conspiracy #ElectionInterference #HushMoney #MobTactics
#Hoffinger is going through a lengthy list of all that #MichaelCohen has lost financially. This is similar to something #StormyDaniels said, when pushed on cross-examination about whether she had money to gain by telling her story about #Trump. She said that she had also lost a lot.
Cohen also acknowledges that he has been #disbarred.
.
#criminal #law #TrumpTrial #CatchAndKill #conspiracy #ElectionInterference #MobTactics
#Hoffinger asks #MichaelCohen to explain why he lied to this person or that person. She’s doing it to prepare the jury for what will likely be a brutal cross-examination. Thing is, that’s what #Trump paid him to do & the jury heard how happy Trump was w/Cohen at various points & how he couldn’t have been unaware of what Cohen was doing.
Cohen says he now works in media & entertainment & started a podcast while on home confinement. He says he discusses news as well as Trump.
Under prosecutor #Hoffinger’s questioning, #MichaelCohen decribes how he has made money from his story of #Trump’s betrayal.
He says that he wrote a memoir in #prison, called “Disloyal,” about his life & experiences working for the #TrumpOrganization. He says his next book, “Revenge,” was a “forensic dissection” of the corrupt prosecution against him.
Cohen addresses the fact that he had #StormyDaniels on his podcast. He says it was time to apologize to her.
Nonilex
Kenneth