Cohen Questioned About Previous Praise for Trump
Donald Trump’s former fixer, now turned foe, took the witness stand once again, facing tough questioning from the former president’s legal team.
Michael Cohen’s testimony this week has been focused on linking Trump to a scheme alleged by prosecutors to suppress stories that could harm his 2016 campaign. He is the prosecution’s key witness in the case.
Trump’s lawyers began their cross-examination of Cohen on Tuesday afternoon.
Cohen placed Trump at the center of the scheme, claiming that Trump had promised to reimburse him for money spent on payments and was kept informed of efforts to bury damaging stories about the campaign.
Evidence such as text messages, audio recordings, and notes have been presented to jurors to support the prosecution’s claim of illegal electoral influence. Testimonies from witnesses like David Pecker, former National Enquirer publisher, Trump’s ex-staffers, and adult film actress Stormy Daniels have added dramatic flair to the trial.
The trial is currently in its 17th day.
Trump has pleaded not guilty to 34 felony counts.
This is the first criminal trial of a former U.S. president and the first of Trump’s four prosecutions to come before a jury.
On the Stand
During cross-examination by Todd Blanche, one of Trump’s attorneys in the hush money trial, Cohen was questioned about when his loyalty to Trump started to decline.
Cohen mentioned a July 2018 interview with ABC News’ George Stephanapolous, where he hinted at his waning loyalty to Trump. Cohen revealed that his family played a role in changing his stance after the FBI raid on his property in April 2018.
Blanche focused on Cohen’s previous admiration for Trump and his statements in the memoir “Disloyal.” Cohen affirmed seeing Trump as ambitious, hardworking, and innovative.
Under cross-examination, Cohen defended his past praise for Trump, stating that he was deeply entrenched in Trump’s influence at the time.
When asked about wanting Trump convicted, Cohen hedged his responses, showing a contrast from his earlier more direct testimony.
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