Cohen Taped Trump Discussing Payment to Former Playboy Model
Don’t know if it’s privileged or not.
The New York Times reported today that President Donald Trump’s lawyer Michael Cohen recorded a conversation with him about payments to former Playboy model Karen McDougal about an alleged affair.
The Times received this information from “lawyers and others familiar with the recording.”
The Times continued:
The F.B.I. seized the recording this year during a raid on Mr. Cohen’s office. The Justice Department is investigating Mr. Cohen’s involvement in paying women to tamp down embarrassing news stories about Mr. Trump ahead of the 2016 election. Prosecutors want to know whether that violated federal campaign finance laws, and any conversation with Mr. Trump about those payments would be of keen interest to them.
The recording’s existence further draws Mr. Trump into questions about tactics he and his associates used to keep aspects of his personal and business life a secret. And it highlights the potential legal and political danger that Mr. Cohen represents to Mr. Trump. Once the keeper of many of Mr. Trump’s secrets, Mr. Cohen is now seen as increasingly willing to consider cooperating with prosecutors.
The former model, Karen McDougal, says she began a nearly yearlong affair with Mr. Trump in 2006, shortly after Mr. Trump’s wife, Melania, gave birth to their son Barron. Ms. McDougal sold her story for $150,000 to The National Enquirer, which was supportive of Mr. Trump, during the final months of the presidential campaign, but the tabloid sat on the story, which kept it from becoming public. The practice, known as “catch and kill,” effectively silenced Ms. McDougal for the remainder of the campaign.
Obviously, there is an ongoing investigation, and we are sensitive to that. But suffice it to say that when the recording is heard, it will not hurt @MichaelCohen212. Any attempt at spin can not change what is on the tape.
— Lanny Davis (@LannyDavis) July 20, 2018
The recording happened two months before the 2016 election. It landed in the FBI’s hands when agents raided Cohen’s office earlier this year, which means there is a possibility it’s part of the over 2,000 documents that the special master ruled as privileged and the feds would not have the ability to listen to it (pdf.).
It all ties into an investigation in “Cohen’s involvement in paying women to bury embarrassing news stories about Trump ahead of the election.” Another part of the investigation is possible involvement in sending Stormy Daniels “hush money.”
On Friday, Trump’s personal lawyer Rudy Giuliani spoke about this recording. From The Times:
Rudolph W. Giuliani, Mr. Trump’s personal lawyer, confirmed in a telephone conversation on Friday that Mr. Trump had discussed payments to Ms. McDougal with Mr. Cohen on the tape. He said the recording was less than two minutes long, said Mr. Trump did not know he was being recorded and claimed that the president had done nothing wrong.
Mr. Giuliani said there was no indication on the tape that Mr. Trump knew before the conversation about the payment from the Enquirer’s parent company, American Media Inc., to Ms. McDougal.
“Nothing in that conversation suggests that he had any knowledge of it in advance,” Mr. Giuliani said.
The men discussed a payment from Mr. Trump to Ms. McDougal — separate from the Enquirer payment — to buy her story and ensure her silence, Mr. Giuliani said. That payment was never made, Mr. Giuliani said, adding that Mr. Trump had told Mr. Cohen that if he were to make a payment related to the woman, to write a check rather than send cash, so it could be properly documented.
I see some people in freakout mode and think this is the end of Trump. However, unless we hear the recording, we won’t know for sure. The recording has to show Trump authorizing payment to McDougal with federal donations. If it doesn’t then it’s a nothingburger.
A source also tells our @DanaBashCNN & @GloriaBorger that upon learning of the tapes, Trump remarked, “I can’t believe Michael would do this to me.” https://t.co/ocJFGYqo7d
— Allie Malloy (@AlliemalCNN) July 20, 2018
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Comments
His lawyer recorded a conversation with him and is now releasing the recording? If I did that. I’d lose my license, as well I should. So Cohen wants to add bar sanctions on top of his other troubles?
FBI seized the recording. Its contents is “according to a source.”
According to the a source familiar with the Clintons’ shenanigans.
Sanctions? He will get the Order of Obama if it damages Trump. We have two scummy entities here… Cohen and the Leaking Deep State. Cohen with his “protection” and the FBI/DOJ with its “insurance policy”.
“W.C.” Cohen (that nose…) committed the federal crime of wiretapping and possibly a state crime.
He also violated 100 bar ethic violations.
His law license will wind up in the same garbage can as both obamas and klintons -my little chickadees.
I am boiling, like superheated, like WHAT A SON OF A BITZCZ!!!!!
That’s right, all caps angry.
There goes Cohen’s pardon…
If you think POTUS was going to pardon the dude, I got a bridge to sell you.
That said, in what kabuki justice system in the world does an investigator get to keep leaking stuff to the media twice a week and still be allowed to continue the investigation?
