A letter from Michael Cohen’s lawyer could serve as game-changing evidence in the Manhattan District Attorney’s potential criminal trial of former President Donald Trump.
The letter — written to the Federal Election Commission by Cohen’s legal counsel — indicates that Cohen himself was solely responsible for a $130,000 payment to pornographic performer Stormy Daniels.
The document was obtained by the Daily Mail on Wednesday.
BREAKING: A 2018 Letter from Michael Cohen’s lawyer states that Cohen used his own personal funds to pay $130,000 to Stormy Daniels and that the Trump Org nor Campaign was a party to the transaction did not reimburse Cohen for the payment directly or indirectly. pic.twitter.com/ZaHMndvQIT
— ALX 🇺🇸 (@alx) March 22, 2023
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“Mr. Cohen used his own personal funds to facilitate a payment of $130,000 to Ms. Stephanie Clifford,” Cohen lawyer Stephen M. Ryan says in the letter, using Daniels’ legal name.
Ryan goes on to indicate that neither Trump or his company reimbursed Cohen for the payment.
“Neither the Trump Organization or the Trump campaign was a party to the transaction with Ms. Clifford, and neither reimbursed Mr. Cohen for the payment directly or indirectly.”
The crux of Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg’s potential case against Trump relies on the supposed payment made to Daniels — a payment that the prosecutor would likely argue amounts to an unregistered campaign expenditure.
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Cohen plead guilty to campaign finance violations related to the payment in 2018, according to the Department of Justice.
Cohen has claimed that he was acting as an attorney to then-candidate Trump at the time of the payment, and has indicated he made the payment at his direction.
The former Trump confidante claimed that Trump told him to pay off Daniels in congressional testimony a year after his guilty plea, according to the Daily Mail.
Cohen was seen at Manhattan grand jury proceedings on Wednesday.
Prosecutors are expected to summon an additional witness on Thursday. It’s unclear when and if the grand jury will announce any planned indictments.
