“O, what a tangled web we weave when first we practise to deceive!”
~ SIR WALTER SCOTT, ‘MARMION’, Originally published: February 22, 1808
• “Mr. Trump stood on AF1 and blatantly lied,” Mr. Avenatti wrote. “This followed the lies told by others close to him, including Mr. Cohen. “Mr. Trump stood on AF1 and blatantly lied,” Mr. Avenatti wrote. “This followed the lies told by others close to him, including Mr. Cohen.
"If you tell the truth, you don't have to remember anything." ~ MARK TWAIN
And what has the POTUS NOT lied about.
"If you tell the truth, you don't have to remember anything." ~ MARK TWAIN
• Trump’s Initial Denial About Stormy Daniels Payment
“No man in the whole world can change the truth. One can only look for the truth, find it and serve it. The truth is in all places.”
~ DIETRICH BONHOEFFER
2
Makes “I did not have sexual relations with that woman” seem almost tame. Oh the hypocrisy.
18
What's the "point" they have? If calling out racist, anti-Semitic, misogynist, incel, neo-fascist, alt-white supremacist "victims" is "condescension", then I will continue to condescend.
6
It was disturbing to watch the Lying FOX Hate Monger (and recently revealed Slumlord Millionaire) Hannity gasp then attempt to cover for the clueless babbling dotard Giuliani...
Please Hurry Mr Mueller!
17
GIULIANI: "Ah, he didn’t know about the specifics of it, as far as I know. But he did know about the general arrangement, that Michael would take care of things like this. Like, I take care of this with my clients. I don’t burden them with every single thing that comes along. These are busy people."
Only a bona fide sleaze bag like Rudy Giuliani would reference paying off a PORN STAR for a martial affair as a "little thing."
This is the guy Evangelicals support?
I don't EVER want to hear the words "family values" from the Republican Party again.
24
who voted for this clown and why?
He is a disaster. We knew that prior to the election.
It was clear that this would be what we got. This is reality TV politics.
15
While Giuliani stated what may be truthful about no campaign money being used, he also stated that "the funds were funneled through a law firm and repaid by the President." What he failed to add is that it is forbidden in all 50 States for a lawyer to advance any money on behalf of a client in order to settle a lawsuit.
17
So he stiffs so many that actually provide services. But he pays someone for a service he didn't receive.
11
It is said Trump had a payment plan of $35,000 a month. IF that is true, and that is a big IF, and if you take Trumps word on his net worth, that is equivalent to average Joe earning slightly more than minimum wage paying 20 cents a month on a debt. Ridiculous.
6
The variety of lies could not have been planned to spread confusion and mistrust, but that's the outcome. Most likely it is Trump himself who is the most confused, distrusts everyone he knows or has known in the past, and is helpless whenever he opens his mouth not to add to his image as a worthless scoundrel.
The largest SAD aspect is that American Society has given Trump so many opportunities to receive attention as he careens through life towards his inevitable, self-managed, complete crash and destruction.
8
So Rudy says the goal was to show there was no campaign finance violations. Really? Maybe not, but when you lie the first time around why should anyone believe you?
7
Trump could get very Clintonesque on the questions and his prior responses:
"Did you know about the $130,000 payment...?"
The reporter asked "did", which is a past tense and which I reasonably understood to mean at the time of the payment. At the time of the payment, I did not know about it.
"Do you know where he got the money to make that payment?"
I do not know where he got the money to make the payment. As I said, I did not know about it at the time.
1
Legal fees are tax deductible; hush money, not so much. One wonders if Cohen tax deducted the $130k. One wonders if he took the $130k Trump paid him into income. One wonders if Trump, instead of just writing a check to reimburse Cohen, pretended the $130k were legal fees so that he could tax deduct them.
24
Trump is in the middle of his campaign. Daniels wants hush money to keep her mouth shut. Trump thinks paying her buys her silence anyway he has bigger fish to fry like the election. No one calls it blackmail.
Ms. Daniels belongs to the world's oldest profession not the noblest. Not that Trump is any better which brings us to Guiuliani. If the nytimes can use the word honest describing Guiliani how can I trust anything it publishes?
6
Oh what a tangled web we weave,
when first we practice to deceive.
But unfortunately, for all of us,
the inept weaver is our President.
Or rather, our twittering excuse for a President...
15
Rudy is the gift that keeps on giving.
21
Rudi Giuliani: the gift that keeps on giving.
13
Am I missing something here?
Giuliani says Trump reimbursed Cohen (which I've always believed happened), and Trump says he didn't know anything about such a payment. Those two statements don't strike me as inconsistent. I would tend to notice if $130,000 had been paid out my account for this purpose (or for any purpose), but Trump may not pay close attention. Giulani said that Cohen typically got a check from some Trump account or other for about $400,000 a month. I gather that Cohen submitted some request to justify his monthly payments, but I have no idea whether Trump actually looked at those requests. (My hunch is that Trump didn't -- he's not a "details" guy, and $130,000 for him isn't a lot of money).
Am I missing something here? Where's the inconsistency?
3
That Cohen said he wasn't paid back. And that Cohen denies anything happened but now acknowledges that a) payments were made to her, with his consent, and b) that he paid him back. Giuliani already confirmed that he knew that Mikey the Fixer "took care of things like this." What "things like this" encompasses boggles the mind, doesn't it?
4
Yes.... You are missing the fact that Trump is a proven serial liar, his story has changed several times concerning this situation, and yet you continue to give him the benefit of the doubt.
4
Well, unlike our poor excuse of a media, I'll call it just what it is. It's a lie,but then again, there's been many of those from this administration.
5
What a freak show. Trump is headed for a spectacular fall. Meanwhile our country and environment suffer. I can’t wait to see him and the Republicans implode.
16
Nothing new. Was he secretly followed Trump's instructions or simply opened a new can of worms to cover up the more serious question of Grand Jury's subpoena as decided ib US v. Nixon et al on July 24, 1974.
2
One thing we all know, this is a micro manager, as well as a narcissist. There is no way he did not know, and why is it that everyone has such a hard time calling a spade a spade? If it were me, they would just call it a lie, which it is. This is one of the biggest grifters of all time. Shamefully, we've become so pathetic, as well as corporate owned, that we don't call people in high places our when they are liars, and this is a lie, from a perpetual liar.
7
NYT, please start calling this for what it is--the President LIED. It wasn't a contradiction, it was a LIE. You quote Avenatti as saying he lied, so in the interest of journalism and the future of democracy--call it what it is. a LIE.
16
Is Giuliani thinking about 20/20? I can't help wondering. He is an extremely opportunistic man. In 20/20 he could claim to have brought down a lying, corrupt President. He could also claim to be the harbinger of truth, all truth and nothing but the truth.
I watched Fox news to see Giuliani's interview. We all should be shocked and frightened by Hannity's outrageous and dishonest monologue. He misrepresents and distorts the facts in such a mean and evil way - to move viewer's to his immoral agenda! Scary stuff that did not exist during the Watergate era. We not only have complicit Republicans but Hannity and Fox news as well -- that's a dangerous force to recon with.
9
Poor America, how low you've fallen...
11
We'll be back in November, sans Republicans.
8
Astonishing to think that this team of advisers actually believes the public will buy the "extortionist accusations" narrative. We know diehard Trump voters will, but no one else, unless they live in a land of alternative facts. It's very sad for our country. We go from the historic presidency of a black man, an intellectual with very sound reasoning, to an oafish white guy with orange skin. This is all sad for the press as well, as Fox News propagantists obscure the message with phony stories. Sean Hannity undoubtedly helped hatch this latest fiasco with Rudy Guiliani.
11
Ryan being very vocal, now that he's on the way out.
1
Is this, in Trump's view, more about his pre-nuptial agreement with Melania than anything else? Ascribing the payoff to election prospects doesn't recognize what motivates this guy. He thought he was going to lose, so why spend $130,000 when you anticipate losing anyway? No, you spend that kind of money to save you from losing a lot more money. Consider the likelihood that the pre-nup has a provision for a lot of extra money for extramarital sexual misbehavior. Since his entire life is mostly about money, he will always deny the Daniel's and the McDougal's escapades and the grabbing since it will cost him where it most hurts him. Saying that it hurt him and his family is accurate - in Trumpworld, the definition of hurt relates to his wallet, not his feelings.
9
OK , got it that he wanted to clarify how hush money was paid. But really, best way to do this is dictating what Trump should type in a Twitter message? And who responsible for typing “roll” instead of “role”.
What rank amateurs.
4
Oh I am relieved that our sexual predator president has paid one of the bribes he owed to one of the many women he has slept with. I am also relieved that Stormy and her lawyer are after him.
Other predators like Trump have been fired from their job. Why hasn’t Trump been canned?
Clinton was impeached and the current Prez should be too because he committed fraud.
Look how quickly the unholy Republican Congress has NOT crucified him for it!
And they are Christians?
6
Watching the video, one has to wonder, after so much practice, why is Trump such a bad liar? Can we get a body language analyst to break it down frame by frame?
To my untrained eye, when he's lying he averts his gaze, tenses his mouth and makes sweeping hand gestures. Also, his body is angled away from the reporters, indicating to me that he has something to hide and doesn't want to be there.
Thoughts?
4
So here is lie # 3002 on his 467th day in office. Will this one make a difference? We know his base and the evangelicals will shrug it off as business as usual.
More and more independents, and white suburbanites who held their nose when they checked the Trump box in the ballot booths in 2016 are reconsidering.
I bet he will be gone before he tells lie # 4000 (Christmas if the current pace holds up).
3
This is beginning to look like Clinton's Re-election campaign in 1996. We all know who won that one. The Democrats should not be taking that losing page out of the Republican's playbook. New game plan, please.
4
Perhaps Guiliani blundered. An alternate theory is Trump has more to fear if the Story Daniels NDA is declared void, and Stormy is free to talk.
Strange that Trump would be more fearful of Daniels than Mueller.
8
So in this version of the story people spent his money without him knowing it to cover up an affair that he says never happened. Seems about right coming from this President.
6
How we know this version is also a lie:
1. It fell out of Rudy Giuliani's face.
2. Corroboration fell out of Donald Trump's face.
3. Donald Trump doesn't pay people back.
8
Where are the hypocritical blowhard cowards McConnell and Ryan ? Icons of civility and the rule of law? I realize it's become a cliche at this point but, can you imagine the reaction from the GOP if ANY of this nonsense occurred during the Obama administration?
11
Forgive me for name calling , but the born-again dupes (B.A.D) just keep allowing him to resurrect himself from his ashes over and over again. When will they ever learn about the commandments and the avoidance of evil and the appearance of evil? They will accept anything in the vain hope that these Cons will overturn Roe vs Wade and protect their guns and false idols. (signed) Born OK the first time.
6
Also, when did Trump repay Cohen, just before the election or last night?
4
Is it possible Giuliani is doing this on purpose to provide Trump a cover by claiming a mistrial for inadequate representation?
4
If this ends up getting him out of office, then it is Ms.Clifford who should get the Nobel.
12
So, Giulinai's first foray as Trump's mouthpiece is to give the lie to his client's *insistence* that he had no boinking relationship with the blond bombshell; (b) that he didn't (personally ) pay her off to keep quiet; and (c) that he's a man of great wealth and presumably accustomed to shelling out out hundreds of thousands to people making false claims against him.
This all is way beyond reasonable. It would be somewhat funny if Trump was, say, the CEO of General Motors, but this guy is the president of the US! Every 20 minutes there's some new headline about Trump.
Kim, Putin and Xi must be in absolute stitches.
3
This is a big story. Page A-1. Above the fold.
Yes, it may be true that other presidents have had adulterous affairs.
Sure, other presidents have lied about sex.
It may also be true that other presidential campaigns have violated campaign finance laws by funneling money through their law firms and research firms to their intelligence investigators so they could conduct smear campaigns on their opponent without being noticed.
It may also be true that Trump did not technically collude with the Russians.
Perhaps a president can fire the director of the FBI for any reason whatsoever without it be being considered obstruction of justice.
But, “New York Times profits jump 66% amid ‘Trump bump’” - Financial Times.
We have here a President who denies entirely an affair with a porn star, claims he never paid hush money to her, claims he knew nothing about his personal attorney paying off said porn star, denies knowing that his accountants/attorneys remimbursed his personal attorney’s pay off for said porn star. Furthermore, his former personal doctor now states that candidate Trump’s medical evaluation was dictated by the candidate, himself, with made up superlatives and all. The President’s henchmen also raided said doctor’s office files and took all of the original files related to the President. So, again, we do not really know what the President’s physical/mental health was as a candidate. The report submitted recently by the White House Physician also was written in superlatives. Did the President dictate that report too? For all the American people really know, they have elected a President who is an advanced Alzheimer’s patient, who makes up his own history, misrememors constantly, and lies constantly. The recent update on the payoff of the porn star and the doctor’s office raid certainly gives us grounds to wonder.
4
No matter how Trumps joker’s play this it is not good. Which lie is going to produce the best results for trump? That is what they are trying to figure out. The very best people can’t even figure it out!
This is crazy stuff.
1
I'm not a lawyer. I would ask a lawyer: Is this blackmail? When I googled blackmail, the following definition showed: "the action, treated as a criminal offense, of demanding money from a person in return for not revealing compromising or injurious information about that person." The self-righteous may say: He had an affair. OK. Some people may try to connect this transaction to a violation of campaign-finance laws. OK. I'm pretty sure that some people will look through a lens and see a defense of Donald Trump. Those people don't care what the charge is if it's Donald Trump. Having read through some of the other comments, there is the continued references to rich, to white guy, to power. Well, all of those comments seem misguided given that I'm reading continuously these kinds of stories on the front page. I'm tired of reading about Donald Trump, not seeing a thorough analysis of the situation, and then feeling prompted to ask questions when I don't even support Donald Trump. So, can someone consider a thorough analysis and answer a basic question: Is this blackmail?
If you are asking if Ms. Daniels is blackmailing Trump, no. She was going to sell her story, a legal activity, and was paid to shut up. She didn't approach Trump (or his henchman) and threaten to tell if they didn't pay her. That's blackmail.
If you are asking if Michael Cohen is blackmailing Trump (and that's why the $130K was paid back) I think it's pretty clear that Michael Cohen has all of the sticks in this game; either he flips or he doesn't. If he does, Trump is toast. I am a lawyer and I would bet dinner that he already has. In fact, it was just released on VOX and The Daily Beast that the Feds tapped Cohen's phone and have at least one WH call. Oops.