In Rosenstein’s.
So … the mad dogs need to find some evidence that the payment Trump didn’t make, wasn’t not made with federal funds.
Uh-huh. Nothingburgers are becoming the hottest dining trend in America.
But it sure gets the Libs in a tizzy!
The Times received this information from “lawyers and others familiar with the recording.”
The leak by the gov’t should be the outrage.
Whatever is on the tape, privileged or not, here we have proof that the so called “special master” is also as corrupt as they come.
Just on Breitbart: Special master says 2/3 of tapes are privileged.
https://www.breitbart.com/big-government/2018/07/20/two-thirds-of-michael-cohen-disputed-communications-with-trump-covered-by-attorney-client-privilege/
OK, I just downvoted myself; the articles states 2/3 of all the materials are privileged, not necessarily the tapes.
My mistake!!!
Is donating to a woman’s college fund illegal now?
Nothingburger or not, how in Hades does a recording of a private conversation between a client and his lawyer not qualify as privileged? And if so, whoever disclosed it should be charged with a crime. Doubly so it if was Cohen who disclosed it publicly (though I doubt it was him).
1. What does this alleged recording have to do with anything POTUS? It makes all the leftists look even more corrupt (not an easy task).
2. The Dem candidate actively worked to destroy her husband’s rape victims.
3. The Dem candidate violated many security laws and regulations.
4. The Dem candidate made serious personal money selling out the USA to Russia and other foreign governments.
WTF?
What does this have to do concerning “Russian” collusion?
Collusion was just the come on, Mueller’s actual mission is to remove DJT from the Office of the President!
Precisely.
afaik the Cohen investigation is being done by the SDNY DoJ, not the Mueller witch hunt.
Which is about the same amount of difference as the difference between the KGB amd GRU.
The Clintons outright had their enemies murdered. Not a problem for half of America according to the popular vote.
When Trump is outted for murdering his enemies AND stops representing my beliefs in execution of policy, I’ll say America made a mistake at the ballot box. If America wanted a gentleman Saint for POTUS, Mitt Romney would be in the Oval office making nice with our enemies. Turns out, Mitt’s not the best man for the job.
Until Obamacare is repealed, I’d say every other person in an elected federal office right now is a mistake at the ballot box. The media and the left don’t get it; it’s not about Trump. It’s about me and my family and our needs and beliefs. Stop the damn kabuki outrage theatre.
That would be because not only everyone who voted for them but almost everyone who voted against them knows there’s no basis for that accusation, and that when someone makes it nothing else they say is of any value.
What’s more troubling is that they did take bribes, and that doesn’t seem to trouble a lot of people.
McDougal was never paid by Cohen.
Exactly – and even if money was paid, how was that a crime? (oh puh-lease not the “campaign contribution” silliness)
Is it illegal in any jurisdiction for one to pay the bimbo to remain silent?
I’m sure that all of the Dems are going to argue that this is only about sex and has nothing to do with how he does his job.
And, that it concerns his “private life” and not his “public” one.
For the life of me, I cannot understand why Cohen would surreptitiously record a client. Obviously the Special Master ruled this material was not privileged. I would think a discussion of how to lawfully structure a payment would be privileged legal advice.
Why was Cohen secretly recording client conversations? Seems like Cohen wanted blackmail/extortion materials. I wonder how many of his other clients are on the hook. And now placed in legal jeopardy.
Cohen sure seems like the dirtbag lawyer everyone loves to hate.
The downvoter needs to go through the comments again. He missed a few.
Obviously one of tne of the four usual suspects the come through here.
He’s still holding his breath till he turns blue. You can almost hear him paddle kicking the floorboards.
…just a PSA in case anyone – heaven forfend – didn’t notice his absence.
Probably Rags.
Let us assume that Trump suggessted something blatently illegal in the tape? Isn’t that part of a lawyers job? To advise a client whether certain actions are legal or illegal?
Example: My neighbors tree has a branch that keeps bumping against my house, can I cut it down?
I don’t see how this accomplishes much except for maybe causing a divorce.
In most states, AFAIK, suggesting something that might be illegal to your lawyer is not a crime. The lawyer should of course counsel that actually doing what was suggested would be illegal.
But it ain’t illegal until the act is either believably threatened or actually committed. If committed with the knowledge, especially foreknowledge, of your lawyer, most states require the lawyer to break confidentiality & turn you in. If I tell my personal lawyer that I’m going to off somebody specific or to arrange for the offing of said person, the lawyer would be obligated to disclose that to the proper authorities, just as a psychiatrist, therapist or physician would be if given the same information.
You can sound off all you want to your lawyer about anything and it is (maybe just should be these days, sadly) protected by client-lawyer privilege, unless & until you make meaningful specific threats to commit criminal acts or make clear your intent to effectuate such threats.
