Cohen says President Trump was ‘angry’ about Wall Street Journal’s McDougall article
After the Wall Street Journal published an article about McDougal’s allegations, Trump called Cohen on the phone of his bodyguard Keith Schiller, Cohen testified.
Cohen said President Trump was “angry.” “This is because there have been some negative stories that have come out that could affect the campaign again because of women.”
Cohen talks about his actions after WSJ reported on payments to AMI’s Karen McDougall
Cohen said he spoke with David Pecker, Hope Hicks and others when the Wall Street Journal reported on November 4, 2016, about AMI’s payments to Karen McDougall. .
He said he spoke with them “to control the publication of that article.”
Prosecutors later entered into evidence call records of phone conversations between Hicks and Cohen, showing the two spoke more than a dozen times that day.
Cohen confirms details of side letter agreement
Prosecutor Susan Hoffinger asked Cohen about the side-letter agreement, but Cohen said it was a document identifying who the pseudonym was, and that David Dennison was Trump.
When asked who was on the list, Cohen said Keith Davidson and himself were attorneys for both parties.
Mr. Cohen testified that “the whole purpose of this transaction” was to maintain secrecy.
Cohen said the signatories of the side letter agreement are Stephanie Clifford, Keith Davidson and himself. He said Stephanie Clifford signed Peggy Peterson’s contract and Cohen signed contracts for both Essential Consultants LLC and David Dennison.
Prosecutors are interweaving testimony from Cohen and past witnesses to implicate Trump.
Throughout the prosecutor’s investigation, Hoffinger had Cohen examine in almost excruciating detail his bank documents and his negotiations with and execution of the deal with Stormy Daniels.
We have seen almost all of these documents from other witnesses, including Gary Faro and Keith Davidson. But looking at this history alongside Cohen’s phone, text, and email records brings new luster to these transactions, especially when it comes to Weisselberg and Trump.
The investigation also provides the angle prosecutors need most. Throughout Cohen’s retestimony, we find that, if Cohen’s testimony is to be believed, Trump and Weisselberg are interspersed with events in which Trump and Weisselberg were undoubtedly implicated.
Cohen admits ‘retainer’ was actually hush money for Daniel
Mr. Cohen has sworn that the $130,000 payment he wired to Mr. Davidson on October 27, 2016, marked as a “retainer,” was actually money given to Mr. Daniels as part of hush money. I admitted that.
Mr. Hoffinger asked Mr. Cohen whether the purpose of the wire transfer was “genuine.” He replied, “No, ma’am. It was to pay Stormy Daniels to sign an NDA and get the story.”
“Everything required Trump’s approval,” Cohen says of approving payments to Stormy Daniels
Prosecutor Susan Hoffinger asked Cohen whether he paid Stormy Daniels $130,000 without “approval” from President Trump.
“No,” Mr. Cohen said.
Asked why, Cohen said, “Because everything required Trump’s consent,” and, in addition, “I wanted my money back.”
Cohen admits to lying about bank accounts
Prosecutors asked Cohen whether the information he provided on the “customer identification form” he submitted to First Republic Bank was true or false. He added that this was false and that had he known the real reason for opening the account, he would not have allowed the account that was ultimately used to make payments to Mr Daniels to be opened.
Cohen said he “provided false information on the form to conceal his intentions in opening Essential Consultants.” [was] This is to pay for the non-disclosure agreement. ”
President Trump and one of his lawyers continue to talk.
President Trump has been consulting with one of his lawyers, Emil Bove, quite frequently during Hoffinger’s questioning about the payments to Daniels.
Mr. Cohen recalls Mr. Pecker saying that paying Stormy Daniels could cost him his job.
Mr. Cohen also testified that he remembered talking to Mr. Pecker and Mr. Howard about the payment on October 25, when he was thinking about how to make the payment himself.
Mr. Cohen said Mr. Howard said he had to pay him back, so Mr. Cohen asked Mr. Pecker if he could make the payment himself. “There’s no chance,” Pecker said, explaining that he could lose his job.
Mr. Pecker testified as much at the beginning of the trial, saying that Mr. Cohen kept asking Stormy Daniels to repay her, but she flatly refused.
‘I’ll get my money back’ Cohen says Trump is ‘grateful’ for paying Stormy Daniels
Mr. Cohen testified that he and Mr. Allen Weisselberg discussed repaying Mr. Daniels with Mr. Trump. Mr. Cohen told Mr. Trump that he would “pay it forward,” and Mr. Trump said he was “thankful.”
“Good, good,” Cohen recalled Trump saying. Trump also told Cohen: “Don’t worry, you’ll get your money back.”