If you're asking if Guiliani is blackmailing Trump by threatening to do his case harm as revenge for making him look like a fool during the early days of the new presidency, I doubt if blackmail is involved, since Rudy would definitely do it for free. In his position, I would.
5
And no one has seen the real finances. So what if this turns out to be a lie? Lie, lie, lie. His supporters only care about their own status. Everyone else has to suffer. Putin is the profiter. USA is losing ground every day. Where is the judiciary? Congress? Anyone?
5
I think what happened here is Rudy came in, looked at the goods, and determined that all the elements of an election law violation were present. Cohen probably got paid from a campaign account, and they're back filling the paper work to make it into a personal money transaction, personal situation, in a personal compartment, nothing to see here folks, I got so much money I can't count it. People do it for me. But shorty arms doesn't like reaching into his own pocket for that stuff, but Rudy made him.
3
If GOP members do not stand up and do something about trump and co. this country will become a dark, nasty dictatorship run by the likes of trump, cohen, giuliani and the rest. This is a regrettable situation.
Yesterday we read what we know that GOP members want to keep their heads down and not rile trump. Seems time is about up and the GOP better take notice and do something before they are sent home and trump and co. will run things alone. This democracy is becoming more fragile.
4
Will Michael Cohen revoke his right to the Fifth? The man for whom he would take a bullet has clearly tossed him to the elements. His loyalty to Trump and enabling Trump in all his lurid sordidness has only earned him insults and public humiliations. Since he is toast, any way you look at and his Boss has clearly disowned him. He could perhaps redeem himself a little by revealing his dealings with Trump. Most important, he could cut short the investigations and allow Americans their right to the truth about this fake President. Also it would save tax-payers a lot of money.
4
The Feds tapped Cohen's phone. The news just came out. They captured at least one phone call with the WH.
Soooo, he might take the Fifth, but he might just flip like the world's biggest pancake.
3
Defense attorneys always have another "truth" to tell from the prosecution, but 2 different attorneys and 2 different stories? That's Chutzpah. I think we're going to need some theoretical physicists and Sci-Fi writers before this ends. Or can it ???
2
Stuff has started hitting the FAN!
Let's the ultimate REALITY TV begin!!
1
Is finding out this type of dirt the primary purpose of the "Russian Election Collusion" investigation. Was Cohen subject to Search and or Surveillance based on probably cause of conspiring with Russia.
If you read / listen to news sources not ideologically opposed to the president you probably are aware of lots amount of information that may lead you to believe the investigation is largely politically motivated.
If you limit your self to only media hostile to the admin's ideology. you probably have seen given a very different picture.
The house investigation ended with no collusion found. Mueller has found dirt but apparently no illegal collusion between the admin and Russia.
What federal statute violations (crimes) is Mueller investigating? Based on what probable cause? I hope Congress and the ig are able to inspect the FISA and gener as l warrant process to determine if investigators broke the law or legal standarea. How much of this is the rule of law? How much is "the end justifies the means". I hope we find out.
Of greatest interest is how targeting Cohen relates to illegal election collusion with Russia. If it doesn't, what ethical interest does Mueller have in search and seizure?
Outright caught in 2 lies this week: the doctor letter, and this, which most reasonable people already suspected were lies. This one Trump had to actually admit to -- which he NEVER does. (Although he actually made Guliani do the admitting.) Will his having to actually admit to lies finally start his supporters realizing that it's all just a pack of lies from this dangerous man?
1
Remember...the Right only understand "alternate facts," and "truthiness."
Meanwhile, Trump throws shiny objects at the media; and Huckster-Sanders tries to run interference
"... you guess...". Sounds about right for one who pays little attention to details.
Did Ty Cobb retire because he wasn't willing to go along with the latest cockamamie story from Team Trump?
5
Here you go: the umpteenth example of how this man subverts truth. This is what? The fourth story of how this payment was hatched? The rabbit hole of deceit is getting too deep to ever fill. Just remember people: this is how fascism takes root. It plants poisonous weeds everywhere, and then tells you it’s the only thing that can kill them. We have criminals in charge of our law enforcement system. It can and will get worse.
2
Last election cycle, Democrats received more votes for offices in the House, Senate, and Presidency - and lost all three... Plus, the US Supreme Court was stolen by the treasonous shenanigans of Republican Mitch Mcconnell that were used to appoint a fifth Republican corporate shill to the court...
This party of bigots and billionaires have worked with the Russians to rig the system and illegitimately seize power from the majority... Which they are using to dismantle our once great nation.
We must organize NOW, Folks... Do your part! This November, we must be ready to turn out en masse to throw these traitors out!
7
Jeff, who will we elect to replace them? Certainly, you cannot mean that other Republican party, the democrats.
What odds that Rudy will smash The Mooch’s record for shortest time spent on Team Trump?
2
“... that’s how he’s repaying it, with a little profit and a little margin for paying Michael’s taxes.”
Doesn’t that mean that Cohen is paying tax on a monthly retainer from Trump and has to reimburse himself for the Daniels payment out of his after-tax earnings? The Daniels payment might or might not have been deducted by Cohen for tax purposes.
That doesn’t sound like he’s been repaid by Trump. It sounds like a gloss dreamt up by Guiliani in an effort to make himself “useful” to Trump.
The NYT should try to clarify this point.
I am tempted to compare these hacks to the Mafia, but comparing these trogs to the Mafia would be an insult to the Mafia, who would never be so amateurish and incompetent at getting their story straight.
1
What another narrative (aka.... lie) from the White House? These people have no problem changing their stories from day to day to suit their need. Forget about whether the Stormy story is true or not. The bigger story is that Donald and his team have been caught in outright lies to the American people.
DONALD THE LYING PRES AND HIS LYING ADMINISTRATION TIME TO GO.....
1
I wonder what Pastor Pence thinks of all this.
4
Donald continues to deny that he ever had an affair with Stormy.
The one person in the world best able to shed truth on this matter is Melania.
Mueller should invite her to come in and tell it to him.
3
Having let this weird turn of events sink in, I'm wondering if Giuliani isn't covering for Trump. Supposed Trump paid Cohen a monthly retainer. Giuliani could be inventing a claim that the retainer money was then used for the payoff, when in fact that was NOT the intent. Rudy is smart and knows that an illegal campaign contribution does more damage than just a payoff to a porn star. (And it is a sad day indeed when that is the choice.) I'm hoping that Mueller gets access to bank records and can prove which is the truth. Stay tuned.
3
Let's not miss the forest for the trees. It is fraud plain and simple to use the law in this way: fraud against Daniels and the courts, if not against all people who rely on Trump's reputation.
Trump and his attorney created a pseudo-agreement that would bind the other party without binding or implicating him. The agreement itself is a misrepresentation about what it is. Either Donald Trump executed the agreement, or he worked with Cohen to give that impression. Daniels received nothing other than money for this bogus agreement.
The structure of the agreement with Daniels and the relationship with Cohen and his repayment point to an intentional practice of fraud built into Trump's relationship with Cohen. The law does not reduce the responsibility of the principal when agents generally nor attorneys specifically act on their behalf, but everything about the relationship is structured to do so:
The fraud extends even more to the courts, investigators, and the public:
- Cohen's role is ambiguous: is he an attorney? an agent? someone who acts on his own to someone's benefit? Clearly people think they are dealing with Trump when the deal with Cohen
- Tracing is difficult at best. Payment was later in time, episodic and in different amounts than the liability
- Payments are for a (probably-unspecified) bundle of services
- Trump and Cohen hide business delegation behind attorney-client privilege
2
Perhaps all of this is designed to confuse and obfuscate. So many confusing and implausible statements will cause enough confusion and lead most people to just say 'forget it -- who knows what the truth is'. Everything has become much more confusing since Giuliani joined the gang. It's either a planned tactic or just another sign that the 'old boy network' is getting really old (in every possible meaning of that phrase).
2
Although it's really stating the obvious, the entirety of the Trump presidency has been one lie stacked on top of another like a real world version of Jenga. As such there's no realistic expectation that, under oath or otherwise, that anyone associated with the team will tell the truth (unless it happens to help them at that time). Without doubt the Mueller team has long since know this, and thus they're left with extracting the facts like an impacted molar, ultimately exposing the decay for all to see. And even in that eventuality, I'm reasonably confident that the GOP Congress will look at the political winds before proclaiming that Sunday does indeed follow Saturday.
2
Ah, this is Mayor Giuliani’s official audition for the part he has always, Attorney General. It will be fascinating to see how this plays out.
3
$130,000 in $35,000 monthly payments=$460,000 or $470,000?
Priceless!
1
Stormy sold herself short. She should have asked for a lot more. On the other hand, when she choose her new lawyer, she hit the ball out of the park. He is really, really good.
4
It seems to me that there are two essential points about this:
1. When did Trump pay Cohen back? If the payment was recent, then Trump was probably trying to bribe Cohen to keep him quiet vis-a-vis Mueller. This may be plausible, since Cohen was evidently complaining to Trump about not being reimbursed.
2. Where did Trump get the $130,000? It's hard to believe that he took it out of Barron's college fund. Even for a billionaire, $130K is not pocket change. That amount of money ought to be traceable. If it can be traced to a donor, then it was a campaign contribution.
13
It's a campaign contribution even if Trump paid it himself.
1
I'm not convinced Trump has actually met Barron.
1
Trump's evasion on every topic based on what serves him best at the moment is the definition of a slippery fish. He's a menace to our democratic process and a test of our checks and balances for a corrupt power our Founding Fathers feared. Knowing Trump will be Trump, where are the Republicans whose principles are strong enough to say this isn't right?
19
Why must we endure this? This man's horrid life, ignoble, cruel ... all negative and failure-to-thrive terms, yes. At the very least, do not have a life like this. At the very most, find avenues of good. Kind lives are out there. Find them. Celebrate them. They are the answer.
15
Bad leadership revives the hunger for good leadership. This is the price we must pay for getting this engine of democracy overhauled. It's not pretty, but it must be endured. Witness what you never wish to see again, and consider a maintenance plan for the future.
Don't worry, this bucket will hold. We just need more virtue and less vulgarity to fill it. The GOP needs to get a grip and drop this degrading strategy or they will soon see us kick it out from under them. Trump's decomposure is a sad story, but history has kicked such miseries to the curb in light of a bright new day. Let his misery be a lesson to all.
2
I've been tired of Trump and his antics since Inauguration Day. Now add Giuliani to the wacko list. What intrigues me is what might be going on in the Pence household. Do you think he and "Mother" are discussing a possible move to the White House?
14
I've always wondered why Giuliani got Bonanno's outfit on the first big RICO case, but never got Joe Bonanno. He was "retired" to Tucson where his book made a splash and helped Giuliani get the guys who retired him after the Banana Wars.
Was Joe holding that rogue FBI guy over Rudy's head? The one who thought tossing dynamite into mobster's backyards would convince them another war was coming? That's a story the FBI might not like repeated in public right now, but they were just trying to cow the Mob for their own political allies, not a president.
1
1000s of comments here and too much to go through (lunch break), but does anyone know what Giuliani's comments do for Cohen? Especially, how they might actually help him, relieve some pressure and assist in dissuading him from flipping?
6
No. They instead throw him under the bus, yet another head-scratching legal strategy. Remember that Rudy Guiliani was never a defense attorney and it's clear that he has no idea what he's doing, but hey, he's back in the Times, so win-win for him, right?
2
Not an expert, but Cohen has insisted that he was no reimbursed, at least publicly. Maybe he's singing a different tune to investigators now. but assuming Cohen is still saying he wasn't reimbursed, someone's lying.
One lies, the other one swears to it. Why would ANYONE believe a word these men say? What a willing suspension of disbelief someone would need to still support this President. Sad!
19
I think his supporters just want a President who will scream at the whole world to get off their lawn.
2
Giuliani is just trying to prevent Trump from perjuring himself. Unfortunately, he's never going to prevent that from happening.
10
I wonder if there wasn't any NDA with Stormy, and her story came out just before the election, would this have changed anyone's votes? If not, then would this payment and cover up actually be a benefit to his campaign?
Generally, this type of behavior gets politicians fired, but not Trump. I just wonder if the Trump team would talk about his behavior towards women (e.g. Access Hollywood, Howard Stern shows, etc.), and how people voted for him regardless. If so, then most of his voters likely wouldn't care if he had a fling with a porn star, or had another affair with someone and he paid for her abortion. It's doubtful any of this would affect his supporters' views of him, therefore, this payment did not benefit his campaign. Thoughts?
3
The intent of the payment was to benefit the campaign, so the actual outcome of the election does not matter. No one can predict with 100 percent accuracy whether someone will win an election. Cohen had no idea whether Trump would win, and things were looking bad for Trump at the time. Therefore, it is reasonable to infer that Cohen made the payment to help Trump's campaign.
2
It could have suppressed the moderate's vote, so that's not as viable an argument as you would have it.
REPUBLICAN MIRROR
For all those who still support, enable, or abet Trump there’s only one reflection left in the Republican mirror:
TRUMP
This is what you’ve chosen to become.
This is who you really are.
This is how you will be remembered in history.
And this is what your grandchildren will turn away from in shame.
20
This Fox and Frauds thingy is starting to remind me of when the WaPo's publisher gave a false affidavit that HE had loaned the Interior Secretary all that money folks noticed the Secretary throwing down on vast amounts of ranch land.
Tea Pot Dome had been reported in the Denver Post, but the East Coast was still pretending it was fake news. NYTs pounced on the opportunity to make WaPo look sad and began to carry the story of no bid leases on naval oil reserves, and this bribery thingy. WaPo's publisher then put himself into a sanitarium so as to be unavailable for questioning.
I think Hannity never had a legal relationship with Cohen and simply lied to stall justice for the President. I think FOX is about to have their own WaPo sanitation service. Hannity is obstructing justice to save his OWN skin! He's in a heap of trouble. Giuliani is not helping. These old boys are simply panicking their way out of office.
5
Interesting but why did Cohen say that Hannity was one of his clients?
He didn't!
It only came to light when Federal Judge Kimba Wood ordered Cohen's lawyers to list all of Cohen's clients!
Once again, the President is caught in a lie, but this time, he is trapped by his own words. President Trump seems to believe that if you tell a lie enough times, folks (namely his supporters) will believe the lie. Here, he cannot use that time-honored technique, so often applied by authoritarian leaders. Trump's lie is out there for all to see. Let's see how our truth-challenged president spins this one.
