Lawyer Cohen taped Trump discussing payment to Playboy model - NYT

[rooster59]

Lawyer Cohen taped Trump discussing payment to Playboy model - NYT

 

FILE PHOTO: U.S. President Donald Trump's personal lawyer Michael Cohen exits his hotel in New York City, U.S., July 2, 2018. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid/File Photo

 

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump's longtime lawyer, Michael Cohen, secretly recorded a conversation with Trump before the 2016 presidential election in which they discussed payments to a former Playboy model who said she had an affair with Trump, the New York Times reported on Friday.

 

The newspaper, citing lawyers and others familiar with the recording, said the FBI seized the recording this year during a raid on Cohen's office.

 

Federal prosecutors in New York are investigating Cohen for possible bank and tax fraud, and for possible campaign law violations linked to a $130,000 payment to adult film actress Stormy Daniels and other matters related to Trump's campaign, a person familiar with the investigation has told Reuters.

 

The FBI seized documents and files as part of that investigation, which stemmed in part from a referral by the U.S. special counsel's office, which is looking into possible coordination during the 2016 election campaign between Trump's aides and Russia.

 

The existence of a recording raises further questions about the tactics Trump used to keep his personal and business life secret while he was seeking public office.

 

Representatives for Cohen and Trump's attorney Rudy Giuliani did not immediately respond to requests for comment from Reuters.

 

Giuliani told the Times that Trump had discussed the payments with Cohen on the tape but that the payments were ultimately never made. He said the recording was less than two minutes and demonstrated the president had done nothing wrong.

 

The former model, Karen McDougal, said she began an nearly yearlong affair with Trump in 2006 shortly after his wife, Melania, gave birth to their son, Barron, the Times said.

 

The White House has said that Trump denies having an affair with McDougal and that he has denied having sex with Stormy Daniels.

 

McDougal sold her story to The National Enquirer for $150,000 during the final months of the presidential campaign but the tabloid sat on the story, preventing it from becoming public, the Times said.

 

Cohen's lawyer, Lanny Davis, declined to comment on the tapes, the newspaper said.

 

The newspaper, citing three people briefed on the matter, said Cohen's lawyers discovered the recording during their review of the seized materials and shared it with Trump's lawyers.

 

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2018-07-21

[pegman]

Tapes? Shaping up more like Watergate all the time. 

[Emster23]

Recall "Hope Hicks, said, “We have no knowledge of any of this.” She said Ms. McDougal’s claim of an affair was “totally untrue.”" She should have stopped at "We have no knowledge"

[evadgib]

Having publicly slated his intelligence service last week in the presence of Putin this cannot come as a surprise.

[Credo]

Well this is just silly.   How can he have talked about an affair he never had.   ?

[NumbNut]

16 minutes ago, Emster23 said:

Recall "Hope Hicks, said, “We have no knowledge of any of this.” She said Ms. McDougal’s claim of an affair was “totally untrue.”" She should have stopped at "We have no knowledge"

"We have no knowledge" is about the only thing I will believe coming from a trumper

[bristolboy]

2 minutes ago, Credo said:

Well this is just silly.   How can he have talked about an affair he never had.   ?

On the other hand it makes perfect sense for him to have paid her money to keep silent about an affair he never had.

[mtls2005]

22 minutes ago, bristolboy said:

On the other hand it makes perfect sense for him to have paid her money to keep silent about an affair he never had.

 

Were it that simple? 

 

But instead, a conspiracy was hatched with David Pecker to defraud Ms. McDougal, by "funneling" (Rudy G's favorite word, after "exculpatory") money through the National Enquirer.

 

The Enquirer will have to follow the Trump playbook and enter Chapter 11, after the judgment.

 

That the Trump campaign lied should hardly come as a shock? Do they face legal challenges as a result? Probably. Pardons all around.

 

I'm waiting for Trump to claim that was "John Barron" on the Cohen Tapes.

 

 

[thaichiro]

To “quote” a great Southern congressmen, he lied!

[mtls2005]

Michael Cohen told Donald Trump that he WOULDN'T ever record their conversations.

 

Why WOULD he?

 

"Oh daddy."

 

Ms. McDougal, Ivanka and a few of Trump's favorite things.

 

Not sure if that's Melania, jeez if it is she's had too much work done.

 

/Perv

[Tug]

Won’t amount to anything he lied are you surprised?nobody is he is a cad his supporters don’t care 

[yougivemebaby]

Who the fk cares?

[spidermike007]

I will say it again. There were absolutely no payments made to that woman. I have never met her, much less had sex with her. The fake media is making up all this stuff. They hate me.

 

What did you say? They have it on tape? Oh Ok. We should change our story. There were payments. But, I have never met this woman, nor have I ever had sex with her. Why did we pay her all that money? Or why did my buddy at the National Enquirer pay her all that money? Just because we did not want to lose any votes. It had nothing to do with my insatiable appetite for pussy. 

[55Jay]

Gotta hand it to The Don, he swings for the fences when it comes to Giks. 

 

On the other hand, this Cohen guy seems to be way out of his depth.   Leaving tapes and incriminating evidence around in houses/office of record when No Knock search warrants are imminent?  Really, Bro?!?!?  Amateur hour!

 

Hindsight of course but, Trump should have kept the hush money and hired HRC.  Not much of a politician but this kind of wet work is right up her alley.   ?

 

[Chomper Higgot]

27 minutes ago, yougivemebaby said:

Who the fk cares?

Rest assured Trump cares.

 

And so too will the Christian’s who currently support him.

[Srikcir]

24 minutes ago, spidermike007 said:

Just because we did not want to lose any votes.

