PatriotNews , 2023-03-14 17:12:34
Former President Donald Trump’s former lawyer and fixer, Michael Cohen, appeared before a Manhattan grand jury on Monday and is scheduled to return for more testimony Wednesday, according to his lawyer, Lanny Davis.
The grand jury is in the midst of an investigation into payments made to two women, pornographic actor Stormy Daniels and model Karen McDougal, who had alleged previous affairs or sexual encounters with Trump during the 2016 presidential campaign.
Testimonies and Evidence
Cohen was the one orchestrating the payments and said his goal is “to tell the truth”. He also reassured that this was not done out of revenge but simply “for accountability”.
Trump has denied being involved with either of the women and his lawyer, Joseph Tacopina, has stated that it is “unlikely” that Trump will accept an invitation to testify before the grand jury. Tacopina claims that Trump was a victim of “plain extortion” and not involved in any wrongdoing. Daniels and attorney Keith Davidson, who helped arrange the payment, both deny extorting anyone.
In response to the investigation, Trump took to social media to declare it as a “scam, injustice, mockery, and complete and total weaponization of law enforcement in order to affect a presidential election!”
Evidence from Previous Investigations
Since January 2021, the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office has been gathering evidence in the investigation. The hush money payments have been part of earlier inquiries conducted by federal prosecutors and the former District Attorney, Cyrus Vance, yet none of them were able to successfully charge Trump.
Cohen supplied the prosecutors with recordings of conversations between him and a lawyer for one of the women, emails, text messages and recordings of a conversation with Trump regarding the payment to McDougal through the supermarket tabloid, the National Enquirer.
Possible Charges
Prosecutors are currently looking into the possibility of charging Trump with crimes concerning the payments and how they were accounted for internally in the Trump Organization. One possible charge would be falsifying business records, a misdemeanor, unless prosecutors can prove it was done to conceal another crime.
As of now, no past United States president has ever been charged with a crime. Trump’s lawyers have also made attempts to have judges in New York and Florida intervene in or halt the investigation, claiming that it is politically motivated. However, all attempts have failed to succeed.
Cohen pleaded guilty in 2018 to Federal charges, including campaign finance violations, and has since been served prison time and disbarred. If Trump is eventually charged with a crime and Cohen has to take the stand as a witness, Trump’s lawyers will try to undermine Cohen’s credibility due to his prior criminal record.