7
'Stormy' is a side show. We have a gangster and his mobster loyalists at the helm and we can never forget that. We need to keep pressure on Congress so Mueller can finish his job. Every day our democracy is in peril. And this 'Stormy' stuff is just a diversion, one of many. Keep our eyes on the prize--our democracy.
13
That “sideshow” is what could force a resignation from the Presidency....hopefully,around October....political timing to ensure a big win to the Democrats.
2
Trump can’t agree to release her from her NDA because then all the others that Cohen paid off will want out of their NDA too. That might be just too much even by Trumps standards, if he had any.
11
The contortions to clean up Giuliani's mess is funnier than the contortions to clean up Cohan's mess, which were funnier than the contortions to clean up Trump's mess. I can't wait for the season finale, it's supposed to be hysterical.
13
Giuliani says it's all legal, except for the fact that it most definitely is not. No one can advance money to help a candidate money without it being counted as a campaign contribution, which must be reported. Getting paid back later is irrelevant to its status as a contribution, even if shown some of the $35K/month retainer is for this repayment. A clear FEC violation by Cohen, and Trump's conspiring with Cohen to accomplish this is discoverable through Cohen's records, which are not attorney-client privileged because they are for an illegal purpose.
6
I'm not a lawyer but I am pretty well versed iin campaign finance law having been a campaign treasurer for several candidates. If more or less all of the above are true Giuliani has come up with a brilliant strategy from a PR point of view. But there is still a campaign finance law problem. Even if there is evidence that Trump acknowledged owing Cohen the $130,000, depending on the timing of that acknowledgement of the following is true:
-- Cohen made a campaign contribution which was later reimbursed by Trump.
-- Cohen loaned the money to the campaign and Trump assumed the debt at some point.
-- Trump made a campaign contribution of cash borrowed from Cohen.
Any of these actions require timely reporting on the campaign's FEC disclosure forms which not incidentally require disclosure of the purpose of an expenditure. If the payment were mischaracterized as legal fees that in and of itself would have been a legal problem for at least the campaign treasurer and the candidate. The first two also violate campaign contribution limits.
I would also be interested in how/if Cohen and/or Trump are characterizing the monthly payments for income tax purposes and whether that squares with Giuliani's story. Perhaps there is evidence about that in the material from the FBI document raids of Cohen's premises.
14
What I ran out of letters to say is that from a political point of view this feint may work well. I have seen without fail that the vast majority of voters don't prioritize election law violations when they decide who to vote for. Rather, their eyes glaze over.
5
This president has lied to the American public repeatedly (porn star payments, the legitimate functions of members of the federal justice system, even his own doctor's "report"), and he has very likely lied about his activities in regards to Russia. Yet, his Republican colleagues continue to ignore this repugnant and dangerous behavior. We, who care about ethical behavior and the rule of law, must flood Mitch McConnell and Paul Ryan's phone lines and inboxes with our demand for appropriate oversight and for the protection of the Special Counsel, Mr. Mueller.
18
Ryan has already abdicated. He has known enough. He cares only for lining his own pockets and his own status. He's not there to serve - oh yes he is - to serve himself and his merry billionaires. Could care less about what happens to the republic on his watch. Me, me, me, me!
2
“I think this is a distraction and a distraction to the American people, and I think it’s a real disservice to them about not hearing a lot of great things taking place in the administration,” Sarah Huckabee Sanders said.
Great things? Like what?
Making America great?
Drain the swamp?
Hire the best people?
End stupid wars?
Infrastructure?
Middle class tax cut?
Anyone else tired of winning?
26
[[President Repaid Hush Money, Giuliani Says]]
Giuliani's son works inside the Trump administration and Giuliani was an attack dog for Trump during the campaign, so the Giuliani's must have passed the "loyalty" test.
Great!
But, uh, how's that working out for you right now?
3
Assuming Guiliani's statement was deliberate then Trump's calculations must be (1) the payment was legal (2) the election is over and (3) admitting he paid off Daniels will not change any voter's mind about him. The most improbable thing about this theory is asserting that Trump is capable of thinking rationally and acting deliberately but hey ... gotta be a first time for everything.
4
Rudy the womanizer and crook will not live more than a week as the Trump lawyer, only because two idiots and two crooks cannot walk and talk together.
10
All this matters less than Trump's political opponents think. This will likely end up in a constitutional crisis one way or another (i.e., the combination of this investigation and Mueller's, SDNY's investigation into Cohen, etc.). At some point this will fall to Congress/Senate, and even if they both flip in a not-guaranteed blue wave this fall, Trump will not be removed from office by the Senate should an impeachment vote pass in the house. It's possible Trump could do something going forward that greatly reduces his base, the same base that is now the defacto Republican party that every GOP house candidate will have to cater to if they want to keep their jobs. (Can you really picture GOP candidates going against Trump?)
Anyway, What could that something be? Starting a war? Ending DACA and deporting millions of people...even violently? Evidence of him and Putin shaking hands in 2016 with video proof of collusion or coordination or conspiracy or...whatever? (I doubt such evidence exists.)
If you want Trump out, you are going to have simply ride him out and then show up and vote. As much as liberals want to believe he is going to destroy the country and the world, he will not. He may damage it and go down in history as the worst US president ever, but this is not the end.
8
It really matters if Russian hackers have already disabled the voting process
1
You make a few very good points. And I agree that if we "want him out we are going to have to slimply ride him out".
I might add though that what got Clinton (Bill that is) in the most hot water was not having consentual sex with Ms. Lewisnski, but lying about it in an effort to cover things up. (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Impeachment_of_Bill_Clinton). I agree that, to paraphrase your writing, those who oppose Trump need to take him seriously not literally, but his life time of lies, which worked weill in private business, are not working so well in public life. And the office of the President is the one thing bigger than Trumps ego.
2
It seems to me that this article shows that just about everyone who is associated in any sort of supportive or assisting relationship with our leader has a uniquely incredible propensity toward avoiding the truth in any way they can. When the falsehoods contradict each other or the lies simply don’t work, they endeavor to create such convoluted chaos that people tend to wander off focusing on the false situations they put together to send investigators on "a wild-goose" chase. I’m glad Mueller and his associates are accustomed to these machinations and don’t wander too far from the pertinent facts.
Many of Trump's actions indicate a closer association with Putin than I had initially thought. The first thing Putin would have advised him to do would have been to dismantle the importance of the press . . . and the truth. The more the press is attacked and its power is reduced or access is limited, the more worried I become about our democracy.
Most of us do not have the capability to remain focused on the salient issues. We need the press and the investigators to follow all the clues and know which are "red herrings" thrown in to confuse the issues.
We need all the help we can get.
9
Has the retainer always been $35,000 a month? Or, is this a new amount to cover "unknown" expenses?
If its the standard amount, that's $420,000 a year to Cohen. I doubt it. Maybe that's why he only needs 3 clients.
If it's a new amount to cover "unknown" expenses, I just don't believe it.
I think a jury will see through this. I am sure Robert Meuller does.
6
This proves Trump had an affair with Stormy Daniels. Why would you pay hush money if there had been no affair. And still the evangelicals love him. What a bunch of moral hypocrites.
17
The future for Donald Trump?
I think we may have found a roommate for Bernie Madoff.
7
This is Giuliani twisting the facts into lies, not a reimbursement, and a violation of campaign funding laws. Trump paid Cohen as a payoff for services rendered, but even if Cohen meant it as a loan it still is a contribution per FEC rules.
"Some time after the campaign was over ..."? Clearly Cohen provided the money to support Trump's campaign, as well as other "incidental" fixer support. Trump later decided to pay him $35K/mo (over apparently 13 months to get to $460K, maybe from April 2017 thru April 2018?). This is Giuliani revisionist history.
Here is what the FEC website says, "If any person, including a relative or friend of the candidate, gives or loans the candidate money “for the purpose of influencing any election for federal office,” the funds are not considered personal funds of the candidate even if they are given to the candidate directly. Instead, the gift or loan is considered a contribution from the donor to the campaign, subject to the per-election limit and reportable by the campaign. This is true even if the candidate uses the funds for personal living expenses while campaigning."
7
The purpose of deflecting attention off of getting Congress off of their duffs is working - he hasn't been impeached yet. Congress is still hiding.
There is new movie is coming- Remake of "Catch Me if You Can".
Donald Trump playing DiCaprio and Muller is playing Tom Hanks.
3
Trump's crew remind me more of Count Olaf's getting caught every time they plot another kidnapping. It's a Series of Unfortunates Events just like this one one just can't look away from.
It’s okay, it’s all okay. I just read that Trump said the payment didn’t fall foul of campaign finance regulations!
Phew! Glad that’s all cleared up then.
Oh, wait.... yeah, it’s not strictly true is it? Shucks.
I have a bridge and a big statue for sale if you’re interested, Mr President. $130k and they are yours. Get your people to talk to my people; you can pay in instalments if you want $35k per month for a year should cover it.
4
I'd love to be a fly on the wall when Trump and his team discuss his strategy. "I told the truth, I didn't sleep with her or pay her off!" Well, the truth is going to get you into deep doodoo for illegal campaign contributions. "OK, I lied. I didn't sleep with her, but I did pay her off." Well, that's going get you into trouble for money laundering. "Well... she's my sister... no, she's my daughter... no, my sister..."
7
Giuliani is more treasonous than trump, if that, it's possible.
9
As a New Yorker, I've seen this cast of characters before.
Married Mayor Giuliani had an affair while he was 'cleaning-up' Times Square.
Donald had affairs while married to his first two wives... and sex with porn stars and others during his third marriage.
Both men are disgusting and I'll be so relieved to have them out of my sight.
21
Maybe we should start putting tablets listing the Ten Commandments in every public square after all, or at least on the White House lawn, facing inward.
8
Trump lies every time he opens his mouth. We’re supposed to be surprised when that is, however inadvertently or calculatedly, made plain as day? He and Giuliani are two peas in a rotten pod. I hope I live long enough to see them both tossed onto the compost heap.
7
My reaction to news regarding Trump is laughter & a deepened cynicism about our political process and lines of human decency crossed by not only by him but those closest to the president as well.
2
Giuliani, of course knows all about these things.
You might recall that Giuliani while mayor of NTY was caught in an extramarital affair with one of his staffers, with all the assorted cover ups and payments.
If not, it’s sad to say, for 911, Giuliani would have been kicked to the curb long ago. He was a very mediocre Mayor.
He’s like a flu that won’t go away :-/
11
Let's review. In our current alternate reality, a public official is (legally) better off admitting to *lying* about reimbursing his attorney for paying off "an exotic dancer" rather than simply admitting the payment was actually made. Is it just me or is this crazy calculus? My head hurts.
3
The timing of Trump's learning/knowing about the payment goes to a question of who violated campaign finance law. Somebody did. Giuliani is throwing Cohen under the bus.
2
I get that. But it results in a moral absurdity - doing the deed and lying about it and then admitting you lied about it is supposedly better and more defensible than doing it and just admitting it.
It's past time for the State of New York to convene a Grand Jury looking into all aspects of the Stormy Daniels affair. There's plenty of state-level felonies here. Charges filed there cannot be pardoned by the president. I'd be quite happy to see the whole lyin' gang locked up in the New York State Prison.
12
Rudy did it on purpose. Giveaway was his saying here’s a new fact. Like his messaging the Wiki Hillary Leaks would be forthcoming. Why. Team Trump knew truth would get out. So bag man Rudy aired it so now T can spin it.
4
How do Trump supporters and boot lickers differentiate the truth between lies? If the man spews lies 99% of time, are you then saying you rather believe the lies than the truth. Is this how you conduct your daily lives, being lied to all day long and being comfortable with it? Tell me what has Trump said that pleases you knowing full well that it's a lie? Is this how dimwitted you folks are, wanting the lies instead of the truth from a President? Only in an alternative universe does this makes sense.
12
I shake my head at Donald supporters too.
My sister, an religiously evangelical GOPer in the Midwest says that she, her husband, and her family are "thrilled with everything President Trump does!"
I've come to realize that, despite reputedly-shared parents, she and I are very different kinds of people. And I am repulsed.
3
If they work in Corporate - it's part and parcel. People pretending all day long they are decent folks. Blind to the damage of their policies and lack of ethics.
1
infp: My sister and her family are not corporate... I think they are merely dumbed-down religious sheep. Unfortunately the GOP has made some sort of Devil's Pact with the religious and the church... to ensnare the insecure and those needing corralling.
1
No one outside of Donald Trump’s base of supporters believed he told the truth on Air Force One when he said he did not know about the payment. Now we have confirmation from his good buddy, Rudy that Trump knew and paid up. So what’s next? Does Trump double-down on his statement a few weeks ago? Or does the White House announce that Giuliani has decided to leave the Trump dream team on the Russia investigation, citing senility as a reason for his departure? We shall see.
4
But there never seem to be any consequences for Trump for his lying. He lies as he breathes and now the clown Giuliani joins the Hannity show. Rambling, oozing self righteousness, spiking Comey, it's disgusting.
I was just watching him praising Billy Graham at the national pray day. Speaking about faith and this country. It made me sick to see this hypocritical old man manipulating yet another audience.
I keep hearing how we must not expect him, Trump, to answer Muellers's subpoena if there is one. Why not? Why is he getting away with this ridiculous sham of a " presidency", lying, lying as he enriches himself and his family.
Vote him and his sycophants out in November!
7
By definition "reimbursement" means to repay someone for a payment that has already been made on their behalf. Any money paid beforehand cannot, by definition, be "reimbursement." The Cohen payment to Stormy was made in Oct 2016. Thus, if Cohen was getting a ~30K monthly retainer it would have taken many months to reimburse him - well into the Trump presidency - even if Cohen didn't do anything else after the payment.
1
For years we've had to hear from the fringe right about family values and ridiculous old GOP ideas. Finally they get their day in the sun and what do we have? Exposed hypocrisy. Hopefully the light shining on these cockroaches will have them scurrying back into their fantasy crevices for a few years. There are still sane people who believe truth matters.
9
“Funneled” money...as in ‘laundered’ it?
10
Wonder if the "incidental expenses" could include money paid to the creep who threatened Ms. Daniels and her daughter? Stay tuned. There is always more to come with this bunch of liars, buffoons, scoundrels and what one commenter recently called "coked-up lizard men."
8
"Giuliani Says Trump Repaid Cohen for Stormy Daniels Hush Money"
A pack of corrupt, lying, rabid dogs are roaming through the People's House, chewing and tearing at the heart of the U.S. Constitution and all that it stands for. There is no cure for rabies.