Can't say that because it would be a federal violation of Campaign Finance Laws.

Which actually it is.

[Chomper Higgot]

4 minutes ago, 55Jay said:

Gotta hand it to The Don, he swings for the fences when it comes to Giks. 

 

On the other hand, this Cohen guy seems to be way out of his depth.   Leaving tapes and incriminating evidence around in houses/office of record when No Knock search warrants are imminent?  Really, Bro?!?!?  Amateur hour!

 

Hindsight of course but, Trump should have kept the hush money and hired HRC.  Not much of a politician but this kind of wet work is right up her alley.   ?

 

I knew Hillary would be dragged into this somewhere in the first 20 posts.

[Slip]

3 minutes ago, Chomper Higgot said:

I knew Hillary would be dragged into this somewhere in the first 20 posts.

It's all they've got...

[55Jay]

Just now, Chomper Higgot said:

I knew Hillary would be dragged into this somewhere in the first 20 posts.

I put $20 down that you would be the first one to jump all over it.  Thanks!  LOL!!!! 

[Lupatria]

1 hour ago, thaichiro said:

To “quote” a great Southern congressmen, he lied!

Trump says he wants to run again in 2020.

What gives hope is: his grandiose record of 1.600 false statements in just 300 days.

[spidermike007]

9 minutes ago, Chomper Higgot said:

I knew Hillary would be dragged into this somewhere in the first 20 posts.

 

15 minutes ago, 55Jay said:

Gotta hand it to The Don, he swings for the fences when it comes to Giks. 

 

On the other hand, this Cohen guy seems to be way out of his depth.   Leaving tapes and incriminating evidence around in houses/office of record when No Knock search warrants are imminent?  Really, Bro?!?!?  Amateur hour!

 

Hindsight of course but, Trump should have kept the hush money and hired HRC.  Not much of a politician but this kind of wet work is right up her alley.   ?

 

 

And the amateur hour continues right into and throughout his presidency. Only a rank amateur, and a man of such modest intelligence could have messed up the Putin meeting as bad as this charlatan did. 

[Srikcir]

6 hours ago, rooster59 said:

Cohen's lawyers discovered the recording during their review of the seized materials and shared it with Trump's lawyers.

While this (and likely many other) recording apparently made without Trump's knowledge is not a crime (NY is a one-party consent for personal telephone recordings*), it potentially removes any client privileged communication claim to prevent disclosure to the prosecution.

So not much Trump can do about the recording other than (as Giuliani has) dismiss them as irrelevant. Albeit, Melania might not view it in the same way.

 

* New law requires mutual consent related to commercial sales calls.

[mtls2005]

1 hour ago, yougivemebaby said:

Who the fk cares?

[55Jay]

Just now, spidermike007 said:

And the amateur hour continues right into and throughout his presidency. Only a rank amateur, and a man of such modest intelligence could have messed up the Putin meeting as bad as this charlatan did. 

Couldn't agree more.

 

My post wasn't laudatory of Trump but I recognize now it was wasn't inflammatory enough, and that kind of under-stated criticism on this genre, isn't appreciated.   If you're going to be "in" the club, you gotta be in it all the way, and must demonstrate it on a daily basis.

 

WRT the OP, IMO, the observation/characterization of Cohen was fair.

 

Praising Hillary's strengths and skill set within the political arena isn't to be sniffed at.  Takes years, decades even, and hands-on experience, to develop the kind of detached, professional acumen necessary in messes like this.   Trump could learn a lot from the Clintons but his mess is big enough now, he would likely balk at their fee.   It would be UUGE!  ?

[candide]

57 minutes ago, 55Jay said:

On the other hand, this Cohen guy seems to be way out of his depth.   Leaving tapes and incriminating evidence around in houses/office of record when No Knock search warrants are imminent?  Really, Bro?!?!?  Amateur hour!

Amateur or pro? It seems to be a good way to stab Trump in the back while pretending not to. ?

[Gandtee]

No wonder Melania is reluctant to hold the Trump's hand. She knows where it's been.?

[mtls2005]

6 minutes ago, atyclb said:

sorry his "tiny one"  disappointed you.

 

Was your jibe aimed at Ivanka? Melania? Or Karen McDougal?

 

 

The first story was "planted"...

 

"Marla," Trump yelled into the background. "Didn't you say it's the best sex you ever had with me?" From a distance, we heard a faint voice: "Yes, Donald." Only years later did we learn that Trump sometimes impersonated voices to reporters. I still can't be sure whether the voice in the room was really hers.

 

[atyclb]

8 minutes ago, mtls2005 said:

10 minutes ago, atyclb said:

sorry his "tiny one"  disappointed you.

 

Was your jibe aimed at Ivanka? Melania? Or Karen McDougal?

 

 

The first story was "planted"...

 

"Marla," Trump yelled into the background. "Didn't you say it's the best sex you ever had with me?" From a distance, we heard a faint voice: "Yes, Donald." Only years later did we learn that Trump sometimes impersonated voices to reporters. I still can't be sure whether the voice in the room was really hers.

 

 

directed at poster who seems to have first hand knowledge, no pun intended,  just good fun.

[mtls2005]

3 minutes ago, atyclb said:

directed at poster who seems to have first hand knowledge, no pun intended

 

So another illicit liaison to add to the list. Thanks for keeping us updated.

 

Oh, when will it end.

 

 

(Probably the thought all women have during their 30 seconds in the sack with Trump.)

[55Jay]

23 minutes ago, candide said:

Amateur or pro? It seems to be a good way to stab Trump in the back while pretending not to. ?

Good point.  ?