(RepublicanJournal.org) – Former President Donald Trump’s Manhattan fraud trial has taken a dramatic turn. The prosecution wheeled out its star witness, former Trump attorney and fixer Michael Cohen. Liberals hope his testimony will be enough to garner a conviction. However, in many ways, Cohen is a poor witness; he’s a convicted criminal himself, and now he’s admitted that he robbed the man he’s giving evidence against.
Cohen Confesses to Stealing
On May 15, Cohen faced cross-examination from Trump’s legal team over his claims that he helped the former president falsify business records to pay hush money to Stormy Daniels. Last week, Cohen told the court he’d received a $420,000 payment from the Trump Organization that included his reimbursement for paying Daniels $130,000 in exchange for her dropping her claim she’d had an affair with Trump (which he denies). He also said he’d been given $50,000 to pay tech company Red Finch — but admitted he’d only paid the company $20,000, and pocketed the difference.
On Wednesday, May 15, Trump attorney Todd Blanche homed in on Cohen’s awkward admissions. He asked him, “You stole from the Trump Org, right?” After his previous testimony Cohen had little choice but to reply, “Yes, sir” — confirming that he’d stolen tens of thousands of dollars.
Pressed by Blanche, he also admitted that he’d lied to Trump Organization CFO Allen Weisselberg about how much money he needed and kept the extra himself. Cohen tried to justify the theft by claiming it was “almost like self-help,” saying he’d stolen the money because he was angry at his bonus being reduced.
This isn’t the first blow to Cohen’s credibility as a witness. In August 2018, he was convicted of eight criminal offenses, including five counts of tax evasion and a campaign finance violation. After the convictions, Cohen’s lawyer started hinting that his client would be willing to give evidence against Trump, and Cohen was interviewed by the Mueller inquiry into Russian interference in the 2016 election.
Despite this, Cohen was sentenced to three years in prison and fined $50,000. At the hearing he admitted responsibility for his crimes — then immediately changed tactics and claimed Trump had made him “choose the path of darkness.” Released early from prison in 2020, Cohen was then incarcerated again for refusing to comply with his release conditions.
The court has already heard testimony from attorney Robert Costello, who worked with Cohen; Costello said his colleague is a serial liar. The picture that’s emerging is a man who can’t be trusted. His admission that he deliberately robbed his employer isn’t going to do anything to change that.
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