7
$35,000.00 monthly retainer agreement. Bar should take a look at that agreement. Was this declared income on his 1040? Then it was Cohen's money.If it wasn't income was it was the money in his trust funds? Who funded that retainer ? Hey thanks Rudy !!!
5
If Trump's mouth is open, it would be quite safe to assume that whatever words come out are likely to be lies.
And Trump won the presidency thanks to state corruption that occured two hundred years ago and has never been fixed. And btw, Trump is not the first to have won this way, nor the second, nor the third, but the fifth:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_presidential_elections_in_wh...
4
Trump apologists seem to think that all of this lying on the part of the POTUS and his band of attorneys is OK - normal somehow - and that he's just protecting himself against the constant attacks of the Democrats. Please.
Yes, we remember Clinton and Monica Lewinsky. And we remember how Clinton was nearly thrown out of office for lying to the American people, until he admitted to his sins. We remember the damage done to the office of the President.
But Trump's lying is constant, and he will never admit to his sins. The headline of an article that recently appeared in the Washington Post read: "In 466 Days, President
Trump Has Made 3,001 False or Misleading Claims". This, folks, is unprecedented - NO president in the history of fact checking has been accused of lying to the American people an average of 6.5 times PER DAY.
Not that Trump's relationships with our allies can get much worse, but how are the leaders of other nations to ever believe Trump in the face of his constant fabrications? How can such a man expect to engage in meaningful dialogue with, well, anyone if he is known as a liar extraordinaire?
9
I wonder if Rudy handles divorces?
3
OK Rudy, now you too can flush what's left of your reputation and count yourself included in the ranks of those who have brushed elbows with Trump. Know you will not escape untarnished. Your long-term pal Trump will have much to answer for as most everyone knows by now. When it comes time you too will be pushed under the bus by him; he's guilty and absolutely corrupt and incompetent.
4
Finally, the truth about the Liar-in-Chief is laid bare. For those who bought the preposterous story that Cohen forked over $130K of his own money to Stormy out of the goodness of his heart and with no expectation of repayment, well, I’ve got a bridge I’d like to sell you. Ditto for anyone who thinks the laundered payment wasn’t, in purpose and effect, a campaign contribution.
Trump has been caught in some remarkable lies re the Stormy affair (pun intended), but he is still dancing as fast as he can to spin the story in various ways. He’s like the Energizer Bunny: his lies just keep going and going and going.
5
I hope this clumsy, contradictory "no one here but us chickens" defense gives Mueller further incentive to get him under oath. Hurry.
9
The White House now exposes the lie that Trump had no knowledge of the Stormy payoff (now claiming Trump was only defending his and his family's reputations and quality of life by a "normal" non-disclosure agreement to silence false claims--it was all an act of good will on Trump's part, to spare his family hurtful, negative publicity).
Yet, another lie was added under this shocking truth: the lie that Trump paid off the pay off (Cohen borrowed on his house!) in monthly installments. This is a desperate revision to create a work around to move the payment away from its intended purpose, to secure the election by silencing Ms. Clifford's voice and story, to claim it was never an in-kind contribution.
This is political money laundering! But will it hold up under legal inspection by Mueller's team? Will Rudy's documents of payment have the appropriate dates; will there be plausible answers for lying and the lies? Will the audio tapes and Cohen's records contradict the White House story?
Can Trump dig out the hole he dug for himself? Why does it matter? Because Trump runs the country relying on the same misleading, subjective whims by which he seeks trysts: a disregard of consequences or principles, a lack of empathy for the victims of his actions. His personal life is no different than his policies, fights and sex (and moral depravity), irrepairable damage are at the heart of both!
7
Looks like the GOP (with "Rudy" as its secret weapon) has decided to toss Trump and go with Pence -- which would explain why Paul Ryan and Pence are loudly courting the "Evangelical" base.
1
It's odd that such a wealthy man needed to pay this to his lawyer in installments. How do we know the money sent to Cohen wasn't just part of the normal bills Trump paid to Cohen for his "services." It just happens that Trump paid Cohen enough for them to say that the $135,000 is included in all these payments. We would need to see details of Cohen's bills to understand what the payments were really for. It just sounds like they are scurrying to create a new story to protect Trump against campaign fraud charges since his base doesn't care who he slept with. I'm not sure if any affairs matter all that much anymore, unless they get caught lying about them.
3
Trump is just hoping Rudy came up with the magic story to cover up his guilt, but I don't think so. The other stories didn't work. Go get em' Michael Avenatti. You are my hero!
6
This reminds me of the Clinton phrase, "I didn't have sex with that woman."
1
Please acknowledge the improper word usage from Trump’s tweet when quoting him. “...played no roll [sic]...” Readers should be able to rely on NYTimes to provide them with correct grammar, spelling, etc. - especially when an idiot in the White House makes a mockery of the English language.
2
I'd love to hear Michael Cohen's side of this.
4
This must have been important. He doesn't pay creditors, contractors or employees.....
9
Everyone seems to be focused on the campaign finance part of this but I feel this has more to do with establishing the claim of attorney/client privilege. If the story is that Cohen acted alone, without any knowledge or compensation from Trump, then their discussions on the matter are likely not protected by attorney/client privilege. If the Trump team can establish that Cohen was acting as Trump's attorney in this matter then they have a better shot at keeping all of the records on this and other Cohen actions protected.
4
Part of Giulani's strategy to link Trump to Cohen to keep attorney/client privilege. You're right.
3
So if his "monthly payment" to his lawyer - paid before and after criminal activities - that allows a criminal to protect all his dealings? Wow - what a convoluted strategy.
The truth is that Trump and Guiliana will say everything (they already have - haven't they?).
Please don't let justice be perverted this way. Please let the evidence be used against him. We've got to get out from underneath this criminal set and their ties to Putin.
Yes, but claiming knowledge of what Cohen was doing has its own problems: the first instinct was to claim ignorance and not contributing to the payment because of the desire to distance themselves from what Cohen does. To claim knowledge implicates Trump in any criminal acts and in any not-criminal scandalous acts.
CNN came into the limelight during the Gulf War.
The « reader’s comments » section is coming into focus during Trimp Administration.
We will miss this when Donny is done.
3
But now we have Russian bots flooding public discourse in the comments section. And the strategy is working. It worked for Putin in Russia and it worked for him with Brexit and it worked here with Trump.
How can we get ourselves out of this mess? We need help from the judiciary.
"They funneled through a law firm," Giuliani said.
Seems like Giuliani forgot that he's working for Trump, not prosecuting him.
(Giuliani may have also just pushed Michael Cohen to flip.)
6
Can a president be impeached for being a pathological liar?
Does the media have a comprehensive list of video recordings certifying this extraordinary display of gross prevarication?
3
Based on my experience as a litigator, by all appearances Trumps ever-changing legal team is shooting from the hip.
Also, the claim regarding a retainer is interesting because under applicable New York Law there has to be a written engagement letter or retainer agreement. The law provides:
b. The letter of engagement shall address the following matters:
1. Explanation of the scope of the legal services to be provided;
2. Explanation of attorney’s fees to be charged, expenses and billing practices; and, where applicable, shall provide that the client may have a right to arbitrate fee disputes under Part 137 of the Rules of the Chief Administrator.
c. Instead of providing the client with a written letter of engagement, an attorney may comply with the provisions of subdivision (a) by entering into a signed written retainer agreement with the client, before or within a reasonable time after commencing the representation, provided that the agreement addresses the matters set forth in subdivision (b).
We will see if any such letter surfaces . . . .
3
What strikes me is the routine aspect of all this. "Cohen took care of it..." "he gets a monthly retainer to take care of things like this". I guess every rich person has a 'fixer' on retainer, paid to make unpleasant things and people go away, keep quiet, disappear. Maybe Cohen arranged for the guy in the parking lot, too? Seems a lot more like Trump is lying, has lied, and probably will lie again about this, while Stormy is seeming more and more credible. One thing is clear - Trump really does hire "the best people, the very best". You couldn't find another lawyer like Guilani if you looked a long time. I think I want a president who doesn't need a 'fixer' on monthly retainer...
6
We are so beyond the old days when it all depended upon what "the meaning of the word 'is' is."
2
Others may have possibly commented on this - sounds like President Trump and associates are trying to portray these transactions as normal, in light of Citizen Trump's wealth and popularity. How common is it for an attorney to take out another mortgage/home loan to obtain funds for client-related expenses that will be reimbursed later? I am not an attorney, but that does not sound normal.
5
Likely good for Cohen, though may be bad for Stormy. Does this newly crafted admission make it more likely the NDA Trump failed to sign will be upheld? Will she then owe millions for violating the terms?
I don't know...Daniels' lawyer seems significantly sharper than the Trump team.
2
I've lost track of all the lies. Was he lying then and is he lying now? Is Giuliani lying? Did Cohen lie? If not, why take the 5th? Meanwhile, Puerto Rico has now power and our democracy erodes.
14
The 1.6 million dollar deal orchestrated by Michael Cohen supposedly on behalf of Elliot Brody used the same aliases as the Stormy Daniels deal, "Peggy Peterson and David Dennison". Keith Davidson also was also the third party lawyer in both deals. Does anyone really believe that Elliot Brody fathered the child with Playboy Model Shera Bechard?
8
Story's out, damage done there so he changes his tune to possibly shore up his legal posture? Fawning fans swoon at the "adroit footwork"; meanwhile this appears loyal to sucker lawyer. The great tragedy spools ahead... can't wait for tomorrow's installment.
2
Rudy brought it up because the evidence was already in the hands of the feds from the Cohen raid.
It is pure spin, . . and panic.
12
We need to stop making this a topic. It will not matter. Trump has done terrible things in his life and he is a bad person but he will evade all of it because no one in power can touch him.
1
I think you are right. Congress has been afraid of "biting the hand that feeds them" (as has the Supreme Court), but it is possibly Trump's ties to Putin and the killing and poisoning of their opposition that has completely removed the possibility of Congressional action.
Are we really that country? Eyeyiyi
"How broke is he?"
He is so broke he had to reimburse Cohen over a period of several months.
Oh wait, maybe he was trying to fly under the radar. Either way, his hands are dirty.
9
Just a reminder that Trump is the leader of a quasi-religious party that sees itself as the defender of Christian Family Values.
With hypocrisy like that, no wonder churches are empty.
Whatever happens with Trump, my hope is that he marks the beginning of the end of the destructive influence of religion, especially Evangelical Christianity, on American life.
12
We knew he was telling more lies. The confession came about because Trump & gang were told there was incontrovertible evidence in the hands of Federal and NY prosecutors that could not be kept secret from the public. So they chose to try to control the damage by going first confirming and spinning what everyone already knew.
Trump is his own Ponzi scheme. It takes more and more lies to sustain the whole rotten edifice. And it will take only the truth to implode it. With Trump lawyered up and helped along by Fox News and vested congressional supporters and the rich fearful of losing their hold on America it will take a bit longer for the truth to be legally weaponized. But we all know that a reckoning is coming.
Cohen facing jail and taking the Fifth Amendment to protect a President who disdains him and leaves him out to dry on Stormy Daniels et. al. Lawyer:client privilege evaporating before his eyes? Flipping Cohen will be interesting for the rest of us--not so much for him.
And a reckoning for the GoP that has facilitated America's descent to the proverbial moral, ethical,economic, professional and national security pits. When will they understand it is long past time to stop digging?...
5
The lies have been equated with the truth to the degree that we have become inured to them. The new politically correct ethos demands that we do not discriminate against lies, that lies are real as the truth, and that they exist at worst in a separate but equal manner. Lies, my friend, are people too.
3
We knew all this in 2016 and Trump became President anyway.
A government gets the government it deserves.
The United States we knew is gone.
5
Also, this conveniently continues the burial of stories for gun control/NRA and and antics of Pruitt, etc. to a lower ranking; the backwards agenda is winning.
4
It's not the swamp, it's the sewer.
7
Public perjury is, it seems, not a criminal offense, but now we know why our latest president to claim, "No, I didn't have sex with that woman," and "No, I didn't pay her $130,000 to remain silent" is unwilling to talk to the Special Counsel. But, as with Paula Jones, President Trump like his predecessor, Bill Clinton, may now be forced to be deposed and testify about the hush money paid to Stephanie Clifford (aka P.P. aka Stormy Daniels) just before the election. Fortunately for those seeking the truth, Mr. Trump cannot fire her talented lawyer, Michael Avenatti.
1
Are the evangelicals who voted for Trump still with him? if they still are, they are worshiping a false god.
3
Just imagine the reaction on the right it this were a President Obama or Clinton who was being exposed for committing adultery with sex industry workers and then bribing them into silence about it.
4
All the lies aside, I just keep asking myself, why a "Billionaire" would even need to divert $130K through a shell company, paid in installments? This is like me taking out a multi-year loan so I could give a street-corner beggar a dollar.
Methinks Trump is in even more serious financial difficulty than we imagine (and I can imagine a lot).
4
Where's the reporting on the other side of this earthquake? Trump lies and then comes clean (perhaps?) and no-one calls him on his lies. The guy's a serial liar. The truth will never be told because there's enough evidence that nothing the man says can be believed. So, what, we all just have to stand back and let old age get him in the end ?
Bill Clinton was impeached for saying that "I didn't have sex with that woman", but The Donald gets a pass. Sad!
3
Does the New York Times consider all of the monies it has paid to settle multiple FLSA lawsuits "hush" money since it has required confidentiality agreements in those settlements?
The use of deragatory adjectives in headlines damages the Times' veracity, painting itself as a partisan propaganda outlet as opposed to a news source presenting facts and then letting the reader make her conclusion.
This type of partisan writing only further promotes the divide in our country and lends support to the "echo" chanber effect which the NYT asserts against right-leaning "news" outlets.
Yes of course, it's the NY Times being sleazy here. Brilliant Greg.
Um, no. The Daniels contract is correctly called "hush money"; the only consideration she gave for $130k was a promise of silence so complete she couldn't even say there was an agreement without a $1Million penalty.
Confidentiality over the terms of a settlement are a side note to the settlement of a dispute. That's why you know the settlements existed. Many litigants want to end a dispute in public as well as in court and promise each other to not comment further on all the public information right there in court files.
Salem Witch Trials!
Spanish Inquisition.
French persecution of Huguenots.
Do you need any more analogies?
Please, by all means continue Mr. Giuliani.
