{"id":2246892,"date":"2024-05-17T13:30:02","date_gmt":"2024-05-17T17:30:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/msnbc-legal-analyst-forced-to-admit-trumps-attorney-scored-a-moment-of-real-triumph-during-cohen-questioning\/"},"modified":"2024-05-17T13:34:04","modified_gmt":"2024-05-17T17:34:04","slug":"msnbc-legal-analyst-forced-to-admit-trumps-attorney-scored-a-moment-of-real-triumph-during-cohen-questioning","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/msnbc-legal-analyst-forced-to-admit-trumps-attorney-scored-a-moment-of-real-triumph-during-cohen-questioning\/","title":{"rendered":"MSNBC Legal Analyst Concedes Trump&#8217;s Lawyer Achieved &#8216;Significant Victory&#8217; in Cohen Inquiry"},"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\">24<\/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%2Fmsnbc-legal-analyst-forced-to-admit-trumps-attorney-scored-a-moment-of-real-triumph-during-cohen-questioning%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=2246892&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>Rachel \u200bM. Emmanuel&#8217;s commentary analyzes the trial\u200b against ex-President Trump by NY County DA Alvin Bragg. The \u2062trial reveals motives beyond justice, focusing on discredited witness Michael Cohen.\u200c Trump&#8217;s attorney\u200c seized a \u2064defining moment, challenging Cohen&#8217;s credibility, shifting the trial dynamics dramatically. The trial unfolds like a gripping legal drama, questioning the case&#8217;s foundation and credibility.  <\/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<header> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/commentary\/\">  Commentary <\/a>   <span> <\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/author\/remmanuel\/\">  <\/a> <\/p>\n<p> <span>   By <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/author\/remmanuel\/%20\"><span>Rachel M. Emmanuel<\/span><\/a> <\/span> <span>   May 17, 2024 at 10:09am <\/span> <\/span>  <\/header>\n<section>\n<p>For those who\u2019ve been following New York County District Attorney Alvin Bragg\u2019s hush money trial against former President Donald Trump by now, one thing has become very clear even to some of Trump\u2019s harshest critics \u2014 this case is not about justice; it\u2019s about a vendetta.<\/p>\n<p>The star witness in the case, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/2-top-republicans-demand-doj-open-criminal-probe-michael-cohen\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Michael Cohen<\/a>, is a disbarred and disgraced former Trump lawyer who plead guilty to tax evasion, bank fraud, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/breaking-president-trump-gives-pardons-to-73-individuals-and-commutes-another-70-sentences-steve-bannon-is-included\/\" title=\"BREAKING: President Trump Gives Pardons to 73 Individuals and Commutes Another 70 Sentences \u2013 Steve Bannon Is Included\">campaign finance violations<\/a>, and lying to Congress, per <a href=\"https:\/\/www.foxnews.com\/media\/michael-cohens-credibility-issues-brazen-tiktok-usage-raise-media-eyebrows-ahead-testimony\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Fox News<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Pundits, legal experts\u00a0and\u00a0even traditionally anti-Trump voices have openly questioned whether Cohen, labeled a \u201cserial perjurer\u201d and \u201cgrifter\u201d by some, can\u00a0be believed.<\/p>\n<p>The credibility of Cohen is crucial for <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/trump-calls-arrest-jack-smith-prosecutors-admit-misleading-judge-evidence-tampered\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">prosecutors<\/a> seeking to convince jurors that Trump falsified records to conceal reimbursements for a $130,000 payment made in 2016 to adult actress <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/judge-merchan-refuses-let-trump-fire-back-stormy-daniels-testimony-wont-modify-gag-order\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Stormy Daniels<\/a> in exchange for her to remain silent about an alleged tryst with Trump.<\/p>\n<p>The former <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/donald-trump-arrested-read-full-court-transcript-of-former-presidents-first-court-appearance-over-classified-documents\/\" title=\"Former President Donald Trump arrested: Full court transcript of his initial appearance for handling classified documents available.\">president faces 34 felony counts<\/a> of falsifying business records over this issue and has denied all wrongdoing.<\/p>\n<p>One commentator, Jonathan Turley, a professor at George Washington University Law School and news contributor wrote on his <a href=\"https:\/\/jonathanturley.org\/2024\/05\/13\/the-appearance-of-michael-cohen-a-wreck-in-search-of-a-race\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">website<\/a> that due to the lack of evidence presented by the prosecutors, the Trump case lies \u00a0\u201cvirtually entirely on the testimony of Michael Cohen,\u201d whom he says has \u201ca record of saying whatever serves his interests and those of his sponsors.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>But what happened on Thursday was every defense attorney\u2019s dream scenario.<\/p>\n<p>During a tense courtroom testimony, Trump attorney Todd Blanche caught the former lawyer in a clear lie about his own timeline about when he first raised the issue of purchasing the silence of adult film star Stormy Daniels in the final days of the 2016 presidential campaign.<\/p>\n<p>Even MSNBC\u2019s legal correspondent Lisa Rubin had to describe it as a \u201cmoment of real triumph\u201d for Blanche according to a video clipped by <a href=\"https:\/\/www.mediaite.com\/trump\/moment-of-real-triumph-for-trump-msnbc-legal-analyst-argues-michael-cohens-testimony-today-badly-hurt-the-prosecution\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Mediaite.<\/a><\/p>\n<div id=\"firefly-poll-container\">\n<p>Will Trump beat these charges?