{"id":2244874,"date":"2024-05-15T07:41:02","date_gmt":"2024-05-15T11:41:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/trump-lawyers-begin-their-dissection-of-michael-cohens-credibility\/"},"modified":"2024-05-15T07:43:24","modified_gmt":"2024-05-15T11:43:24","slug":"trump-lawyers-begin-their-dissection-of-michael-cohens-credibility","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/trump-lawyers-begin-their-dissection-of-michael-cohens-credibility\/","title":{"rendered":"Trump&#8217;s attorneys start questioning Michael Cohen&#8217;s trustworthiness"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">14<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Ftrump-lawyers-begin-their-dissection-of-michael-cohens-credibility%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2244874&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>At the New York hush\u200b money trial, Trump&#8217;s lawyers aggressively target Michael Cohen&#8217;s credibility. \u200dThe proceedings\u2064 include a fiery cross-examination highlighting Cohen&#8217;s past actions and motives. Cohen&#8217;s testimony implicates Trump in knowing details\u2064 of the\u200c <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/trump-cant-delay-new-york-trial-on-presidential-immunity-grounds-judge\/\" title=\"Judge rules Trump cannot postpone New York trial citing presidential immunity\">hush money deal<\/a>. The trial&#8217;s focus\u200d on Cohen&#8217;s credibility may\u200c impact the prosecution&#8217;s strategy. The case awaits Trump&#8217;s decision on \u200ctestifying, a pivotal moment in the historic trial.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<div>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/donald-trump\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Donald Trump<\/a>\u2018s lawyers began their process to undercut the former president\u2019s onetime attorney <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/michael-cohen\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Michael Cohen<\/a> at the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/new-york\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">New York<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/justice\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">hush money trial<\/a> on Tuesday, slicing deep into his credibility in a meticulous process.<\/p>\n<p>The fiery cross-examination on day 17 of the trial got underway after Cohen had been questioned in the morning by prosecutors with Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg\u2019s office. It began with a venomous interrogation by Trump attorney Todd Blanche, who at one point was accused by Judge Juan Merchan of making the line of questioning about himself.<\/p>\n<figure><figcaption>Michael Cohen leaves his apartment building on his way to Manhattan criminal court in New York, Tuesday, May 14, 2024. (AP Photo\/Seth Wenig)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Cohen is a key figure in the trial because he paid porn star Stormy Daniels $130,000 in the final weeks of the 2016 election campaign. The money was intended to prevent her from going public with her <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/ghislaine-maxwell-watched-epstein-have-sex-with-14-year-old-victim-participated-in-sex-encounters-testimony\/\" title=\"Ghislaine Maxwell Watched Epstein Have Sex With 14-Year-Old Victim, Participated In Sex Encounters: Testimony\">alleged sexual encounter<\/a> with Trump at a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/tom-brady-had-a-hilarious-reaction-to-a-shank-during-the-match-celeb-golf-event\/\" title=\"Tom Brady Had a Hilarious Reaction to a Shank During \u201cThe Match\u201d Celeb Golf Event\">celebrity golf event<\/a> at Lake Tahoe in 2006.<\/p>\n<p>At issue is whether Trump\u2019s reimbursements amounted to a legitimate payment for legal services, as Trump argues, or whether they were misclassified, as prosecutors alleged.<\/p>\n<p>Trump has pleaded not guilty and denies the sexual encounter alleged by Daniels.<\/p>\n<h2>Tensions flared when Blanche\u2019s cross-examination began<\/h2>\n<p>\u201cWhy are you making this about yourself?\u201d Merchan asked during a sidebar after Blanche confronted Cohen about an April 23 TikTok post in which he referred to the attorney as a \u201ccrying little s***.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI have a right to show this witness\u2019s bias, and he has expressed bias about the lawyers just because of who he represents,\u201d Blanche responded, according to the courtroom transcript.<\/p>\n<p>Blanche continued throughout the afternoon attempting to undercut all of Cohen\u2019s credibility, pointing to when the witness once behaved like a superfan of Trump, juxtaposing it with his current desire to see Trump convicted and drawing attention to the anti-Trump merchandise Cohen now sells.<\/p>\n<p>At one point, Blanche questioned Cohen on whether he was \u201cmotivated by fame.\u201d <\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo sir, I don\u2019t think that\u2019s fair to say,\u201d Cohen said, contending, \u201cI\u2019m motivated by many things.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Cohen, a convicted felon with a history of perjury, has long been expected to have his veracity put to the test. But the prosecution\u2019s best use of his testimony so far has been to hear his testimony about the 11 checks he received that prosecutors say were falsified.<\/p>\n<p>Cohen pleaded guilty in 2018 to several crimes, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/he-was-epsteined-conspiracy-theories-swirl-after-john-mcafees-tweets-resurface-following-alleged-suicide\/\" title=\"\u2018He Was Epsteined\u2019: Conspiracy Theories Swirl After John McAfee\u2019s Tweets Resurface Following Alleged Suicide\">including tax evasion<\/a>, lying to a bank, and lying to Congress. One of his crimes involved taking out a loan under false pretenses to pay porn star Stormy Daniels.<\/p>\n<p>Trump\u2019s defense still has another shot at undercutting Cohen. The former attorney will return to the stand when the trial reconvenes on Thursday, and the defense will begin bringing their own witnesses to the stand when it resumes on Monday.<\/p>\n<p>Kevin McMunigal, a former Assistant U.S. attorney for California, told the <em>Washington Examiner<\/em> that the prosecution may ultimately try to undermine Cohen as their primary witness because they have \u201call these other witnesses testify about the hush money scheme,\u201d pointing to the past 15 days of testimony at the trial.