{"id":2246933,"date":"2024-05-17T14:07:02","date_gmt":"2024-05-17T18:07:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/this-week-in-lawfare-land-braggs-star-witness-blows-up-his-own-credibility\/"},"modified":"2024-05-17T14:08:48","modified_gmt":"2024-05-17T18:08:48","slug":"this-week-in-lawfare-land-braggs-star-witness-blows-up-his-own-credibility","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/this-week-in-lawfare-land-braggs-star-witness-blows-up-his-own-credibility\/","title":{"rendered":"This Week in Lawfare: Bragg&#8217;s Key Witness Damages His Credibility"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"float:left\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">20<\/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%2Fthis-week-in-lawfare-land-braggs-star-witness-blows-up-his-own-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=2246933&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>This summary provides an overview\u2064 of \u2063the legal proceedings in multiple states, focusing on\u200c the\u2063 high-profile\u2064 trial in Manhattan involving Michael Cohen&#8217;s testimony. \u2062The case alleges falsification of records by former President Trump for a payment to Stormy Daniels. Cohen&#8217;s credibility was challenged in court, impacting the prosecution&#8217;s case. The summary highlights key developments\u2063 in each location, shedding light on the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/biden-admin-doubles-down-on-vaccine-mandate\/\" title=\"Biden admin. doubles down on vaccine mandate\">ongoing legal battles<\/a>.  <\/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<p><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><\/p>\n<div class=\"article-content\">\n<p>With the criminal cases in Georgia, Florida, and Washington D.C. slowing to a halt, New York is the only place where the lawfare show \u2014 or perhaps circus \u2014 has proceeded in any meaningful way. And it was on full display. <\/p>\n<p>In Manhattan criminal court, the jury heard testimony from the prosecution\u2019s star witness (and admitted liar) Michael Cohen. Cohen\u2019s testimony was so damaging to the prosecution that even CNN\u2019s Anderson Cooper <a href=\"https:\/\/www.yahoo.com\/news\/anderson-cooper-says-trump-juror-231917425.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">remarked<\/a>, \u201cIf I was a juror in this case watching that, I would think, \u2018This guy\u2019s making this up as he\u2019s going along.\u2019\u201d <\/p>\n<div class=\"fdrlst__b89e9-paragraph-2-long d-flex justify-content-center\" style=\"margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center; \" id=\"fdrlst__b89e9-943338882\">\n<div id=\"div-gpt-ad-1379703300879-0\" class=\"mb-30\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"fdrlst__b89e9-c67cc2e073f1654b42ae11cd7edc96d9 fdrlst__b89e9-paragraph-2\" id=\"fdrlst__b89e9-c67cc2e073f1654b42ae11cd7edc96d9\"><\/div>\n<p>As the other criminal cases are stalled, it appears nearly certain that President Trump will not face any additional criminal trials before the November election. And in the meantime, the partisan nature of this lawfare becomes more obvious by the day as <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2024\/05\/16\/biden-fundraises-off-lawfare-circus-after-taunting-trump-for-being-stuck-in-court\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">President Joe Biden taunts and fundraises off of President Trump\u2019s legal prosecutions<\/a>. <\/p>\n<p>Here\u2019s the latest information you need to know about each case.<\/p>\n<p><em><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/this-week-in-lawfare-land\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Read our previous installments here.<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Manhattan, New York: Prosecution by DA Alvin Bragg for NDA Payment<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p><strong>How we got here<\/strong>: In this New York state criminal case, Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg \u2014 who The New York Times <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2024\/04\/09\/magazine\/alvin-bragg-donald-trump-trial.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">acknowledged<\/a> had \u201ccampaigned as the best candidate to go after the former president\u201d \u2014 charged former President Donald Trump in April 2023 with 34 felony charges for alleged falsification of business records.