Democrats say Trump’s former attorney could be their star witness.
Michael Cohen was once President Donald Trump’s most militant loyalist. Now House Democrats are eyeing him to become their star witness.
Democrats think Cohen could be a linchpin in their upcoming efforts to spotlight Trump’s relationship with Russia and are hoping to call him to testify before the House once they seize control of Congress.
They’re well aware of Cohen’s close connection to the president — and that he’s turned on Trump, making him a potential ally in their quest to uncover and highlight Trump’s alleged dirty laundry.
Even Senate Intelligence Committee Chairman Richard Burr has joined his Democratic counterpart, Sen. Mark Warner, in suggesting Cohen should come back to Congress — particularly after he pleaded guilty Thursday to lying to lawmakers about Trump’s awareness of the proposed Trump Tower Moscow deal in the heat of the presidential election.
But Cohen was also at the center of the hush payment to adult film star Stormy Daniel and could prove a critical witness to House Democrats in all sorts of inquiries, Democrats say.
“He’s been at the nexus of so many different issues for so long, and given that Mr. Cohen was the president’s confidant and attorney, he knows a lot and he can shed a lot of light,” said Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-Ill.), a member of the House Oversight Committee, who called Cohen “the perfect witness.” “I think that it will be good to hear him out and figure out what he knows.”
A Cohen redux at the Capitol would be a spectacle that could rival the Watergate hearings. The image of Trump’s longtime personal attorney and political fixer describing crimes connected to the president would be an all-consuming Washington event and a chance for the Democratic House majority to flex its newfound investigative powers.
He’s at the top of the list of a slew of Trump aides and associates that Democrats intend to haul before congressional committees for investigations they accuse Republicans of neglecting to pursue.
« The noose is closing around the president, » said Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.), a member of the House Judiciary Committee who wants to hear from Cohen so long as it doesn’t infringe on Mueller’s investigation. « Our job on Judiciary is to get everybody in front of the committee and subpoena people if we have to.”
Cohen’s legal team declined to say whether he’d commit to additional congressional testimony. Democrats are wary of interfering with special counsel Robert Mueller, who secured Cohen’s guilty plea as part of an ongoing investigation of Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election.
But House Democrats also say they intend to revisit lingering mysteries about Trump’s relationship with Russia — and they also want more witnesses to testify in publicly to help provide the public a window into what has been a largely opaque probe.
