He was one of his faithful lieutenants, but he swore his downfall: Donald Trump’s ex-lawyer, Michael Cohen, heavily accused, this Monday, May 13, the former President of the United States at the trial for hidden payments to porn star Stormy Daniels.
After the crude account given last week by the pornographic film star about a sexual relationship in 2006 with Donald Trump – which he denies – this testimony is another crucial moment in this historic trial with heavy political stakes. Called to the stand, Michael Cohen, 57, looking nervous, was questioned by a prosecutor to find out if he had ever “lied” and “intimidated” people: the witness then answered twice clearly “yes “. “This is what had to be done to accomplish the tasks,” the former lawyer said under oath. Donald Trump remained impassive before slumping in his chair.
Throughout this initial testimony, Michael Cohen implicated his former boss by claiming he knew about payments to Stormy Daniels and another model from PlayboyKaren McDougal, so that they would keep quiet about alleged sexual relations around ten years before the 2016 presidential campaign. Donald Trump would have told Michael Cohen “to make sure” that the story with Karen McDougal “does not come out “, according to the former lawyer.
The man who can bring down Trump
At 77, Donald Trump faces the first criminal conviction of a former president in the history of the United States. The trial, which is disrupting his campaign by forcing him to silently follow hearings almost every day since mid-April in a New York court, has entered a decisive phase.
Michael Cohen, one of the last two witnesses called by the prosecution, is at the center of the case. It was he, a faithful among the faithful at the time, nicknamed Donald Trump’s “pitbull”, who paid $130,000 to the actress to buy her silence on this sexual relationship, at the end of the campaign presidential in 2016.
According to the prosecution, when Michael Cohen was reimbursed in 2017 by the then American president, these expenses were disguised as “legal expenses” in the accounts of the Trump Organization holding company, to hide that the money had been used to cover up a scandal. Donald Trump is being prosecuted for 34 accounting falsification offenses, which could theoretically earn him up to a prison sentence.
When the affair was revealed by the Wall Street Journal in 2018, Michael Cohen first claimed to have paid Stormy Daniels on his own initiative, without informing his boss. Caught by the law, the man who once prided himself on being ready “to take a bullet for Donald Trump” turned against the latter, claiming to have acted under his orders. Michael Cohen pleaded guilty in 2018 to tax evasion, making false statements to the US Congress and violating campaign finance laws, the latter offense being directly linked to the payment to Stormy Daniels. Sentenced to three years in prison, he spent about a year behind bars.