2
Lies lies lies. All lies. How many trump supporters now feel like they were fooled by a con man into voting for him? Many do, and his actual support is falling off day by day like a snowflake on a 32.5 degree day.
Once the GOP gets crushed in November, with House and Senate politicos falling like dominoes to the onslaught of energized voters weary of GOP posturing and excuses, you'll see the Liar in Chief become a RINO where he tries to talk his way out of all of his previous pronouncements.
That is, if he isn't impeached first.
I'd impeach him because he is simply not morally fit to serve as our President.
9
Don,
Thanks for paying back the loan. But if you expect me not to flip, I think you forgot the interest.
Your pal,
Mike
Have a nice National Prayer Day. I’ve been praying, too.
6
Oh what a tangled web we weave when at first we start to deceive.....
3
So Trump "reimbursed" Cohen yesterday so they couldnt say campaign finance laws were violated? If somebody is charged with bank robbery, can they return the loot and get off?
6
It seems like almost every day there is another revelation about this awful president's corrupt behavior, and yet it never matters. He skates through every crisis unscathed, and when the dust settles his 40% base is still 40%. And each time, I think, the odds of his reelection improve as the rest of us grow weary and resigned to this relentless grotesque circus.
Where's the outrage from the 60% of us who believe this despicable and vile man is totally unfit for the presidency? Why aren't we marching in the streets and demanding his impeachment? I just don't understand it.
3
There have been marches in the streets. Supposedly safe Republican seats have been lost. And impeachment is tricky. First, Republicans currently enjoy a minority. Second, Pence is worse than Trump. He hates the same people just as much or more than Trump does and he isn't as stupid as Trump. Do you want more efficient evil?
4
I'm confused. Didn't the same Donald Trump recently say he knew nothing about this deal? Refresh my recollection... is that what we call a 'lie'? And was he lying then, or is he lying now?
And excuse me, one way or the other, isn't this whole business as sleazy as it gets?
And one more thing: the idea this 'hush money' deal had nothing to do with the Trump political campaign is ludicrous. Granted, Trump has been wallowing in so much slime that nobody notices anymore, but does anyone remember Gary Hart, Donna Rice and the good ship Monkey Business? Hart's bright political career went down in flames on that alone.
Trump won this election because about 75,000 votes in three swing states went his way, and he lost the popular vote by millions. One more sleazeball Trump sex scandal might well have been the difference in the election - and wherever the money came from, Trump or someone acting on his behalf tried to buy silence in a naked attempt to keep voters in the dark.
It's like an old gangster movie, not the White House in the 21st century. How will we explain this nonsense in junior high school American History textbooks 20 years from now?
5
This is what happens when you lie. You keep coming up with more lies to cover up the original lie. Eventually your lie that hangs you is a bigger lie than your original act/sin.
Haven't we seen this movie before? Nixon, the original Republican crook went down due to his cover up of Watergate Scandal?
Well that was when we had Republican Senators who had guts, now we have Republicans like Paul Ryan and Mitch McConnell who put their party’s politics over Country. Where are the Howard Baker and Sam Ervin of the US Senate? We need Senators who would do what they are constitutionally obligated to do. Interestingly someone should remind the current Senators and Representatives that the Country comes first.
I am sure there are more skeletons in this closet and the more new lawyers he hires the more skeletons would walk out of his closet.
4
Prostitution is illegal. Why isn't anyone talking about Stormy Daniels' crime? Or is she just a victim who knows how to make a lot of money doing the only thing she knows how?
They had a consensual sexual encounter. It was not prostitution.
3
No where is it claimed that Stormy Daniels engaged in prostitution. But you know what else is illegal? Adultery in New York State, a Class B Misdemeanor punishable by fine and up to six months in prison. Why is no one talking about Donald Trump’s crimes, and not just with SD? Why isn’t he being impeached by openly having engaged in criminal behavior? Oh, and Rudy Guiliani too?
2
Daniels was not paid for sex. She was paid to be quiet about it, years later, in the midst of a Presidential campaign.
Surely you know the difference?
3
So if this payment was all legit, why did Mr. Cohen say he would assert his 5th Amendment rights in the Stormy Daniel's case?
5
Sorry New-Yorkers, but how did you ever elect a guy like that as a mayor ?
8
Meanwhile, despite all of these allegations, the POTUS' approval rating continues to slowly but steadily increase while his disapproval rating continues to decrease. More and more Americans are getting tired of the daily nonsense.
1
You must be so proud we have a fraud for a president.
3
Will there ever be a reckoning for trump?
4
Why is New Jersey hater Rudy involved in this? I've alway admired NJ from my home in Iowa. Oh, he's one of Trump's lawyers. He must represent human-squirrel-like people in Trump's business dealings.
Is anyone really surprised that he lied and he actually did pay Cohen? Will anyone really be surprised that he colluded with the Russians?
8
Will we be surprised if it ever stops?
So, is Trump lying now or did he lie about this before or both times. In any event he is an inveterate liar.
5
Absolutely shocking! This means Donald Trump actually paid one of his employees.
11
I find I have far more respect for the integrity of a porn star than our president. She got paid to fake it and yet she is far more honest. He has been a fraud all his life. For that reason alone I am glad. It has been learning experience for me. I am proud of Ms. Clifford. She is everything he is not. She is brave, honorable, good human being. She is fighting a battle for all of us. Thank you.
13
Consider this, William Jefferson Clinton was impeached for lying about an affair with Monica Lewinsky. The GOP dominated House, at the time, felt that violated "high crimes and misdemeanors".
So, now almost 20 years later, Donald John Trump has not only been caught in a lie, but also paid to keep Stormy Daniels quiet. Not only that, but also sent hired goos to keep her quiet.To top it off, he hired the same layer that defended Clinton during his impeachment. Meanwhile, the GOP dominated House, has signed a letter to Oslo to ward Trump the Nobel Peace Prize for his threat to blow up North Korea and taking credit for the current Korea peace accords.
What is wrong with this picture?
Of course, Trump has done other far more questionable things, than Bill Clinton. While I personally never like Bill Clinton, his situation was a true "witch hunt". And, if Clinton is used as a standard for impeachment; Trump has far exceed that standard.
The GOP, the House and Senate are too busy campaigning for mid-terms, and getting fed Citizen United money, to do their jobs. Then again, in the late 1990s, "corporations are people" did not exist. GOP was just as amoral, but it did what Congress is suppose to do; "witch hunt" or not.
I hope Democrats seize on all of this, because both Trump, and today's GOP, are so corrupt they make old Tammany Hall (of Boss Tweed fame), look like angels.
23
Clinton lied under Oath.
Nobody really cared about the affair(s), which unfortunately seems to be a standard with so many presidents.
Cromwell, it is only a matter of time that Trump lies under oath. Of course, if he takes the "5th", by his own words; he is guilty (Trump said in affect, only guilty people take the "5th").
I mean really, you post a mere technicality.
The cable news game of discerning what was the exact meaning of the lie that the president just told has been elevated to a whole new level of tiresomeness. He cannot help but lie, around the clock, so everything he touches -- including the rule of law -- turns to chaos and ruin. He should be removed from office.
11
You can't make this stuff up! Mueller is watching.
12
Giuliani has now been soiled by his relationship with Trump. He is now lying to protect a liar with an 11th hour story. I suppose with enough time, any story can be fabricated. Does anyone think with the addition of Giuliani on his 'legal' team, it is somehow more credible? No.
This is just a lie on top of another lie. Initially, Trump knew nothing of Stormy Daniels, or so he claimed. Now we all know that to be a lie, another lie is layered on top.
Please Mr Mueller, expose this conspirator obstructing justice so we can resume some semblance of a 'normal' life.
9
A casting call has gone out for a "Dracula in the early stages of Alzheimer's
disease". Get there before Rudy nabs the part!
13
Best of the day.
1
Just when we though it couldn't get any more (disgustingly) entertaining, Nosferatu come out at night and, temporarily, steals the show.
Seriously, though, it's time to focus our attention and efforts on the people whose job it is to protect the nation from massive corruption and incompetence in the White House: Congress, per Article II, Section 4 of the Constitution, and Mike Pence and the "principal officers of the executive departments," per Section 4 of Amendment XXV.
8
I'm so sick of this man and all his enablers! I've had enough!
11
You have to love this. Hannity got blindsided by Giuliani a mere few days after the Fox and Friends gang were rendered frozen and surely uncomfortable as Trump ranted live over the phone.
I would not be surprised if the network management is considering tactics for how their on air personalities can best deal with this crazy stuff during their shows.
11
The presence of Rudy Ruettiger would have been less damaging to Trump than that of Rudy Giulianai. Only two weeks on the job and already Guilianai has just created a bigger and wider landmine for his boss.
8
Aint no sun up in the sky..stormy weather..
6
Now just one dang minute! trump denies that he had an affair with Stormy Daniels, and denies that he knew anything about any hush money payment. Now he is ADMITTING that he had the affair with Daniels????? And that he knew about the payment????? I knew that Giuliani was going to make a worse mess out of this!
6
No, no. According to the President's tweets this morning, celebrities and wealthy people pay off porn stars they haven't slept with all the time.
Based on the President's tweet saying that, I'm thinking of starting a new business soliciting money from celebrities and wealthy people for sex we never had.
3
Giuliani should be feathered and tarred for describing FBI agents who searched Trump's fixer's office, hotel room and home as Storm Troopers.
Even Cohen himself, the well known Fixer trying to get his boss out of every doo-doo for decades, described the FBI agents as very polite.
The vast majority of voters in this country considered the man in the Oval as being nuts, but "America's Mayor" has now joined the Trump asylum.
14
As a reminder, Bill Clinton paid Paula Jones $850K to settle her lawsuit against him for sexual harassment and President Clinton is still revered among the Democrat faithful.
In these matters, Mr. Clinton set the (low) standard for deceit and poor treatment of women so let’s not pretend to be surprised that the appalling Donald Trump paid off a woman and possibly lied about it too.
In excusing Clinton for decades, we predictably ended up with Trump. In effect, we are reaping what we have sowed.
3
Sorry my friend - no one has forgiven Clinton for his shameful behavior.
However, the endlessly lying Trump is quite another thing.
2
There is no escape from Karma;
The Pendulum swings
Soothes and stings
With all due respect, President Clinton was lauded for decades and still is in the media, in Hollywood, and in the Democratic Party. And I believe his legacy has been minimally impacted by the necessary #metoo movement. Finally, and regretfully, without the likes of a Bill Clinton we never could have had the likes of a Donald Trump.
If Rudy keeps deep-throating like this, he will get fired. Take another drink and talk Rudy.
7
Rudy sort of reminds me of Richard Gere's performance as an attorney during a court scene in the musical "Chicago" . Doubt if Rudy can dance as well.
4
OK, this is all starting to make sense now.
The GOP, also known as the party of Family Values, God, Faith, ethics, humanity, decency, the compassion of Jesus, truth, honesty and integrity – has fully and irrevocably embraced Donald Trump – a known liar, cheater, philander, bully, bigot, crook and all around bad guy narcissist and sociopath.
Yep, makes total sense. I feel so stupid for not grasping the logic and reason sooner.
17
You forgot traitor...
3
It's a "Peter Principle" combined with ample stupidity, and in the Karmic Vibes of all........what?
When will the people of this country say ENOUGH??
4
We all know they laundered that money. All the rest is lies, lies, lies.
4
As an outsider looking in, I can assure you that this looks as farcical and embarrassing for the US from here as you might expect. It's cringe-worthy.
The President is morally bankrupt, a pathological liar and an unparalleled dolt.
The US is currently a kakistocracy.
17
I swear I think Rudy cut a deal and is now a mole wearing a wire for Mueller.
6
But, but, but: The emails?
( and that fellow from Kenya... )
Why, everything is just, false news.
When will this nightmare end?
6
My prediction. Trump will call a prominent evangelical pastor to the WH. The rev will emerge and tell people the Turmp family, emphasizing the privacy of Melania and the kids, are asking everyone to give their family time during this PRIVATE crisis. The implication will be a come-to-Jesus mea culpa. Evangelicals will eat it up. Trump will never admit anything. It will be pure melodrama. The press will back down. The story will not die but will lose oomph. (Clinton did the same thing when he called Jesse Jackson to the WH after the Lewinsky story got away from him.) It isn't about clearing your name, it's about turning a public debacle into a private one. Just watch.
3
That might be difficult to do with a lawsuit by Daniels pending in court.
Rapacious old white men, tripping all over each other for the power, the money, to have everything they want at all times. It's never enough. This story isn't that significant in the big picture but it's indicative of the real culprits (who play both sides of the political aisle) who have hollowed out this country economically and somehow managed to get all of us to blame each other for it.
10
well said.
The President has been caught red handed lying to the American people.
Trump supporters won't care.
7
Hardly a week goes by that I don't wonder how fast the Republicans would have had Obama's head on a pike outside the White House if he'd done even a fraction of the immoral/shady things Trump has done.
14
I have a question about all of this that I can't recall anyone asking before. If Stormy Daniels was threatening to go public with details of her 'affair' with Trump, but wouldn't do so upon receipt of $130,000, which was then paid to her by Cohen or Trump or whomever, doesn't that constitute the legal definition of blackmail, in which case, why isn't she being tried for this crime?
1
This train wreck is moving a little too fast for you Joe.
5
Weather report: Dropping shoes. Stormy with a chance for subpoenas.
3
Birds of a feather flock together.
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/giuliani-defends-girlfriends-expenses
3
if Trump expenses payment to Cohen as legal fees and makes a claim to the IRS, that is a false statement if he is aware of 130K is a payoff .
2
So just come out and say it, NYTimes. Trump lied and continues to lie.
4
Wow - President and porn monger. Is this how we make "American Great Again"? No wonder the trophy wife won't hold his hand.
What would Washington, Jefferson or Lincoln think?
So glad we avoided 'Crooked Hilary'.
11
The only thing worse than having Trump as president is having to look at his ugly mug every day in the news. I normally don't make derogatory comments about people's appearance, but his hatred just oozes out of his face. I cannot wait for them to all be gone and hopefully in prison.
GOP: You allowed this. What is wrong with you?
13
Trump is basically admitting that he lied the 20 some times that he denied knowing about the hush payment to the porno actress.
But in the process of admitting lying he is lying again and more seriously.
People tend to believe that Mr. T is a pathological lier, that he lies because he cannot differentiate lies from truth. That may be true also, but he lies with a purpose and that purpose is to conceal the thing he has done and and cover up his tracks, and in this case he is lying to try to put sand over something bigger and more damaging, that the funds used to pay Stormy may have come from the campaign.
