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Alvin Bragg is 'asking for trouble' if he's going solely off Michael Cohen's word — here's why
March 20, 2023
Former President Donald Trump appears to be on the cusp of being indicted by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg for falsifying business records relating to his $130,000 hush payment to adult film star Stormy Daniels, to cover up their alleged former affair from voters in the 2016 election.
But a big problem for this case, argued former federal prosecutor Elie Honig on CNN's "OutFront" Monday, is that the key element of intent rests on the word of Trump's former attorney and fixed Michael Cohen, who was convicted of perjury from his claims in this very case.
"So one of the lawyers who quit because [Trump previously wasn't indicted] wrote a book about it," said Burnett. "That book came out recently. And Mark Pomerantz wrote it about Bragg. He says, at one point, 'Alvin Bragg commented that he could not see a world in which we would indict Trump and call Cohen as a prosecution witness.' "Unless there's something that no one knows about, that seems like exactly what he's going to do."
Honig concurred with this assessment.
RELATED: Trump 'knows what’s coming': Michael Cohen
"From a prosecutorial point of view, to stake a case solely on the word of Michael Cohen — yes, there are checks, yes there are documents, but on the key issue of did Donald Trump know about and authorize the false booking — if you base that solely on Michael Cohen, you are asking for trouble."
"There is one example that we just he did from Mark Pomerantz," continued Honig. "But if you go beyond that, Cohen has been convicted of perjury. He was convicted of financial fraud and tax fraud for himself. He also said the exact opposite back in 2018. He told the FEC these payments were entirely nonpolitical, entirely legal. So, he is going to be a very problematic witness."
Watch below or at this link.
Elie Honig warns Alvin Bragg will struggle to convict Trump on Michael Cohen's word alone www.youtube.com
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Former Watergate prosecutor Nick Akerman and Donald Trump's former lawyer Michael Cohen met on Monday on MSNBC to discuss recent comments from Trump ally Robert Costello.
Host Ari Melber played a clip of Trump's lawyer Joe Tacopina, who spoke last week to MSNBC.
"Shame on Joe Tacopina," said Cohen. "First and foremost, was there no fraud in the medallions? I don't know what he's talking about. Second of all, this whole thing of lying and my credibility, I've even said this to you and to others on this station, what did I lie about? And the lie to congress on the 1001 violation I pled guilty, was the number of times I spoke to Donald Trump about the failed real estate project at the direction of, and for the benefit of, and in coordination with Donald Trump. I said three, and the real answer was ten and if you think that will stop [District Attorney] Alvin Bragg or anyone on using me on credibility? It's not. And there are so many things that not only will come up, but have already drip, drip, dripped out regarding credibility, testified before seven congressional committees, the attorney general, the district attorney and Mueller, not one person has turned around so far and said that anything that I told them has not been accurate and truthful and relevant to the investigation."
Cohen went on to say that when he heard that Trump was announcing his own arrest, "This is really panic and fear. He knows what's coming on Tuesday, Wednesday, whatever. He knows what's coming down the pike, and what he's trying to do is trying to get the advanced jump on to the story. We did the exact same thing at the Trump University case with Schneiderman when we found out he was filing and before he filed, we jumped on to it, and it's a typical jump play."
RELATED: Watergate prosecutor reveals how Robert Costello just opened Trump up to even more charges
Akerman agreed, saying that nothing Cohen said before is relevant.
"If you go to the jury, the prosecutors are not presenting Michael Cohen as a choir boy. Sure, he lied before, but he lied for this defendant who is sitting in the dock, and if you look at the other evidence and you look into the do you mean and you take into account the other testimony you will conclude that Michael Cohen is telling the truth, and the key is the corroboration and the support that they have that what Michael is saying is absolutely spot on."
See the clip below or at the link here.
'This is really panic and fear — he knows what’s coming': Cohen says of Trump www.youtube.com
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Watergate prosecutor reveals how Robert Costello just opened Trump up to even more charges
March 20, 2023
Former Watergate prosecutor Nick Akerman joined Michel Cohen on MSNBC Monday following a press conference by Donald Trump ally Bob Costello who appeared before a Manhattan grand jury.
As a possible indictment hangs over Trump, he district attorney's office asked the former president if he wanted to speak out in his defense to the grand jury. He declined but he sent Costello instead. Costello then said that he provided stacks of "evidence" about Cohen that shows he was desperate and willing to do anything to get out of potential prison.
But the reality is a different matter, according to Cohen. Speaking to Ari Melber he and Akerman explained that the special counsel's report on the Russia investigation revealed a lot of information about the exchanges between Cohen and Costello, including the attempt by Trump allies to keep him from flipping.
"I start with this is the Mueller report because the Mueller report laid out a witness tampering plot by Donald Trump, basically to keep Michael in line with Donald Trump," said Akerman, saying that it went through Rudy Giuliani and Bob Costello.
"Now, Bob Costello I know, we were in the U.S. Attorney's office and he's a good guy and it seems like he was wittingly or unwittingly part of a plot to keep Michael Cohen in line," he continued.
Melber put up a headline saying Costello contacted one of Trump's lawyers to see, allegedly if he could arrange for a pardon for Cohen. He asked why something like that matters.
"Well, that's all part of the story," Akerman explained. "It really starts on April 9th when the search warrant is executed and only a few days after that Donald Trump calls him according to the Mueller report and he can confirm this and told him that, you know, he was just checking in to see if he was okay and he encouraged Michael to hang in there. Then he got calls from other people, friends of Donald Trump, who called up and basically told him to keep in line, including Allen Weisselberg who I believe also called him during that period of time. One of the people that was involved in cooking the books."
Akerman continued: "What's wrong with it is it comes to a point when Michael meets with Costello, who is talking to Rudy Giuliani, who is talking to Donald Trump, and it all comes back to Donald Trump that Michael is on board and that he's staying with the team. And the next day, the day after that meeting occurs on April 17th, Donald Trump starts tweeting out that Michael's not going to flip. That he's with the team, that he's on board."
Melber categorized it as "an effort then to abuse government power to thwart a probe."
Cohen chimed in to say that during that time, Trump was dangling pardons live on television, characterizing it: "I can shut this down tomorrow. I'm the president. I can do whatever I want. I can shut this whole thing down, and it's called the pre-pardon."
Cohen noted that it was clear Trump didn't know what he was talking about.
"And all of a sudden, they're now on television because I wasn't the only one that was going through some issues at the time. They're now throwing it out there for anybody to see," Cohen continued. It was after that that Costello got involved.
Cohen went on to say that the reason Costello would do this is unclear to him, but his allegiance to Trump and to Giuliani may have been what motivated him to "come out and make these false statements."
Akerman called it an outright "dumb, stupid move."
Giving D.A. Alvin Bragg access to Costello, Akerman said, gives him the opportunity to bring up "all the conversations Costello had with Michael. All the conversations Costello had with Rudy Giuliani. What Rudy Giuliani said that Donald Trump said and what he conveyed to Donald Trump. And then I would end up indicting Donald Trump for witness tampering and obstruction of justice. I mean, the Mueller report itself is enough basis to do that. But now they put forward a witness whose right in the middle of this witness tampering plot to supposedly give exculpatory evidence!"
See the clip of Akerman and Cohen below or at the link here.
Watergate prosecutor reveals how Robert Costello just opened Trump up to even more charges www.youtube.com
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