Trump accused of campaign fraud as aides convicted
NEW YORK: Donald Trump stood accused of conspiring to commit campaign finance fraud and two of his closest aides faced jail time Tuesday, after court proceedings delivered a legal and political one-two punch to his embattled presidency.
In a drama that played out simultaneously across two US cities, a court found one former aide guilty of eight charges – and the other pleaded guilty to another eight – stemming from the federal investigation into the 2016 presidential election.
In New York, Trump’s longtime fixer, the attorney Michael Cohen, admitted to charges that included making illegal campaign contributions.
Cohen detailed how he made pre-election hush payments to porn star Stormy Daniels and Playboy model Karen McDougal. Both claim to have had affairs with Trump.
But in a sensational twist, Cohen also pointed to the president – or ‘individual 1’ as a co-conspirator – alleging that he acted “in coordination and at the direction of a candidate for federal office” in making those payments.
“I participated in this conduct with the purpose of influencing the election,” a visibly crestfallen Cohen told the judge, his voice trembling at times as he addressed the packed courtroom.
That admission put Trump himself in legal jeopardy. And it raised the prospect that a oncetrusted lieutenant is ready to spill secrets, gathered over decades, in exchange for a reduced sentence.
In a statement to US media, Trump’s lawyer Rudy Giuliani said, “there is no allegation of any wrongdoing against the President in the government’s charges against Mr Cohen.”
Cohen’s lawyer Lanny Davis explained his client’s about face after years spent vowing to “take a bullet” for Trump.
“This is Michael fulfilling his promise... to put his family and country first and tell the truth about Donald Trump,” said Davis.
“Today, he stood up and testified under oath that Donald Trump directed him to commit a crime by making payments to two women for the principal purpose of influencing an election,” the lawyer continued.
While the Cohen drama was unfolding in New York, a jury in Virginia found Trump’s onetime campaign chairman, Paul Manafort, guilty on eight counts, including bank fraud, tax fraud and failure to declare foreign bank accounts.
Trump expressed regret, calling Manafort ‘a good man.’
“I feel very sad about that,” Trump told reporters as he arrived in West Virginia for a rally, claiming the conviction was part of a ‘witch hunt’ after the 2016 election.
It is Cohen’s decision to enter a plea deal that may pose the most problems for Trump.
While it is US legal tradition that the president cannot be tried, the allegation, if proven, will only increase calls for his impeachment as congressional elections in November come nearer.
“I think impeachment is now squarely going to define the midterms,” Rob Stutzman, a Republican strategist and Trump critic, told The New York Times. “It’s inescapable now that Democrats can legitimately raise that issue.”
Questioned by a federal judge in Manhattan, Cohen indicated he had paid sums of US$130,000 and US$150,000 each to two women who claimed they had affairs with Trump.
Cohen said he made the payments ‘at the request of a candidate’ to silence “information that would be prejudicial to the candidate and the campaign.”
In addition to two counts of violating campaign finance laws, Cohen pleaded guilty to five counts of tax fraud and one of bank fraud during the hearing before US District Judge William Pauley.
The federal judge informed the 51-year-old Cohen that he faced a maximum of 65 years of imprisonment, with his sentence set to be handed down on Dec 12.