<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p>The pivotal moment came when Blanche was questioning Cohen on his previous testimony that he called Trump\u2019s bodyguard Keith Schiller on October 24, 2016 specifically to connect with Trump and inform him that a deal had been struck to pay $130,000 to adult film actress Stormy Daniels to keep her quiet about claims of a past sexual encounter with Trump.<\/p>\n<p>But Blanche destroyed Cohen\u2019s credibility when he revealed that the call in question is about something else entirely, according to the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2024\/05\/16\/nyregion\/trump-cohen-blanche-phone-call.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">New York Times<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>According to Blanche, in the days leading up to the call, Cohen\u00a0had been receiving\u00a0prank phone calls from an unidentified teenager.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou were receiving a bunch of ongoing and continuing harassment phone calls,\u201d Blanche asked Cohen, per <a href=\"https:\/\/abcnews.go.com\/US\/5-big-takeaways-day-18-trumps-hush-money\/story?id=110301027\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">ABC News<\/a>. \u201cDo you remember that?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Cohen agreed.<\/p>\n<p>Blanche then read from\u00a0Oct. 24\u00a0texts where Cohen asked Schiller: \u201cWho can I speak to about harassing calls to my phone and office?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>According to Blanche, Schiller texted back, asking Cohen to call him at 8:02 p.m.<\/p>\n<p>The call only lasted a little over 90 seconds, according to Rubin. At 8:04, after the call, Cohen texted Schiller\u00a0the\u00a0number of the prank caller.<\/p>\n<p>So that\u00a0makes it\u00a0pretty\u00a0obvious what the 90-second phone call was\u00a0actually\u00a0about.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cPart of it was the 14-year-old, but I knew that Keith was with Trump at the time,\u201d Cohen responded to the clear allegation.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat was a lie. You did not talk to President Trump that night,\u201d Blanche replied, raising his voice, according to ABC News. \u201cYou can admit it.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo sir, I can\u2019t,\u201d Cohen replied. \u201cBecause I\u2019m not sure that\u2019s accurate.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat. Was. A. Lie,\u201d Blanche replied, articulating every word separately for effect.<\/p>\n<p>Although Cohen\u00a0continued to maintain\u00a0that he had somehow managed to talk about a hush money deal and explain to Schiller his problem with the prank-calling teenager all in a 90-second phone call, it was clear that Blanche had made his point.<\/p>\n<p>CNN\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/end-line-cnn-hosts-anderson-cooper-wolf-blitzer-big-names-may-chopping-block\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Anderson Cooper<\/a> called it \u201cincredible\u201d in a clip that began circulating on social media.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOn a cross examination lawyers want to build a box around the witness and then slam it shut. That\u2019s what Todd Blanche did to Michael Cohen,\u201d Cooper said.<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\">A visibly stunned Anderson Cooper calls today\u2019s cross examination of Michael Cohen \u201cincredible\u201d:<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOn a cross examination lawyers want to build a box around the witness and then slam it shut. That\u2019s what Todd Blanche did to Michael Cohen.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\ud83d\udd25\ud83d\udd25\ud83d\udd25 <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/sMv9PrHnnn\">pic.twitter.com\/sMv9PrHnnn<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Charlie Kirk (@charliekirk11) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/charliekirk11\/status\/1791167225988342181?\">May 16, 2024<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>\u201cMichael Cohen not only admitted that he is now \u2018less than certain about what got discussed that day and that it could have been both but he\u2019s not positive given the one minute and 30-something seconds of that phone call, but also that in eight years he had never seen that Keith Schiller text and that it was not among the things that the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/paul-pelosi-attack-video-to-be-released-today\/\" title=\"Paul Pelosi Attack Video to Be Released Today\">district attorneys office<\/a> had shown him,\u201d Rubin said Thursday on MSNBC\u2019s \u201cChris Jansing Reports.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat makes the district attorney\u2019s office look sloppy in addition to making Michael Cohen seem like a self-assured either fabricator, liar or forgetful person,\u201d Rubin continued.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt casts doubt on the veracity of a ton of his testimony and not just about who he did or didn\u2019t talk to on Oct. 24 or Oct 26. It sort of casts lots of his testimony in doubt, given the passage of time, and makes the district attorney\u2019s office look terrible all in one breath,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n<p>It was the kind of Perry Mason or \u201cMy Cousin Vinny\u201d moment you usually only see in movies.<\/p>\n<p>MSNBC\u2019s Katy Tur called it a \u201cGrisham moment\u201d \u2014 a reference to the famous author John Grisham, who is known for his work on legal thriller novels like \u201cThe Firm\u201d and \u201cThe Pelican Brief.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>In Grisham\u2019s novels, there are often pivotal courtroom scenes where the defense delivers a dramatic revelation or confronts a witness in a way that turns the tide of the case in their favor.<\/p>\n<p>Trump\u2019s defense has done a masterful job of showing that when you hinge your entire case on a known liar, sometimes you need to let them speak \u2014 a lot \u2014 first. You\u2019ll inevitably get what you\u2019re looking for: a lie.