USA TODAY International Edition
Giuliani won’t rule out Trump pleading Fifth
He says there’s 50-50 chance of subpoena
Trump attorney Rudy Giuliani wouldn’t rule out the possibility that the president could take the Fifth if he testifies in the Russia investigation.
“How can I ever be confident of that?” Giuliani said Sunday on ABC’s This Week.
The former New York City mayor said there was a 50% chance that Trump could be subpoenaed by special counsel Robert Mueller, who is investigating suspected Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election and whether there was collusion between the Russians and the Trump campaign.
Giuliani said that didn’t mean Trump would have to sit down with Mueller and his team. “We don’t have to,” he said.
“We can assert the same privilege as other presidents have.”
Giuliani pointed to Bill Clinton, who was served a subpoena by independent counsel Kenneth Starr. It was withdrawn when Clinton agreed to testify voluntarily before a grand jury.
ABC’s George Stephanopoulos asked Giuliani whether Trump would be willing to testify.
Giuliani replied that he would prefer a Q&A, in which the president wouldn’t be under oath and Trump’s team would receive the questions in advance.
Giuliani discussed the drama stemming from a $130,000 payoff that adultfilm star Stormy Daniels said she received to stay quiet about an affair with Trump. Giuliani said he didn’t think of the money, paid by Trump lawyer Michael Cohen, as a “real payment.”
“It’s a nuisance payment,” he said. “People don’t go away for $130,000 of a meritorious claim.”
Giuliani said he had “no knowledge” of whether Cohen made other payments to women on Trump’s behalf.
“But I would think if it was necessary, yes,” he said. “He made payments for the president, or he conducted business for the president.”
Daniels’ attorney, Michael Avenatti, called Giuliani’s interview an “absolute unmitigated disaster.”
“It’s a train wreck,” he said. “I can’t believe that actually just happened.”