Michael D. Cohen, after testifying straight for three days to the Senate Intelligence Committee revealed how, in his view, Trump broke the law even as president, and he suggested ominously that federal prosecutors remain interested in a case involving the president.
Cohen, cast the President as a mendacious and petty racist who enlisted those around him to propagate a culture of deceit, in business, during his campaign and after winning the White House.
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What is he testifying about?
- Cohen represented Prez Trump for a decade, told Congress that the president lied to the American public about business interests in Russia during the 2016 campaign and lied to reporters about stolen Democratic emails.
- Cohen is the first member of Trump’s inner circle to provide eyewitness testimony about alleged misdeeds by the president.
- Trump also told Cohen to lie about illegal hush payments to cover up alleged sexual indiscretions, the lawyer charged.
- Trump directed and coordinated payments to adult film actress Stephanie Clifford, Stormy Daniels, according to Cohen. The money was initially paid by Cohen from his personal funds to prevent Clifford from going public with a story of a brief 2006 affair with Trump, he said. “He asked me to pay off an adult film star with whom he had an affair, and to lie to his wife about it, which I did,” Cohen said.
- Cohen provided lawmakers with the copy of a personal check for $35,000 (€30,800) signed by Trump and dated after the president took office. The payment, according to Cohen, was one of several installments to reimburse him for the $130,000 which he had paid to Clifford’s lawyer.
- “He is a racist. He is a con man. And he is a cheat,” Cohen said of the president. Cohen, who has pleaded guilty to lying under oath to Congress, among other crimes, said he did so to protect Trump. “I am not protecting Mr. Trump anymore,” he said.
- He provided several documents to the committee. He offered what he said were financial statements that Trump gave to institutions such as Deutsche Bank and said the president inflated or deflated his assets when it served his purposes.
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