NEW YORK — Little more than two weeks into Donald Trump’s presidency, he and his personal lawyer sat in the Oval Office and sealed a deal that prosecutors say was a crime.
“He asked me if I was OK, he asked me if I needed money,” the lawyer, Michael Cohen, recalled Tuesday from the witness stand at Trump’s criminal trial.
He soon began receiving monthly checks — most bearing Trump’s signature, and, according to Cohen, all works of fiction. Trump was reimbursing Cohen for paying off a porn actor, Stormy Daniels, but the check stubs described the payments as part of a legal “retainer” agreement.
The men did not discuss specifics at that White House meeting, but Cohen testified that the plan to fake the records had been cooked up weeks earlier in New York.
The testimony was a pivotal moment for prosecutors. They charged Trump with falsifying the checks and other records, and Cohen’s recounting of the Oval Office arrangement drove those accusations home, offering the jury its first and only personal account tying the former president to the documents at the crux of his case.
And yet, Trump’s legal team soon sought to sweep the revelation aside as he began to question Cohen and attack his credibility. Trump denies falsifying the records and maintains he never had sex with Daniels.
In the early phase of cross-examination, a defense lawyer, Todd Blanche, portrayed Cohen as out of control and bent on exacting revenge on Trump after his patron abandoned him.
Blanche emphasized Cohen’s voluminous television appearances and insult slinging on social media — all of which he did in defiance of the prosecution’s wishes and at Trump’s expense. He also noted that Cohen maintains a financial interest in attacking Trump, arguing that he cashed in on their feud with a podcast and a pair of books.
“Do you want President Trump to get convicted in this case?” Blanche asked.
“Sure,” Cohen replied smoothly, keeping his composure as the questioning gained steam.
Confronted with his past praise of his boss, Cohen shot back, “At that time, I was knee-deep into the cult of Donald Trump.”
But that near-filial relationship imploded when Cohen came under federal investigation for the hush money and other matters. Trump turned his back on Cohen, who then vowed to flip on the man he had once loyally served and proudly called “boss.”
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