'That opens the door': Lawyer uncovers key problem with Trump's hush money defense
April 15, 2024
Former President Donald Trump's key defense in his hush money trial, now underway in Manhattan, is likely to present a major problem as the case unfolds, a legal analyst revealed Monday.
Former prosecutor Maya Wiley appeared on MSNBC to explain the pitfall Trump may stumble into as he tries to discredit Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg's star witness, Michael Cohen.
While Cohen is expected to testify that he orchestrated payments made to adult film star Stormy Daniels ahead of the 2016 presidential election and then was reimbursed after Trump claimed the White House, Trump, who pleaded not guilty to falsifying business records, denies Cohen's statements and contends the payments were made to protect his family from salacious headlines.
Wiley began her analysis by asking what Cohen would have to gain by participating in the alleged catch-and-kill scheme ahead of Trump's election.
"Then once you have the agreement? What's it for? ...To conceal the agreement to unlawfully influence the 2016 election," Wiley said. "Why would Michael Cohen do that? How does he benefit from that?"
Wiley then answered herself by arguing Cohen did not benefit. "Donald Trump is the one who benefitted," Wiley said.
She then detailed the other witnesses who back Cohen's narrative.
"Witnesses we believe will be lined up are the ones like Hope Hicks, who was on the campaign," Wiley said. "We know that the District Attorney is looking to establish Hope Hicks as a campaign operative actively and consistently in communication with Michael Cohen, including a call that Donald Trump was on."
In comparison, there's only one witness who can testify to Trump's state of mind and it's a person whose testimony could prove fatal to his defense, Wiley argued.
"The defense can suggest that this is for, by Michael Cohen and only in his own interest, which is kind of hard to do — unless Donald Trump tries to say, "It was all about Melania, I was just worried about Melania,'" Wiley argued. "But how do you get that evidence in?
"He'd have to take the stand, and as we know, the minute he would do that, which is very hard to imagine happening, that opens the door for the prosecution to eat his lunch."
Watch the video below or at the link here.
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