You legal eagles spank me if I’m wrong.
Just not enough information here yet to know the effect on POTUS. There’s a recording; we don’t know if the special master has kept it off limits from the FBI. We don’t know that the press has heard it, just that “sources” have told them what’s on it….
As far as Cohen, I don’t understand why he would record his client. As far as him doing some deal with prosecutors against his client, there goes his law license, but I guess that is a small price to pay for “freedom.”
As far as this entire slimy mess, the dems/left/etc. have shown their ruthlessness. Clinton Treatment versus Trump Treatment; Podesta Treatment vs. Manafort Treatment.
Will the GOP at some point rouse from slumber and let loose the dogs of war?
Nobody will ever hire him as their lawyer no matter what some flaky bar association does.You do not do sneaky things to your client. Only the desperate would trust him like as a public defender in criminal cases and there is little money in that.
Don’t really care anymore. Wake me when Hillary or her cronies get inducted for any of their numerous crimes.
This is what happens when you allow the government to seize all of an attorney’s records and go through them in a fishing expedition. Stuff gets leaked, if not used directly, against third parties.
Indicted.
I know, obvious typo. But I had to correct it before someone assumed “induct” somehow involved “fantasy violence” or something. LOL.
Yes, I’m advocating shoving them into an air duct until they asphyxiate. Death By Lint.
Oh. I thought you wanted them drafted into the Army.
Oh for goodness sakes, everybody knows Trump was unfaithful and nobody except his ex-wives care. Nobody thinks he paid any of them with, ‘campaign money’. This is a smear campaign by the deep state.
Mueller can’t find evidence of a crime that didn’t occur, he keeps making them look stupid and corrupt and nobody believes the FBI, CIA etc didn’t work to rig the election. So he leaks a smear.
The deep state is a crime family. Look at Strozak’s testimony, he was gleefully sneering the whole time. He knows he’s untouchable.
If Trump did what was needful we’d see mass arrests but we won’t. Even if he did the Cuck party would cry crocodile tears. Moderates only shoot to the right. As long as swamp creatures can defy congress and the president you know our elected officials are not in charge.
They can only ignore the president if he allows them to. He’s the one person who could shut all of this down. As long as he allows DOJ to run itself, we have no DOJ.
So how does he run it when Vichy Mitchy won’t confirm replacement AG? It’s Deep State bureaucrats all the way down.
Only he knows, obviously, but I think I understand why he hasn’t cleaned house at DOJ & FBI. The ‘Establishment’ includes many nominal Republicans who would gladly jump on the Impeachment Train if he did what many of us would like him to do, even though we all know he has the constitutional authority to fire any of them he wishes. All it would take is all the Democrats (a given), the media (I know, redundant) and the Republican Swamp Dwellers getting their knickers in a wad & off to the races we go.
The Republican swamp is happy to let the economy roll and to get the judgeships filled because that is in its self-interest. They don’t really need Trump to do those things. It is also content to let Trump do nip & tuck surgery on the bloated control-freak agencies like EPA and DOEd, but let Trump try to really fix the IRS, DOJ or FBI and all hell would break loose.
As much as I’d love him to drain the swamp thoroughly, there remain too many of its denizens surrounding and defending the plug.
This will get you disbarred in my State. And sharing the tape with a third party will get you disbarred. And a third party attorney who shares it will be disbarred. And the conversation is, per se, privileged.
So goes the Mueller ‘Russian collusion’ investigation. ROFL!
A Trump troll?
Looks like he got the press to let him grab their lady parts once again.
Apparently Trump waived attorney client privilege on this particular audio clip. I doubt he would do that if it contained anything critical.
More then likely it’s something like, ” I didn’t do it, but it would be terrible if she came out claiming I do. If you can find a legal way to pay her do so.”
Oops. I am sorry I only wanted the first line to be bold. My bad.
“I see some people in freakout mode and think this is the end of Trump.”
No, we’re freaking out over the loss of another constitutional protection, Attorney-Client privilege.
Can’t get Trump? Let’s drag Melania through the mud again. Which is worse, Mueller or Avenatti?
Tie.
Not really. The hookers lawyer is just a two bit scumbag. Mueller is the corrupt deep state representative. Far worse.
“I see some people in freakout mode and think this is the end of Trump.”
Yes, file it in the folder titled “Lost Hopes of NeverTrumpers”, file # 9328.
Or under “muh blue wave”.
The New York Times reported… I stopped right there.
Is it me or didn’t just last week the MSM was crowing about how there were no leaks coming from the Mueller team because they were so professional?
Last week right? And the week prior to the last leak, and on and on.
Any audio tape produced by the Mueller probe must be evaluated knowing this software is available:
https://www.npr.org/2017/05/05/527013820/new-software-can-mimic-anyones-voice