Cohen returns to Capitol Hill
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump's former lawyer returned to Capitol Hill on Thursday for hours of closeddoor questioning after publicly branding his former boss a racist and a con man who lied about business dealings in Russia and directed him to conceal extramarital relationships.
Michael Cohen was speaking privately to the House intelligence committee for the last of three appearances before Congress this week.
Cohen, who pleaded guilty last year to lying to Congress and reports to prison soon for a three-year sentence, gave harsh testimony about Trump on Wednesday. He said Trump knew in advance that damaging emails about Democrat Hillary Clinton would be released during the 2016 campaign —a claim the president has denied — and accused Trump of lying during the 2016 campaign about a Moscow real estate protect.
Cohen also said Trump directed him during the campaign to arrange a hush money payment to a porn actress who said she had sex with the president a decade earlier. He said Trump arranged to reimburse Cohen, and Cohen brought to the hearing a check from the president's personal bank account that he said was proof of the transaction.
Two of Trump's most vocal defenders, GOP Reps. Jim Jordan of Ohio and Mark Meadows of North Carolina, sent a referral to the Justice Department alleging Cohen lied in his testimony. Their letter to Attorney General William Barr details several Cohen statements they said were false, including claims that he “never defrauded any bank” and did not want a job in Trump's White House. Lanny Davis, a lawyer for Cohen, called the referral “baseless” and said Cohen had testified truthfully and “backed up much of his testimony with documents.”
Cohen's testimony unfolded as Trump was in Vietnam meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. Trump said he tried to watch as much of Cohen's marathon hearing as he could but called the hearing “fake” and said it was a “terrible thing” for Democrats to hold it during his summit.
He seized on Cohen's concession that he had no direct evidence that Trump or his aides colluded with Russia to get him elected, the primary question underpinning special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation. Trump said he was a “little impressed” that Cohen had said that to the House Oversight and Reform Committee.