\u00a0Trump\u2019s former attorney Michael Cohen paid pornographic film actress Stormy Daniels shortly before the 2016 presidential election as part of a nondisclosure agreement in which she agreed not to publicize her claims that she had an affair with Trump (who denies the allegations). Nondisclosure agreements are not illegal, but Bragg <a href=\"https:\/\/manhattanda.org\/district-attorney-bragg-announces-34-count-felony-indictment-of-former-president-donald-j-trump\/\">claims<\/a> Trump concealed the payment to help his 2016 election chances and in doing so was concealing a \u201ccrime.\u201d <\/p>\n<div class=\"fdrlst__b89e9-691ef99207a2b9779f3a9056a8843bf5 fdrlst__b89e9-paragraph-6\" id=\"fdrlst__b89e9-691ef99207a2b9779f3a9056a8843bf5\"><\/div>\n<p>The trial began on April 15, and jury selection was completed on April 19. Judge Merchan, a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nbcnews.com\/politics\/politics-news\/judge-trumps-new-york-case-appears-donated-15-biden-president-2020-rcna78577\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">donor<\/a> to Biden\u2019s campaign and an anti-Trump cause in 2020,\u00a0has issued a gag order on President Trump generally prohibiting him from publicly speaking on possible jurors, witnesses, and other personnel in this case. <\/p>\n<p><strong>Latest developments<\/strong>: This week, the jury heard testimony from the prosecution\u2019s star witness Michael Cohen, a former personal attorney of President Donald Trump. The prosecution\u2019s theory of the case has emerged as effectively this: any payment made was necessarily a campaign expense, regardless of other purposes. <em>But<\/em> that theory faces a critical challenge: were such a payment made with campaign funds, it would <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2024\/04\/15\/trumps-strongest-new-york-defense-has-nothing-to-do-with-alvin-bragg-or-judge-merchan\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">likely have faced scrutiny<\/a> from the Federal Election Commission and potentially the Department of Justice as a personal expense. <\/p>\n<p>During cross-examination, the truth-challenged Cohen admitted that he lied to Congress about past real estate dealings in Russia and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.politico.com\/live-updates\/2024\/05\/16\/trump-hush-money-criminal-trial\/cohens-lies-under-oath-00158355\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">lied<\/a> under oath when he entered a guilty plea for <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/n-y-assemblyman-ron-kim-calls-for-gov-cuomos-impeachment\/\" title=\"N.Y. assemblyman Ron Kim calls for Gov. Cuomo\u2019s impeachment\">federal criminal charges<\/a>. <\/p>\n<p>Cohen then testified that he previously informed a prosecutor that Stormy Daniels and her lawyer seemed to be extorting President Trump for a payment of $130,000 in exchange for suppressing the story about the alleged affair. Jurors also heard clips from Cohen\u2019s podcast in which Cohen engaged in unhinged rants about the former president. In one podcast clip, Cohen said he hopes \u201cthat this man [Trump] ends up in prison\u201d and \u201crevenge is a dish best served cold.\u201d Cohen continued, \u201cYou better believe that I want this man [Trump] to go down.\u201d<\/p>\n<div class=\"fdrlst__b89e9-938dad7f344a77bf8b8db35524f9e63c fdrlst__b89e9-paragraph-10\" id=\"fdrlst__b89e9-938dad7f344a77bf8b8db35524f9e63c\"><\/div>\n<p>Trump\u2019s lawyers were quick to highlight Cohen\u2019s obvious biases for the jury. In the opening of his cross-examination, defense counsel Todd Blanche said: \u201cMr. Cohen, my name is Todd Blanche and you and I have never met. You went on TikTok and called me a \u2018crying little sh-t.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n<p>While Cohen\u2019s testimony was meant to support the prosecution\u2019s case, it seemed to backfire immensely. Cohen will continue testifying on Monday, May 20. <\/p>\n<p><strong>[READNEXT:[READNEXT:<a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2024\/05\/17\/3-moments-star-witness-michael-cohen-just-undermined-braggs-get-trump-case\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">3 Moments \u2018Star Witness\u2019 Michael Cohen Just Undermined Bragg\u2019s \u2018Get Trump\u2019 Case<\/a>]<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>It is unclear whether President Trump will testify in his own defense. On Thursday, <a href=\"https:\/\/apnews.com\/live\/trump-trial-updates-day-18-cohen#0000018f-830c-d304-abff-efbe83520000\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Blanche said<\/a>, \u201cThat\u2019s another decision that we need to think through.