Hence the convoluted story that Cohen made the payments and that he repaid him without knowing about it. hahahahaha.
But then all of this only came out because all the documentation that Mr. Cohen has is in the hands of the prosecutors. Let´s sit and wait, because this show is only beguining.
3
Is it Putin who is blackmailing Trump or the Media arm of the invisible government? What do they want?
So there's no problem for Trump. He paid the hush money. So what? It's not illegal. All us frothing liberals should join the Christian Right and forgive our wayward president. After all he's standing up for white values - blah blah blah.
I keep hearing from writers to this site that Trumps base doesn't care what he does. That means that as long as the minority doesn't care, he can do whatever he wants as president. This is just untenable. How long does the majority of people have to endure this total embarrassment of a president and his freak show of an administration??? He should resign and take Pruitt and all his enablers with him.
7
The following quote from Rudy certainly makes it sound like the payment was a campaign contribution. Isn't he admitting that it was specifically intended to help the campaign?
“Imagine if that came out on October 15th, 2016, in the middle of the, you know, last debate with Hillary Clinton,” Giuliani told Fox News’s “Fox & Friends.” “Cohen didn’t even ask. Cohen made it go away. He did his job.”
2
What a dog and pony show this has turned into. What has happened to our country?
6
Gee, Rudy. You'd better hope that getting a couple of rides on a really big and fancy airplane is worth the final ruination of your reputation. I hope you saved the complimentary nut packet with the presidential seal on it. You may not have a chance to get another.
6
How is this any different from Clinton having an affair with Monica Lewinsky and then lying about it to the American people -- for which he was impeached? The hypocrisy of the Republican Party is boundless and despicable.
7
Clinton is history. Trump is today's news. Does that answer your question?
This is all getting so silly. So where are Cohen's attorney billing statements to Trump for his legal work and reimbursement for payments and expenses for the Stormy Daniels' engagement? Saying that payments made to Cohen were for reimbursement of the $130,000 to Stormy Daniels is not supported without such billing statements. Without such documentation these payments from Trump could be for anything.
2
Unless Giuliani's current boss has gone into some manner of over excited fugue, from the increasing prospect of having to face hours or days of Grand Jury inquires, I suspect that Rude Rudy shortly will be joining the growing daisy chain of one time close Trump Family supporters who have recently bailed out, or have been shown the door. Two unrestrained loud mouth ego maniacs on one team usually turns out, after all, to be one too many.
1
I faithfully read the NY Times. I have a Master's degree from a top tier university. I like to think I'm intelligent. But I'm beginning to believe that a good many Americans (I can't bring myself to say the majority) are really just clueless, immoral or willing to accept immorality in their president, willing to accept dishonesty in their president and tolerant of racism, sexual perversion and criminal behavior.... For my entire lifetime, Americans have clamored that America is the greatest country in the world. I say "no way", not now. This country is looking more and more like we are very immoral, dishonest and very, very ignorant. Shame on America for voting this criminal into office and then continuing to back him. The whole world is laughing at us. Never again can we claim to be the greatest country in the world. Not as long as we accept this kind of man -- indecent, immoral, ignorant, quasi-criminal, semi-illiterate, as president.
10
Yes, indeed. Time to vote.
Sorry, but yes you are being laughed at.
Are you talking about Bill Clinton and his innovative cigar handling techniques ?
1
One has to wonder why this lying, thieving embarrassment is still occupying the White House and not a less comfortable federal facility given his legal breeches.
One has also to wonder why RICO statutes are not being used to prosecute Robert Mercer, the Kochs, ALEC and the GOP for conspiring to steal the last election and install this crew of corporate deconstructionists.
6
“O, what a tangled web we weave when first we practise to deceive!“ -Sir Walter Scott
4
I hereby motion the "liar's paradox" be renamed the Trump paradox, i.e., "Everything I say is a lie."
3
Trump likes to brag that he never pays for sex. Maybe he doesn't pay up front, but he sure is paying on the back end of his deals. I understand he also arranged for the owner of the National Enquirer to pay $150,000 to Karen McDougal, the woman he had sex with for a year.
In the interest of thrift, he ought to consider paying ahead of time, because even two very high-priced escorts won't cost him $280,000.
6
What's the deal with Trump paying $130K in installments? I thought he was a billionaire.
That's just weird -- what's he trying to do, hide from his wife or the banks? I'm thinking his payments will all be under $10K....
7
I get that Trump and his people simply lie whenever they think it's useful--time to get over being flustered by that--but I have a very hard time seeing how a series of repayments over months, "that they funnelled through a law firm," and followed up with a pack of lies is anything other than somebody's deliberate attempt to get around campaign finance law, and then conceal their having conspired to get around campaign finance law.
Far from being a lawyer, but at the very least, this sure looks like a deliberate refusal to disclose. And as the article says, that's a felony.
8
Trump - "I paid Cohen a bunch of money to be my lawyer. He paid Stormy without my knowledge or consent. Therefore I reimbursed him." Sorry but this doesn't work, and you can't have it both ways. Trump would have paid Cohen the same amount regardless, and so the money was Cohen's with no obligation to use it as hush money. The $130K hush money payment is not an "incidental" expense. Cohen then gifted Trump. Let's see the retainer agreement, and both Cohen's and Trump's tax returns too.
5
Just as Trump asserted he was skipping a debate for a fundraiser and then had to be shamed into actually donating the money, we're going to need to see the proof of the payment. Money like that leaves a trail and as all good investigators know 'follow the money'
5
And still, trumps holier than thou, we're the real patriots supporters continue to follow their man down into the sewer. Sad times for America.
2
We are now well past the point that reporters need to stop taking Trump’s statements at face value and, going forward, assume automatically that anything he says is a lie. Start there and work backward towards the truth, because it won’t come from him.
3
So there was hush money paid in order to have no one say anything about something that never happened because it might have an effect on an election.
3
I suppose any monetary transaction that transpires while anyone is campaigning for office could be construed as a campaign contribution by virtue of its concurrence. Likewise, to a lawyer everyone who's not they consider to be stupid.
Trump lies. We knew that and now we have proof.
Maybe the guys at Liberty University and Family Research Council and all the evangelical churches should now help Trump by revising the Ten Commandments and the Seven Deadly Sins. Take out all references to adultery, lust and lying from those venerable documents.
After all in for a penny, in for a pound they say.
Next up, equate Satan to God; Trump to Jesus.
End times must be near when our heads are spinning so fast.
1
The man just loves to talk, like when he predicted big news right before the leaked DNC emails.
I believe Comey said that the most dangerous place was to get between Rudy and a microphone.
2
It seems that this is a case where there are several versions of the same story and they are all true, they are known as “alternative facts.” If you wear a red maga hat you really don’t care if Trump did this or not, and if you do care, this story won’t change your opinion, you still can’t stand him. We have a pathological liar in the White House, now Democrats get your act together and show us how to get rid of him in 2020. (Or sooner if any of this is impeachable.)
1
Ha ha ha .. Not sure if this Giuliani came to take revenge and hurt Trump or help him to get away with his lies, corruption and crime- legally!
3
Thanks Mayor Giuliani. Thanks for explaining to me that the President of the United States fully reimbursed his lawyer for paying hush money to a porn star and that it was a "perfectly legal transaction." Now I can feel great about it. -- Fox News Viewer
2
How many clowns will it take to get trump impeached? One named Giuliana! Let us not forget that he wanted to be president. Maybe I have it wrong but was Giuliani the person who sent John the dapper Don to prison for the rest of his live? Watch out trump you are next on his list.
1
The President of the United States can be blackmailed by a porn star, but we're supposed to believe that he can't be blackmailed by a world power? This should be a gigantic scandal.
4
Nothing to hide, but plenty to lie and dissemble about.
These people are deeply pathetic. Not so much the origin stink that sits in the Oval Office; that's something inveterate and deeply sad. But the gaggle of helpers and enablers who speak and excuse and mitigate and clean up what the origin stink creates? They see what they do, and do it anyway, because they think it's all a game -- and they can beat it.
2
The story will keep changing until they craft a narrative that sounds legal. These guys are such losers. They refuse to be accountable for anything. If a five year old child tried to tell a tale like that they would be spanked.
1
Remember Trumps comment to James Comey when discussing the Steele dossier; "do I look like a guy who needs hookers?"
Check that one off. Rudy just cleared that one up as well.
(My apologies to Stormy)
4
Trump wraps himself in thousands of lies. He uses multiple pseudonyms for medical records and calls to the press. He has women that he's having affairs with get rooms in their names to hide his involvement.
Trump has had a stable of fixers -- legal fixers like Roy Cohn and Michael Cohen, medical fixers who lie for him like Harold Bornstein and Ronny Jackson, and no doubt accountant fixers for his taxes, law enforcement fixers like Giuliani and perhaps FBI or police in New York City, muscle like Shilling, and others. This is looking more like a mob boss and not a simple shyster. He treats them all badly and exploits friendships so perhaps more will turn.
The hush money was part of a much larger slush fund paid to Cohen. What were the other uses of this money? Were other women paid off? Other problems hushed up?
He is the liar and the father of lies. Yet evangelicals will continue to worship at his golden altar, and his probable Russian handlers will have set up contacts presumably at Trump resorts like Mar a Lago.
Thank the stars for the Mueller investigation. Truth must be revealed.
3
What is significant is the absence of any structure upholding democracy. When he refused to release his income tax returns. When there was no real examination of the possibility that more than one state's voting machinery was hacked.
Now we know that his personal physician lied about his certification of health. Is there any way to get a real health evaluation? Is there anyone who can (and will) demand to see those health records that were seized.
It's possible that this man is on psychotropic drugs that leave him incapable - it would certainly be kinder than what it appears now - that he is in fact a traitor who has sold us out to Putin and him mein. With no Congress willing to step into the fray.
Trump's twitter account appears to have been taken over by the lawyers in order to double down on this story – in perfect grammatical English with no uppercase.
Looking forward to the day when the NYT isn't running this kind of "article" on the front page. That's for the tabloids
Trump is such a pathological liar, he is incapable of telling the truth.
In fact, whatever comes out of his mouth is exactly opposite of the truth. It is never a shade of a lie- it is 100% the exact opposite of the truth.
His supporters continue to think he's their savior in spite of all the evidence to the contrary.
Once in a while, Trump lets the truth come out accidentally- like when he said he loves the uneducated.
2
Rudy really screwed up and now they're having to do a tap dance all around him and their lies. Their reactions and subsequent cover-up lies are like that of a bunch of underage kids caught having a beer party who have lawyers. The party is over, boys. It’s time to pull the plug on Trump’s incessant, criminal charade. Trump has made himself and our country a laughing stock for the whole world to witness. How we're ever going to repair and salvage respect for the office of the POTUS is beyond me.
5
There is a Tsunami named Stormy
Huge wave that is dark and not warmi
In the face of this force
Trump has no remorse
“Damn, Rudy, just do something for me!
3
Roll the videotape:
Trumpzilla on April 5th on Air Force One: No. (meaning he didn't know about the hush money). You need to ask Michael. He's my attorney.
Cohen: I wasn't reimbursed. I did Mr. Trump a favor.
Trumpzilla:. Silent about Stormy Daniels since April 5th on Air Force One.
Giuliani on Fox & Morons on May 3rd:Trump reimbursed Cohen slowly through retainer fees.
The only person worse at lying than Trump is Giuliani. You could literally see him making up this fairy tale in real time and then he slipped in the phrase "that makes it nice in clear" this morning on Fox & Morons.
Who will take down Trumpzilla first? Stormy, Giuliani or another one of the comic book villains around him?
2
If these people had even a shred of human decency in them, one might feel bad for them with all their running in circles and banging into one an other trying to stay out of jail, but they have no human decency so no one feels bad for them.
PROSECUTE RUSSIAGATE!
5
The problem is they think all Americans are like their supporters. That equals ignorance of which there is no cure.
1
Rudolph Giuliani is yet, another lying polititian, who contrary to how smart he thinks he is, he is not even smart enough to keep his lies straight.
Rudy, it turns out ... you are even dumber than your boss!
3
This is a hoot.....no, it's pathetic. Trump lies and lies and lies and the frightening part is that it is getting to be acceptable. Oh well Trump lied again. Everyone knows Trump lies about everything. Trump needs to be called to account. He is the PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES for goodness' sake. This behavior should NOT be tolerated, should never have been tolerated. It is accepted by many that he is incompetent to be president and add to that being a pathological liar? Our country is doomed!!!!!!!
7
The President of our country is a liar! This man has done serious damage to the office in which he was elected to represent. Trump is a spuriously cunning individual. And another revelation: he dictated to his doctor his own health report! You can't make this stuff up! And yet, his followers "don't care"! Are you people that desperate and paranoid over the changing landscape of this country that you would sell your own souls to this con artist because gets you frothing at the mouth over the "boogie man"? Trump is going to be hoisted by his own petard! In this case his affair with a porn star.
5
He paid off a porn star, it doesn't matter where the money came from
2
Apparently it does when it is in the timeframe just prior to an election. Had it happened at another time, you would be correct, but not with this situation.
1
Investigate Giuliani!!!
4
Trump should not be crying “Where’s my Roy Cohn”but rather “Where’s my Michael Avenatti”
3
OK, so it's not a campaign finance violation, why didn't Trump just make a lump sum payment to Cohen? I'll tell you: because it would have looked like a hush money payment, which, incidentally, it is! And it may not be illegal, but I think the voters had a right to know what a sleazy jerk Trump is, bribing a porn actress to keep her mouth shut, before they elected him. There ought to be a Lemon Law so we could return him as defective.
And, come on, he's still singing the "no collusion" aria even though the Russian lawyer, Veselnitskaya, who Donald Jr. met with in the hope of getting dirt on Clinton, has admitted she was and is an agent of the Russian government. Please!
7
LIAR, LIAR, pants on fire!
===================
If a president is always lying, how can we, the American people, trust him with anything?
How can you tell when a liar is telling the truth?
Why his mouth is closed...
Time to bring in the replacement. Enter, Mike Pence...
------------------------------------------------------------------
1
Oh cut him some slack. Trump has never told a lie in his life. He is the most honest person you know. Just ask him. He can't lie because he believes every thing he says is true.
3
Pence? What’s the difference. He has gone along with trump on every issue.