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThere\u2019s lots of other witnesses, and so I think Blanche is going to extend this for as long as he can to make it not just to undermine Cohen\u2019s credibility but to make Cohen look like he\u2019s the main witness\u201d for the prosecution, McMunigal added.<\/p>\n<figure><figcaption>Michael Cohen testifies on the witness stand in Manhattan criminal court about the calculations that Alan Weisselberg made to determine how to pay back Cohen for the money he paid to Stormy Daniels, Monday, May 13, 2024, in New York. (Elizabeth Williams via AP)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<h2>Cohen testifies Trump knew more about the hush money deal<\/h2>\n<p>Prosecutors are seeking to prove two underlying allegations against Trump: that the money he paid to Cohen was misclassified in the subsequent checks paid to the ex-attorney and that the payment to Daniels was made for electoral reasons rather than saving Trump from personal embarrassment.<\/p>\n<p>From Cohen\u2019s perspective, Trump showed an awareness during an early 2017 Oval Office meeting to the terms of the reimbursement, discussing with Cohen some of his then-imminent payment.<\/p>\n<p>Cohen called Trump, telling him to \u201cdeal with Allen,\u201d referring to Allen Weisselberg, the Trump Organization\u2019s chief financial officer.<\/p>\n<p>While Cohen testified repeatedly that the money Trump paid him was not for legal fees and that they had no retainer agreement at the time, the ex-attorney has not alleged Trump explicitly told him to falsify records, only that Trump allegedly knew his checks would serve to mask the hush money payment.<\/p>\n<p>McMunigal said prosecutors in white-collar criminal cases often use \u201ccircumstantial evidence\u201d to help jurors draw an \u201cinference\u201d about what a defendant may or may not have known.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cLike the [Trump] assistant who testified that she sent checks to Trump all the time \u2014 and the excerpts of a book where he says he manages every detail and says on top of things \u2014 they\u2019re all just different ways of showing that it\u2019s highly likely that he had knowledge\u201d of the alleged scheme, McMunigal added.<\/p>\n<figure><figcaption>In this courtroom sketch, former President Donald Trump, center, gives Jeffrey McConney a fist bump and smile as he walks out of the courtoom after McConney finished his testimony at Manhattan criminal court, Monday, May 6, 2024, in New York. (Elizabeth Williams via AP)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<h2>Questions linger over Trump\u2019s own testimony <\/h2>\n<p>Big questions remain over whether Trump will decide to take the witness stand to testify in his own case, which would be a historic marker in an already historic case, the first of the criminal kind against a former president.<\/p>\n<p>At one point after the court was adjourned on Tuesday, Merchan asked Blanche whether there was any indication as to whether Trump would testify.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo,\u201d Blanche responded.<\/p>\n<p>McMunigal said it could be a risky move for Trump to take the stand at this point, noting the array of past court cases the prosecution can raise during cross-examination and the volatility of putting Trump on the stand.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSo it might be that they call other witnesses who are less volatile,\u201d McMunigal said of the defense, noting his attorneys could save Trump as their last resort \u201cif they put him on.\u201d<\/p>\n<h2>Trump fails to undo the gag order<\/h2>\n<p>In many ways, Blanche\u2019s approach to grilling Cohen for extrajudicial statements outside of the courtroom was a protest against Trump\u2019s gripes that he is the only person in the case who has been gagged from speaking about certain matters.<\/p>\n<p>Trump, who complains constantly about the order that bars him from attacking witnesses, court officials, and the judge\u2019s family, among others, lost his latest challenge to lift the gag order in the case.<\/p>\n<p>A state appeals court on Tuesday found that Merchan \u201cproperly weighed\u201d Trump\u2019s free speech rights \u201cagainst the court\u2019s historical commitment to ensuring the fair administration of justice in criminal cases.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Trump is facing $10,000 in fines after he was twice found in contempt for violating the gag order a total of 10 times. Trump is also challenging the fees he has already incurred during this trial.<\/p>\n<p>The former president exited the courtroom in more cheery spirits on Tuesday, perhaps thanks to the massive support he received from allies, including House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA), who appeared behind him inside the chilly criminal courthouse in the morning.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cVoters are getting it,\u201d Trump said Tuesday evening, adding, \u201cI think we\u2019re exposing this scam for what it is.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Trump once again relied on the words of others to undermine the case, reading off quotes from printed articles that gave his defense favorable attention.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI am not allowed to talk about big portions of my case,\u201d Trump said, continuing his complaints about the order despite losing his bid to lift it.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Trump&#8217;s legal team initiates the undermining of ex-president&#8217;s attorney Michael Cohen&#8217;s credibility at the New York hush money trial. The intense cross-examination unfolds on day 17 following earlier questioning by prosecutors<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2633,"featured_media":2244875,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/wex-s3.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/AP24135644030846.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[538],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2244874","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-washington-examiner"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/wex-s3.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/AP24135644030846.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2244874","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2633"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2244874"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2244874\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2244875"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2244874"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2244874"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2244874"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}