\u201d This week, Trump\u2019s lawyers also filed a notice of appeal to the state\u2019s highest court to challenge his gag order. <\/p>\n<p>At the courthouse this week, many Republican politicians <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2024\/05\/14\/republicans-need-to-show-up-to-trumps-manhattan-lawfare-trial-every-day\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">showed their support for President Trump<\/a> by attending and speaking in support. Former presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy, Speaker Mike Johnson, Sen. J.D. Vance, Sen. Tommy Tuberville, and Reps. Nicole Malliotakis and Cory Mills showed up at the courthouse earlier this week to support President Trump. A broader swath of the House Republican Caucus followed on Thursday, including Reps. Michael Waltz, Ralph Norman, Eli Crane, Andy Ogles, Lauren Boebert, Andy Biggs, Anna Paulina Luna, Bob Good, and Matt Gaetz.<\/p>\n<p>Closing arguments in this case could begin as early as Tuesday, May 21. <\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Fulton County, Georgia: Prosecution by DA Fani Willis for Questioning Election Results<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p><strong>How we got here<\/strong>: The Georgia state criminal case is helmed by District Attorney Fani Willis and her team of prosecutors \u2014 which until recently included Nathan Wade, with whom Willis had an improper romantic relationship. Willis charged Trump in August 2023 with 13 felony counts, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/donald-trump-indicted-fani-willis-says-trump-and-co-conspirators-attempted-to-seize-presidential-term\/\" title=\"Trump indicted: Fani Willis accuses Trump and accomplices of trying to 'take' presidency.\">including racketeering charges<\/a>, related to his alleged attempt to challenge the 2020 election results in Georgia. President Trump is joined by 18 co-defendants, including Rudy Giuliani, Mark Meadows, Sidney Powell, and others. Some of President Trump\u2019s co-defendants have reached plea deals; others have petitioned to have the case removed to federal court, each attempt of which has been denied. A trial date has not yet been set, though prosecutors have <a href=\"https:\/\/www.npr.org\/2023\/11\/17\/1213895254\/trump-georgia-proposed-trial-date\">asked<\/a> for a trial to begin on Aug. 5, just a few short weeks after the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee. <\/p>\n<p><strong>Latest developments<\/strong>: On May 16, President Trump formally filed his notice of appeal to overturn Judge Scott McAfee\u2019s decision to allow Democratic District Attorney Fani Willis to remain on the case. The Georgia Court of Appeals <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2024\/05\/08\/georgia-get-trump-lawfare-could-be-tossed-if-appeals-court-rules-willis-disqualified-herself\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">will now determine whether<\/a> Willis can stay on the case. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.foxnews.com\/politics\/trump-files-notice-appeal-disqualify-da-fani-willis-georgia-case\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Commentators have observed<\/a> that the appeal could be decided as early as August 2024 or as late as spring 2025. <\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Southern District of Florida: Prosecution by Biden DOJ for Handling of Classified Documents<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p><strong>How we got here<\/strong>: In this <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/terrorism-homicide-prosecutors-brought-in-to-try-capitol-riot-defendants-for-crimes-like-trespassing\/\" title=\"Terrorism, Homicide Prosecutors Brought In To Try Capitol Riot Defendants For Crimes Like Trespassing\">federal criminal case<\/a>, special counsel Jack Smith and federal prosecutors with Biden\u2019s Justice Department <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2023\/06\/09\/biden-doj-indicts-former-president-donald-trump-over-classified-documents-squabble\/\">charged former President Trump in June 2023 with 40 federal charges related to his alleged mishandling of classified documents<\/a> at his Mar-a-Lago residence. The trial was set to begin on May 20, 2024, but this date has now been postponed indefinitely. Additionally, venue matters: The trial is currently set to take place in Fort Pierce, Florida, in a locality that heavily <a href=\"https:\/\/www.politico.com\/2020-election\/results\/florida\/\">backed<\/a> President Trump in the 2020 election. If that remains unchanged, the demographics of the jury pool may result in a pro-Trump courtroom.  <\/p>\n<p><strong>Latest developments: <\/strong>This trial is indefinitely postponed after Special Counsel Jack Smith and other prosecutors <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2024\/05\/08\/judge-halts-trumps-classified-docs-trial-after-doj-admits-to-evidence-tampering\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">admitted<\/a> to tampering with evidence.