1
Every one of these things should be the final nail in the coffin, of Trump's presidency. It's absurd that we have lies of this nature from a sitting President and yet it only solidifies his base. The Trump minions are like "Ha! Ha! Trump's so funny, isn't that cute? Lying about paying off porn stars who he had sex with while his wife was home with his newborn baby. Aw, isn't that just so Patriotic, he's such a great guy, fighting for us!"
What's wrong with the GOP? This is beyond ridiculous. This is beyond wrong. This is a malignant disease. It's sickening. If Adolf Hitler were a complete ignoramus with a Twitter account, this is what pre-WWII Germany would have looked like. All lies, All excuses, All the time. And nearly half the country can't see it.
6
It's time for a new form of government and governance in the US. The system has gone rotten. The only thing it's actually good at is keeping its corporate-backed political puppets in power to siphon public money to the pockets of the ultra-rich.
8
Sorry, I find campaign law hard to follow. Paying hush money to a sex worker is a "campaign contribution"? Does it get its own line item on the reporting form, like "advertising" or "office supplies"? Or is it just filed under "Misc."?
It's all so interesting.
8
Simply put it down as ENTERTAINMENT!
1
Great !
Now the worst person in the world is represented by the second worst person in the world.
10
No. Giuliani is third. Bolton, his foreign policy adviser, is second.
1
Now Trump is the Lying Stable Genius.
4
Again, WHY does ANYBODY believe ANYTHING our (God it pains me to say it) President says?
10
And this is a surprise because? When was the last time a lawyer picked up an expense for a client. Of course Cohen was reimbursed for the expense.
4
It's mind boggling that this president has dragged the country so far into the gutter that the bigger question is not about the affair with an adult film actress, but the source of the money paid to keep her silent.
I yearn for the good old days when marital indiscretions alone were sufficient to end a politician's career.
Who am I kidding, it has always been going on. It's just that Trump has taken it to a whole new level of disgusting, and his base is willing to accept anything and everything he does.
Maybe this is the end of decency and our democracy.
13
I'll tell you what it may be the end of: THE REPUBLICAN PARTY!
I wonder how much Donald Trump has contributed to Republicans' campaigns to keep them from impeaching him. Perhaps they're itemized on the income tax returns he refuses to reveal.
5
I'm not a regular member of the Media Basher Club but honestly, my news alerts about this story all say Trump Reverses His Position On Payment To Porn Star...
Isn't the word that's missing from this headline "LIED?" Why so polite? Why so polite about a story about the least polite President in US history? Why is Trump still in office? Oh wait, I know, it's because the Republican majority in Congress aren't doing their job. They're like Sgt. Schultz on Hogan's Heroes, they see nothing, they hear nothing, they know nothing.
Trump still has a job because half of this country's voters are uninformed Fox Newsers who would rather vote for a child molester than a Democrat. This explains the German people in 1932, doesn't it?
On day 467 of the Trump Family Crime Spree we're still a long way from getting rid of Trump. His supporters truly don't care what crime he commits or committed. It seems like they were created in his image either due to also having bad parents growing up or maybe it's just a bad brain wiring thing?
Either way, America is in deep trouble. There are many dark days ahead & we might not make it out the other side without Civil War 2.
Now I must run to start my hopes & prayers for today because it may take a high power or a Chinese invasion or both to fix our country.
7
Giuliani, Bolton, Kudlow--seems as though Trump has formed the 'League of Resurrected Losers',
10
That's the thing about LIES, you can't keep them straight, the right hand doesn't know what the left hand has said or done!
Rudy seems deranged, he is an awful man. Donald won't keep him around for long.
3
For crying out loud! Didn't Trump just tell us that he was no longer using Cohen as his attorney? Isn't this too little too late? All of this is such a distraction. And yes, all of this strum and drum is justified...but...who is running the country? Certainly not Congress. I am beginning to think its Daffy Duck.
Please vote these guys out. Please!
6
Why is Trump not in handcuffs or being considerd for impeachment. His GOP are in denial by issuing a no collusion report recently. What cloud of toxins are they floating on? Time to impeach before we join Israel in another bombing this time on Iran.
5
Trump would definitely deny that he ever had an affair with me. When, oh when, am I going to get my $130,000?
2
Wouldn't Mr. Mueller also have the documentation to which Mr. Giuliani referred?
3
Trump is a documented LIAR. That he would prevaricate about yet another thing should be old hat by now. What surprises me however is the lack of legal awareness by Guiliani and the implicit assumption that you can say anything you want, anytime you want to say it and not be held accountable. Now how long will it be before Guiliani hires a lawyer to protect himself? It must be very interesting working for Trump. He doesn't know, they don't know, he doesn't know that they don't know and they don't know that he doesn't know that they don't know.
8
Dear Rudy,
We sincerely thank you for confirming what we already knew; to wit that Trump was lying all along and knew about the payments to Stormy Daniels. We can't wait to see you all in court.
Sincerely,
B. Mueller
M. Avenatti
6
"Mr. Giuliani said that Mr. Cohen had 'settled several problems for' Mr. Trump."
These problems? Do they too have stage names too?
To Trump supporters who wonder why they get no respect, it's because all the signs were there before the election that Trump is a liar and incompetent yet you still voted for this train wreck.
9
Its just locker room talk, fake news, nothing burger; MAGA - many are getting arrested....but only the best.
5
Interesting wording of the tweet, which was obviously written by an attorney. But I liked the typo, "did not play a roll..." Roll in hay, perhaps?
5
Trump’s early morning Tweets are remarkable in their work-a-day consistency. I wish I had his energy
4
Remember, Trump has an entire army behind him working to make him look good and defend his lies.
Could this be Giuliani's way of "thanking" Trump for not making him VP or giving him a White House job?
So if the 'repayment' was for 'the Daniels thing and other things', is there a bill from Cohen to Trump itemizing all these expenses?
3
If Giuliani has replaced Cohen as Trump's "fixer" his diarrhea of the mouth is likely to get the boss in even more trouble. He's already involved himself in obstruction of justice, so alll that's left is confessing to collusion with the Russians.
2
How appropriate that Hannity was the tool for this revelation.
5
When do we hit the streets?
2
Yawn, sorry but lying to the press is not a crime.
Not to worry ,Title 18, United States Code, Section 1001 will come into play after the Moeller interview.
Just a thought about these lying liars. Old Giuliani is a consummate liar like Trump but his strategy might be to limit the rummaging through Cohen’s files. He might just be setting up his lawyer/client privilege to keep the feds from really going through Cohen’s files that might give them more cause to find that Russian connection that Trump and his family obviously have. I would not trust either man for a Nono second. They might be willing to accept campaign finance charges verses the whole thing imploding on them with Cohen’s files.
Guiliani's attempt at removing the campaign finance issue just wiped out any credible argument that there is attorney client privilege. By claiming that Dt merely funneled money thru Cohen to pay off the porn star, he eliminated a Clint relationship.
Silly! The money came from the so-called president's charity - nothing to do with politics.
4
My god, such sleazes they all are! They are all stenches in the public's nostrils.
Other descriptive words come to mind, of course, but they are not fit for public viewing.
Yeccch to them.
3
Say it ain't so, Donald!
1
Okay!!.....managing extra-marital affairs and associated payments, personally arranging Epic, Historic Peace meeting with North Korea leader, openly planning a forewarned military attack on Syria, attending a BIG NRA meeting in Dallas, undoing the Iran Nuclear Deal, undoing of NAFTA, undoing of TPP, imposing Trade Tariffs, undoing of anything Obama, myriad made-for-TV, albeit-in-vain attempts to hold his wife's hand publicly, undoing/doing DACA, proposing the slaughter of the Immigrant Caravan, building the un-build-able (is that a word?) Wall, managing the Lie-a-Minute White House Machine, ignoring Congress and the DOJ, expanding the size of his unworthy Basket-of-Credit on an hourly basis, and doing everything humanly possible to disgrace and discredit the Institution's we value so dearly, etc. Truly the work of a remarkable and fearless (and ignorant) so-called leader.
All well and good. But what I really want to know is where are:
- Ivanka Trump
- Jared Kushner
- Donald Trump, Jr.
- Mike Pence
- The other (name-less) Trump kid
Where are these people? Conspicuously absent from all TV cameras of late (many weeks to be exact). Hmmmmm, have they purposely been 'set aside', kinda 'out of sight, out of mind', in hopes that Robert Mueller will forget what they look like?
Just asking, you know !!
6
Nobody cares about Stormy Daniels and her tryst with Trump 10 years ago. I'm so glad the Democrats are focused on this nonsense. They're going to be quite disappointed this November.
Your comment reminds me of Yogi Berra's famous quip: Nobody goes there any more, it's too crowded. Your comment has about the same amount of truth to it.
4
Don't forget, "It aint over 'til it's over!"
What is not showcased in all the scattered rush of events is the fact that Stormy Daniels, pornographer as all like to highlight, is the only one who has told the truth. Maybe the best way to view all this is to realize the true obscenity is the continuing denigration of the truth. However, I suspect the fact she is a woman in a mainly male-supported business makes ‘moralistic’ people uncomfortable, even politically self-righteous. It makes them reluctant to hold these truths to be self-evident.
6
Never thought I'd say this but you got to love Giuliani. "Yes your honor my client is a liar and a cheat but he is innocent of campaign finance violation charges."
1
I have to admit, I feel like sitting back with a fresh batch of popcorn and just watching this disaster unfold. It's nice when the system finally seems to catch up with high crimes and especially satisfying when a bunch of thugs think they're being very clever while incriminating themselves.
I would get that popcorn too, if it were not for the fact that these idiots are playing games when they should be governing the country. Let's not stop the vigil and make sure we keep an eye on the upcoming elections to really start draining the swamp - starting with the monster in the middle.
1
Rudy can say whatever he wants to the likes of Sean Hannity. His words are meaningless until he is under oath or giving testimony to Mueller's team. Keep dancing, monkey.
When you say “contradiction of Trump’s prior claims on Stormy Daniels,” do you mean, or imply, the fellow has been lying all along? Naughty, naughty!
You know the megalomaniac can’t tell the truth even under penalty of going to Satan’s BBQ. He will find a way to bribe the Prince of Darkness. Of course he won’t be able to con the Prince of Cons but he will try.
Rudy "the Rat" Giuliani paying dividends already. Great addition to the team Donny. But, just a thought a bit off topic; where in the world is Mike Pence? I haven't heard a peep from him in a good while. Maybe he's trying to keep a safe distance in the event he'll have to step in after the impeachment proceedings are completed. That tells me that there's already a Republican transition team in place and they're sensing the inevitable. Stay tuned, the clown show rolls on.
1
Low income, and low brow, Americans also need entertainment. They helped put Trump on the stage. They are now getting their jollies, through his daily performance.
On the other hand, Trump knows that once he starts dropping bombs on North Korea, or Iran, or Pakistan, every American will be duty bound to become SUPER PATRIOTIC, and regard all actions of Trump, and his enablers, as nothing more than peccadilloes in Piccadilly (I mean White House)
That trump lied to us about ultimately using his own money to buy Ms. Cliffords silence? I suspect that trump supporters have already rationalized all this, and done so along the lines of Clinton having lied to us about not having an affair "with that woman."
Send a message in November. Character does matter.
Between the malign machinations of legal turkeys Michael Cohen and Rudy Giuliani, Donald Trump has two of the most corrupt and crazy lawyers ever defending him. Matching their client in the realm of fictional foolishness.
And just two weeks ago when Giuliani was hired as one of Trump's newest attorneys, he stated, “Rudy is great. He has been my friend for a long time."
With friends like this, it's amazing that Trump is still president. Rudy's presence may have just dissolved faster than Anthony Scaramucci's.
Thank you for this present Rudy.
2
As these personal stories of moral failure of our President pile up, it occurs to me that fewer and fewer people seem to care. In the meantime, where are Democratic candidates who are going to regain control of Congress in the Fall and what are the issues that will reclaim a majority of America's support. Forget the soap opera, focus on reviving our party.
1
Of course he lied. It is his singular talent...the only thing he actually does with conviction. And he does it ALL THE TIME. He is a pathological liar -- about all things, big or small. And his base finds it comforting that he's ruler of the free world -- because he says he is working for them [see pathological liar statement above].
The web we weave when we practice to deceive. The Trump administration: The gang that couldn't shoot straight. That I can tell you. Sad.
Using Trumpheads' favorite cheer: Lock Him Up! Lock Him Up! Lock Him Up!
1
How shameful. How long before this disgusting "president" no longer represents our country? And the Republican party does nothing.
2
As Ron Ziegler (Nixon's Press Secretary) would say, "That statement is no longer operative."
As Mike Pence would say, "He didn't say that."
I wonder if this will be like Trump's promises to donate money to various charities, and we will eventually find out that Trump finally repaid Michael Cohen earlier this week.
At this point in the Trump Electoral Aberration there should be no one on this planet (or elsewhere) that doubts that he is a truly narcissistic sociopath.
EVERYTHING in his world is about him, and everyone "not-him" is bad, incompetent, crooked, fake, etc.
NO ONE like this should ever hold a position of power. His many bankruptcies speak to his failure as a businessman; his innumerable NDAs to his plotting and scheming; his many sexual abuses and philandering to his total lack of moral compass; his inability to attract and maintain competent personnel to his inability to manage; his total lack of focus and continuity to his instability; his Tweeting to his uncontrolled impulsiveness; his collusion (which will be shown shortly) to his treason and his infinite lying and delusion to his mental incompetence. Many more too.
Trump makes John Gotta and Al Capone look like saints. Joe McCarthy is on his "favorites" list along with Xi, Kim and Putin.
So YOU voted for him - you know who you are. Your children will judge you as they struggle to support an unsustainable national debt. If you want them to survive, I would advise sweeping this worst-of-all swamps clean asap.
3
The President lied. The President's attorney lied. Impeach the first, disbar the second.
In a companion article, NYT reports that Giuliani said Cohen was just doing his job when he made the payment.
“Imagine if that came out on October 15th, 2016, in the middle of the, you know, last debate with Hillary Clinton,” Giuliani told Fox News’s “Fox & Friends.” “Cohen didn’t even ask. Cohen made it go away. He did his job.”
So, clearly it was campaign related, and Trump failed to disclose it. That alone is a violation of law. And, it appears to have been done knowingly and willfully, which makes it a felony.
1
Of course he had sex with Story Daniels. Of course he arranged to pay her off. Of course he lied about it. Of course he was then told that lie created a bigger legal issue.... and so.... of course he now sends out Giuliani to reverse his lie.
