Charges Requested Following Michael Cohen’s Testimony

Two Republican members of the House Intelligence Committee issued a criminal referral letter to the Justice Department recommending charges against Michael Cohen for his contradictory testimony in court last month.

Cohen, former attorney to former President Donald Trump, testified under cross-examination last month that he lied under oath before the House Intelligence Committee in 2019 when asked in a deposition about Trump’s personal financial statements.

House Intelligence Chair Mike Turner, R-Ohio, and committee member Rep. Elise Stefanik, R-N.Y., who chairs the House Republican Caucus, sent the letter accusing Cohen of committing perjury and of having  “knowingly made false statements” before Congress four years ago.

“That Mr. Cohen was willing to openly and brazenly state at trial that he lied to Congress on this specific issue is startling,” the letter reads, according to The Hill. “His willingness to make such a statement alone should necessitate an investigation.”

In 2019, Cohen told a House panel that Trump did not direct him to inflate financial statements for Trump Organization assets. He testified in Trump’s New York civil fraud trial last month that he lied under oath in 2019, claiming that Trump “speaks like a mob boss” and gives directions “without specifically telling you” what to do.