Donald Trump’s former personal lawyer says he bought the silence of two women because Mr Trump was
Independent.ie Newsdesk Twitter Email
December 14 2018 2:13 PM
Donald Trump’s former personal lawyer says he bought the silence of two women because Mr Trump was “very concerned” about how their stories of alleged affairs with him would affect his election chances.
In an interview with ABC News, Michael Cohen said he “gave loyalty to someone who, truthfully, does not deserve loyalty”.
Cohen was sentenced on Wednesday to three years in federal prison. He pleaded guilty to several charges, including campaign finance violations and lying to Congress.
Prosecutors have said the president directed him to arrange the payments to buy the silence of porn actress Stormy Daniels and former Playboy model Karen McDougal in the run-up to the 2016 campaign.
Cohen says he is angry with himself for the deals.
Mr Trump has denied directing Cohen to break the law.
Mr Trump’s former “fixer” said: “I am done with the lying. I am done being loyal to President Trump.
“I will not be the villain of this story.”
Asked whether the president knew it was wrong to make the payments, Cohen said: “Of course,” but he did not provide any specific evidence or detail in the interview.
The president has asserted in a barrage of tweets over the last few weeks that Cohen is a “liar” who cut a deal to get a reduced prison sentence.