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Washington, D.C.:\u00a0 Prosecution by Biden DOJ for Jan. 6 Speech<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p><strong>How we got here<\/strong>: In this federal criminal case, special counsel Jack Smith and federal prosecutors <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2023\/08\/03\/jack-smiths-latest-indictment-is-legally-flawed-and-politically-suspect\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">charged former President Trump in August 2023 with four counts of conspiracy and obstruction<\/a> related to his actions on Jan. 6, 2021. President Trump\u2019s lawyers have argued that immunity extends to actions taken by a president while acting in his official capacity and that, in any event, the First Amendment protects his right to raise legitimate questions about a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/no-thanks-ill-be-skipping-the-inauguration\/\" title=\"No Thanks, I\u2019ll Be Skipping the Inauguration\">questionable election process<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Latest developments<\/strong>: This case is currently stalled while awaiting a ruling from the Supreme Court on former President Trump\u2019s immunity claim.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>New York: Lawsuit by A.G. Letitia James\u00a0for Inflating Net Worth<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p><strong>How we got here<\/strong>: In this New York civil fraud case, Democrat Attorney General Letitia James \u2014 who <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/politics\/2018\/12\/19\/new-yorks-next-attorney-general-targeted-slumlords-now-shes-going-after-trump\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">campaigned<\/a> on going after Trump \u2014 sued former President Trump in September 2022 under a civil fraud statute alleging that he misled banks, insurers, and others about his net worth to obtain loans, although the loans have been paid back and none of the parties involved claimed to have been injured by the deals. <\/p>\n<p>Following a no-jury trial,\u00a0Judge Arthur Engoron \u2014 whom Trump\u2019s lawyers have accused of \u201castonishing departures from ordinary standards of impartiality\u201d \u2014 <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2024\/02\/16\/trump-fined-350-million-in-democrats-latest-gambit-to-rig-the-2024-election\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">issued a decision<\/a> on Feb. 16, 2024\u00a0ordering Trump to pay a $454 million penalty. Trump has appealed this decision and posted a required <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2024\/03\/26\/trumps-reduced-bond-doesnt-make-letitia-james-election-meddling-lawfare-any-less-scandalous\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">$175 million appeal bond<\/a>. The appeals court plans to hold hearings on the merits of the full case in September 2024. <\/p>\n<p><strong>Latest developments<\/strong>: This case mostly remains on hold.<\/p>\n<div class=\"fdrlst__b89e9-b2bd6762b8b564f6374dc65545fa2791 fdrlst__b89e9-after-post-content\" id=\"fdrlst__b89e9-b2bd6762b8b564f6374dc65545fa2791\"><\/div>\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator\">    \t\t\t\t\t   \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>In New York, as legal battles across multiple states stall, Manhattan emerges as the focal point for high-profile court drama. The prosecution&#8217;s key witness took the stand in a dramatic display of legal theatrics, captivating the jury with crucial testimony in a high-profile criminal case<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3036,"featured_media":2246934,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/Screenshot-2024-05-17-at-1.55.31%E2%80%AFPM-1024x519.png","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[546],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2246933","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-federalist"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/Screenshot-2024-05-17-at-1.55.31%E2%80%AFPM-1024x519.png","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2246933","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\/3036"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2246933"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2246933\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2246934"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2246933"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2246933"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2246933"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}