‘Impeachable’ to pardon: Gov
Gov. Cuomo had two words Wednesday for any plans President Trump might have to pardon his former personal lawyer Michael Cohen: “impeachable offense.”
Cuomo, speaking to reporters at the opening day of the State Fair in upstate Syracuse, said a Trump pardon of Cohen would be tantamount to obstruction of justice and would be “one of the grossest injustices we have ever seen.”
“If the President were now to come in and pardon Cohen, I think it would be a de facto silencing of a witness against him — and I think that would be an impeachable offense,” the governor said.
In pleading guilty Tuesday to eight federal felony charges, Cohen said he was directed by Trump to pay off two women who say they had sex with the President a decade ago.
Cohen and lawyer Lanny Davis also promised to cooperate with federal and state authorities probing Trump.
Davis told NPR Wednesday Cohen wouldn’t accept a pardon “from a man he considers to be both corrupt and a dangerous person in the Oval Office.”
Cohen’s guilty plea, along with the conviction on the same day of Trump’s former campaign manager, Paul Manafort, on eight federal fraud counts, is more than just an embarrassment for the President, Cuomo said.
“This was his lawyer and his campaign chairman,” Cuomo said. “There’s not a lot of distance between those points.”
A Virginia jury found Manafort guilty of eight counts of tax and bank fraud as part of Robert Mueller’s Russia probe.
The President is mulling over pardoning the former campaign manager, Fox News reported.
“He mentioned pardoning Manafort,” “Fox & Friends” co-host Ainsley Earhardt told Sean Hannity Wednesday, previewing the broadcast of her interview with Trump.
Meanwhile, Cuomo’s Democratic gubernatorial primary rival Cynthia Nixon reiterated her call for Cuomo to return some $64,000 in campaign donations he previously received from Trump.
“Cuomo didn’t have an excuse before for keeping Trump’s money,” said Nixon, flanked by about 40 supporters. “But he definitely doesn’t have any excuse now.”