Republican presidential candidate, former President Donald Trump approaches the media at Manhattan Criminal Court in New York, Friday, April 19, 2024.
and a longtime friend of Donald Trump, was the first witness to take the stand in the former president’s hush money trial on Monday. Blanche accused Cohen of being “obsessed with President Trump,” saying “his entirely financial livelihood depends on President Trump’s destruction.” “We will be very upfront about it,” he continued, adding that Cohen, “like other witnesses in this trial, has made mistakes.”TRUMP HAD NOTHING TO DO WITH PAYMENTS, DEFENSE SAYS
While prosecutors allege Trump reimbursed Michael Cohen $420,000 — more than double what Cohen paid to porn actor Stormy Daniels — because the cover-up was crucial to the campaign, Blanche said the excess payments are proof that Trump had nothing to do with the scheme. “I have a spoiler alert: There’s nothing wrong with trying to influence an election. It’s called democracy,” Blanche said. “They put something sinister on this idea as if it’s a crime. You’ll learn it’s not.”Following the prosecution’s opening statements in Donald Trump’s criminal hush money trial, the defense called the former president “innocent” and said the Manhattan district attorney’s office “should never have brought this case.
“Neither Trump nor the Trump Organization could just write a check to Cohen with a memo line that said ‘reimbursement for porn star pay-off,’” Colangelo said. “So they agreed to cook the books and make it look like the payment was actually income, payment for services rendered.” Colangelo told jurors that prominent Trump allies withdrew their endorsements and condemned his language. The prosecutor said evidence would show the Republican National Committee even considered whether it was possible to replace Trump with another candidate.PROSECUTION HONES IN ON ‘CATCH-AND-KILL’ OPERATION
Colangelo, senior counsel to the district attorney, told jurors that though the payments to Michael Cohen were labeled as legal fees pursuant to a retainer agreement, there was no retainer and there were no legal services. “The defendant falsified those business records because he wanted to conceal his and others’ criminal conduct,” he said.
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