<\/p>\n<p>But a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/ny-jury-issue-damages-verdict-trump-e-jean-carroll-defamation-suit\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">New York jury<\/a> has to face their\u00a0own\u00a0consciences and decide to make the obvious choice.<\/p>\n<p>Will they be willing to put their prejudices aside and find Trump not guilty?<\/p>\n<p>That would\u00a0definitely\u00a0be a surprise ending.<\/p>\n<hr>\n<div>\n<p><b><i>An Important Message from Our Staff:<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n<p><i><span>In just a few months, the world is going to change forever. The 2024 election is the single most important election of our lifetime. <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<p><i><span>We here at The Western Journal are committed to covering it in a way the establishment media simply will not: We will tell the truth, and they will lie.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<p><i><span>But Big Tech and the elites don\u2019t want the truth out. That\u2019s why they have cut us off from 90% of advertisers. Imagine if someone cut your monthly income by 90%. That\u2019s what they\u2019ve done to people like us. <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<p><i><span>As a staff, we are asking you to <\/span><\/i><a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/subscribe\/?utm_source=site&#038;utm_medium=westernjournalism&#038;utm_campaign=authorpitch\"><i><span>join us<\/span><\/i><\/a><i><span>  to fight this once-in-a-lifetime fight. Without you not only will The Western Journal fail, but America will fail also. As Benjamin Franklin said, \u201cWe must all hang together, or assuredly we shall all hang separately.\u201d<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<p><i><span>Will you support The Western Journal today and <\/span><\/i><a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/subscribe\/?utm_source=site&#038;utm_medium=westernjournalism&#038;utm_campaign=authorpitch\"><i><span>become a member<\/span><\/i><\/a><i><span>? <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<p><i><span>A Western Journal <\/span><\/i><a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/subscribe\/?utm_source=site&#038;utm_medium=westernjournalism&#038;utm_campaign=authorpitch\"><i><span>Membership<\/span><\/i><\/a><i><span>  costs less than one coffee and breakfast sandwich each month, and it gets you access to ALL of our content \u2014 news, commentary, and premium articles. You\u2019ll experience a radically reduced number of ads, and most importantly you will be vitally supporting the fight for America\u2019s soul in 2024.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<p><i><span>This is the time. America will live or die based on what happens this year. Please <\/span><\/i><a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/subscribe\/?utm_source=site&#038;utm_medium=westernjournalism&#038;utm_campaign=authorpitch\"><i><span>join us<\/span><\/i><\/a><i><span>  to get the real truth out and to fight the elites, Big Tech, and the people who want America to fail. Together, we really can save the country.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<p><b><i>Thank you for your support!<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n<p><i><span>P.S. <\/span><\/i><a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/subscribe\/?utm_source=site&#038;utm_medium=westernjournalism&#038;utm_campaign=authorpitch\"><i><span>Please stand with us<\/span><\/i><\/a><i><span>!<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div id=\"author-info-45763\">\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/author\/remmanuel\/\">  <\/a> <\/p>\n<div>\n<p><label for=\"summary-tab-radio-45763\">Summary<\/label><label for=\"more-info-tab-radio-45763\">More<span> Biographical Information<\/span><\/label><label for=\"posts-tab-radio-45763\">Recent<span> Posts<\/span><\/label><label for=\"contact-tab-radio-45763\" onclick=\"if( typeof grecaptcha=='undefined' ) { let cap_s=document.createElement( 'script' ); cap_s.src='https:\/\/www.google.com\/recaptcha\/api.js?render=6LeJFcsUAAAAAPsIEqvB1EebWbZfqRUe6ebMpGy7'; document.body.appendChild( cap_s ); }\">Contact<\/label><\/p>\n<div>\n<p>Rachel Emmanuel has served as the director of content on a Republican congressional campaign and writes content for a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/watch-rep-anna-paulina-luna-scolds-dems-waving-ukrainian-flags-after-vote-put-those-damn-flags-away\/\" title=\"Video: Rep. Anna Paulina Luna Criticizes Democrats Waving Ukrainian Flags - 'Remove Those Flags!\">popular conservative book franchise<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div>\n<p>  Rachel M. Emmanuel has served as the Director of Content on a Republican Congressional campaign and writes for a popular Conservative book franchise. <\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/section>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Rachel M. Emmanuel&#8217;s analysis on May 17, 2024, 10:09 am sheds light on the New York County DA Alvin Bragg&#8217;s trial against ex-President Trump. Even to Trump&#8217;s fiercest critics, it&#8217;s evident this trial isn&#8217;t about justice but other motives<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2329,"featured_media":2246893,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/trump-and-blanche.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[548],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2246892","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-conservative-news-daily"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/trump-and-blanche.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2246892","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\/2329"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2246892"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2246892\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2246893"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2246892"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2246892"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2246892"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}