In general, it is not illegal for Presidents to lie. The voting process is how we decide if lying is OK. I am not for lying. What about you?
Altogether now shout “drain the swamp!” and keep shouting it until he’s gone..
Rudy to Trump's defense team: "I'm gonna grab a handful of this really sticky mud over here and throw it up on the Fox News Wall. That should take care of things." Defense team to Rudy: "Hold on Rudy, that isn't mud!"
1
Michael Cohen stated that he took out a home equity loan to pay Ms Daniels. What happened to that story line?
4
Why do we care exactly?
1
a better question: why don't flagrant lying and a likely violation of Federal law bother you in the least?
2
If Trump is so rich, why does he have to pay back $130,000 in installments?
Isn't a retainer a form of compensation, like a salary? I don't think you get to use a monthly retainer to pay off a debt.
This raises more questions than it answers.
6
To avoid the $5000 cap.
I am going to attempt the impossible; giving Donald Trump the benefit of the doubt. Trump is innocent, there is no collusion, there is no obstruction of justice, there was no encounter with Stormy Daniels, Trump had no knowledge of Cohen`s hush money to Stormy, Giuliani was wrong about Trump reimbursing Cohen, everything is just one GIANT and unfortunate misunderstanding. O.K.; I am now exhausted in giving the Liar-In-Chief the benefit of the doubt. Talk about a gang that could not shoot straight!Oh what a wicked web we weave when first we practice to deceive.They can`t. keep their story straight for one day.
5
By all accounts Trump wants to be impeached or forced to resign. He's been way over his head since Day One. Everything he's done — from running his international criminal syndicate from the Oval Office — to chronic lying and displaying horrendous lapses in judgement — tell us that he is woefully unfit for office. And he knows it. It would be a tremendous relief for him, and for the rest of America, if he were gone from the White House. It certainly looks like we're headed in that direction.
6
But then we get Pence. How’s that going to be an improvement?
the point is, he lied about the payoff. this isn't the same as puffing about crowd size. the president is a liar and cannot be trusted. this fact will be more salient during a crisis for example.
4
What is not showcased in all the scattered rush of events is the fact that Stormy Daniels, pornographer as all like to highlight, is the only who has told the truth. Maybe the best way to view all this is to realize the true obscenity is the continuing denigration of the truth. However, I suspect the fact she is a woman in a mainly male-supported business makes ‘moralistic’ people uncomfortable, even politically self-righteous. It makes them reluctant to hold these truths to be self-evident.
4
Trump -- who firmly denied ay knowledge of the Storm Daniels payoff -- now says he knew all about it, paid it, reimbursed Michael Cohen, and blah, blah, blah.
Remember when they firmly denied - for months -- that there were any contacts whatsoever with Russians during the 2016 campaign?
Then the story changed to a few, minor, inconsequential meetings that definitely did not discuss U.S. sanctions against Russia.
Then the story changed to include a meeting in Trump Tower were they discussed only adoptions of Russian orphans - and definitely did not discuss U.S. sanctions.
Then, top Trump officials -- who swore they never, ever met with the Russian ambassador (Kislyak) did, in fact, meet with him. But only a couple of times, and only in passing, and just to say hello, and definitely did not discuss the sanctions, and definitely did not promise to drop the sanctions.
These guys are completely incapable of making a truthful statement. Ever.
5
He lies. That is who he is.
2
As I understood Trump's dilemma, the most illegal thing he could have done in this situation would have been to not repay the $130,000 Cohen gave to Clifford a few days before the election. If he had not repaid it, the payment could have been considered a campaign donation, since it was given strictly to help the candidate get elected.
Giuliani is obviously trying to get Trump out of that hole. Technically, it's not illegal for a candidate to pay off a porn star if the candidate pays with his own money.
Of course, Trump & cronies are all about what is technically legal & illegal, not about what is ethical, moral, right, or fair. And that's where we fall into the morass. Our society is developing a legal system in which the men (still mostly men!) who write the laws follow the orders of the rich and powerful, who want laws they can technically obey, but that will still allow them to do many things that are unethical, unfair, and not in the interests of the country's general welfare and domestic harmony.
That is why we have to stop electing the men who do the bidding of wealthy donors. Otherwise, we will continue to construct a two-tiered legal system in which you & I can be prosecuted for the smallest of infractions, while the rich & powerful can get away with the most heinous of crimes against the people, & remain in power, untouched & immune to any legal repercussions.
Vote this November for the candidate who is not taking money from big donors! They are out there!
5
Why are reporters and pundits focusing mainly on campaign laws in regard to Trump's payoff(s) to women with whom he had affairs? From Merriam-Webster: a bribe is "something given or promised to a person in order to influence dishonestly a decision or action." From the U.S. Constitution: bribery is specifically named as clear grounds for impeaching, convicting and removing a president.
2
There once was a lawyer named Mikey,
Whom Donnie boy really did likey;
When the women won't lay-off,
He arranged for the pay-off,
Minus Trumpsky's famed signature spikey.
For his client, he's sure to keep mum;
Although "that means YOU'RE GUILTY!", say some.
Another perp walking
Without any talking.
And these clowns say Stormy is dumb?
Meanwhile, back at "the Ranch"
Melania arranged a white branch.
There's no birthday gift...
(A marital rift?)
Doe-nahld's endless chatter
Shows off his gray matter;
While LIVE, on Fox News, his hosts blanche.
Ah, the spanking was surely delightful
But brief, lasting less than a night-full.
Don calls on friend Rudy
(Pugnacious and moody)
And star ratings return, which is rightful.
3
We have a major trade war brewing, a deficit exploding, infrastructure corroding, deteriorating relations with our closest allies, Russian interference in our elections and social fabric, a major conflagration in Syria and other violent conflicts pretty much across the globe, an ascendant China in the process of usurping American diplomatic power
. . . . . . . . and the headline story of the most important newspaper in the country is about hush money the President and/or his legal team may/may not have paid to a porn actress to silence her.
This seems to be one case in which an oft-twittered expression of Donald J Trump is appropriate: "SAD."
This is fun. I wonder if trump has ever, ever before had to actually admit he lied. I can't wait to see what else falls out of the bag Mueller found in Cohen's hands. The sooner we get trump under oath the better.
1
Remember how, during every month of President Obama's 8-year-presidency, a new scandal came out every week? Of course you don't, because that never happened. "No Drama Obama" was not perfect, but he was qualified to be president. Donald Trump is morally, mentally, and intellectually unfit to be in Oval Office. And every Republican who defends Trump, or declines to criticize Trump, is complicit.
12
I listened to Sean Hannity’s interview with Rudy Giuliani last night on FOX. According to Giuliani, the payments to Mr. Cohen were part of a retainer between him and candidate Trump. NPR’s report on this issue this morning reiterated the same. Did the New York Times listen to the Hannity’s interview? Maybe, but they are obviously reporting the issue from their biased perspective, the perspective of the anti-Trump Establishment elite.
In the larger context, I have always found it interesting how Establishment elites and their followers brand FOX News as false, faux news. Well it seems to that the mainstream media is the reals source of faux news, presenting stories from a perspective that the Establishment elite wants the people to believe. The Establishment elite does not encourage an open mind, but rather one closed to the truth in order to remain powerful, like the Great OZ, and anyone who has seen the Wizard of Oz, knows what a pitiful puny phony he turned out to be.
I support the President. I support Trump. Thank you.
Speakng of paying attention, this fair and balanced article specifically discusses the Fox interview and provides links to what Giuliani said.
And just so's ya know, the Wizard defended Oz, brought peace, and beat back the bad guys. He may have been a buncombe artist, but he didn't cheat his own people.
2
You are persistent, I’ll give you that.
1
keep dancing until the music stops like the ballroom dancers on the Titanic did. I guess you believe lying is a positive personality trait in a US President.
2
Sounds like Trump and Giuliani are trying to answer one of the forty-nine Mueller questions and get ahead of the story.
3
This is just one lie on a highway paved with untruths and deceptions, sometimes petty, sometimes very significant. Another lie just uncovered: Trump's doctor's letter - it was false, having been created by Trump himself, not the doctor.
Trump's pathological lying has created the newest political strategy--lie, lie,lie and ..... people will get too tired to remember what the original lie was about. With the help of the right wing media/ Fox and friends they are able to get away with this farce. Only voting the republicans out of power in 2018 will change this cynical and contemptuous form of governing.
3
2018: the scandal is not that the president paid off a porn star to keep quiet about their affair, but rather the particulars of *how* the porn star was paid. How did we get here?
2
The people who claim that there is absolutely nothing that the person they voted for can do to lose their support are not true patriots. They would have our country go down in flames rather than admit they were conned. This man is and has always been unfit to serve as our President. He's a cheat, a liar and a complete embarrassment to this country and everything we stand for. I am particularly annoyed with the Republicans in congress who we elected only to have them relinquish their self respect and integrity in order to keep their jobs safe and all at the expense of our beloved country. The America we were once proud of. You should all be tried for treason.
2
We have a president whose ethical standards permit him to have sex with porn stars and Playboy bunnies while away on business from his wife and new born son. When pursued for hush money, he easily dispenses cash for silence. When evidence of the affairs emerges, he releases his lawyer to attack. When personally confronted, he lies with a straight face. He’ll do anything he can to save face for his past behaviors.
This isn’t simply a titillating scandal. This episode creates context for the Steele intelligence dossier quoting Russian sources that Trump spent a night with prostitutes at a Moscow hotel during his Miss Universe trip. He has since bent over backwards to avoid criticizing Putin.
Clearly, on so many levels, he’s a compromised man.
1
After all this lying and obfuscation by Trump, why should we not believe everything Ms. Clifford has said including her statement about the man threatening her family in the parking lot. Strange that the Ms. Clifford should be proven more honorable than our liar in chief.
Why strange? Does her testimony need to be subjected to different standards because of her profession?
Out of curiosity, when does something become a "lie" in your headline and copy. By previous definitions there has be to a willful, knowing nature to the statement. This appears to meet the standard. Or is it an editorial decision not to call it a lie for other reasons?
Dear NY Times editors,
Stephanie A. Gregory Clifford, aka Stormy Daniels, has directed more than 78 pornographic films, as well as writing and producing many of them. If she were a man, would you call him a pornographic actor or actor/filmmaker? Be professional and treat her as an accomplished professional, too.
1
So, trump reimbursed Cohen for extortion money paid to a porn star trump had nothing to do with in order to keep her from extorting him. Just before the election. He totally caved on a fake story about an ancient alleged affair. Sounds just like trump, who always hits back harder when someone goes after him. And yet, an unknown porn star managed to extort money from him over a 10 year old fake story. Got it. And it turns out their initial denials about the whole story about it was a pack of lies.
Mrs. Trump must realize that she is the victim of infidelity which is not so generic and run of the mill. The fact is that her husband engaged in a sexual tryst with a woman who has admittedly had sex with hundreds of men via her profession. Curious as to whether that would make this fact any more unbearable for her?
Trump's trying to get out in front of Cohen. Prepare to see a lot of "admissions" from Trump in the next little while, as he tries to mitigate Cohen's testimony.
Let's not let him get away with it. He's a lying sack of road apples and has no business holding the highest office in the land.
The Stormy Daniels “affair” is a big, fat load of nothing. Illegal? No. Embarrassing? Depends. It’s what you get when people have nothing of substance with which to attack someone they hate. What we have here is hatred beyond reason.
1
How ironic, that on Press Freedom Day, the Obfuscator-in-Chief gets tagged by his freshly minted henchmen, Jackboots Rudy, as the progenitor of yet another mendacious endeavor. THis was all in an effort to protect Trump's family? Like Trump cares about anyone but himself? When is this clown-car presidency going to implode? America is anxiously awaiting the release of the contents of the DVD that Stormy Daniels' attorney Michael Avenatti has threatened to unleash. It will put all doubts to rest, and it can't come soon enough. Thank you The New York TImes and others for your assiduous, dogged coverage of this sordid epoch in American history. Happy Press Freedom Day!
1
The problem is that Trump appears to have lied about his payment of funds to Stormy Daniels. He may claim he was not aware of the payment at the time, and only later, after the election, paid Cohen back when he learned of the payment. He may also claim that he never had sex with Stormy Daniels. Perhaps he just enjoyed the company of an attractive woman in his hotel suite. Perhaps they did make out short of actual sex.
All of these are possible explanations. But whether, there is some technical way in which Trump can truthfully claim that he didn't know of the payment at the time, and whether or not he had sex with Stormy Daniels, is beside the point.
Trump has certainly misled the public. And has set himself up for embarrassing questions in the future.
Clinton was impeached for claiming that a blow job did not mean actual sex.
Remember, impeachment is largely a political process. And he does not need to be convicted of actual wrongdoing beyond a reasonable doubt.
Nevertheless, the affair with Stormy Daniels, or whatever it was, has damaged Trump's reputation. And he is fighting battles on multiple fronts. At some point the accumulated evidence of lack of truthfulness will appear to many as adequate cause for impeachment.
With luck, Trump will be a one-term president. If the elections in 2018 give Democrats a majority in the house, or even a near majority, impeachment is highly probable.
In addition, Trump's job performance has been bad. He needs to go.
"Elect a clown, expect a circus."
It is incredible to me how Trump supporters can swallow the tawdry corruption and blatant lies that this administration doles out on a daily (hourly!) basis.
Have these people lost their minds?
Uh, yes.
Very good move to allow Giuliani to clear this simple scene up ... Trump knows how to maneuver a deal like no other.
We need this in a Commander-in-Chief
What I see is funny is that Trump a man that is supposed to be worth billions needed to go on a payment plan.
2
Hey, at least he paid the guy back. Maybe this will be a lesson for Trump's future contracted employees: if you want your paycheck, make sure you have some high-quality leverage.
My only question: why does a billionaire - a self-described wealthiest person around, need to break up a $130,000 payment into multiple payments? Not showing your tax returns because they'd show you not worth much at all? Also, the "incidental expenses"? How many more women/men/whatever in the barn?
4
I was afraid that Truth would become a casualty of the Trump era because, being bombarded by lies, we'd soon be unable to distinguish Truth from Fiction.
But this episode shows that habitual liars can't keep their lies straight and will continually change their stories to suit the moment. There's hope yet for Truth!
3
Still we hear nothing from the GOP crickets-congress apart from grubby attempts to besmirch our DOJ and FBI. What a gutless bunch of partisan hacks.
7
It would take a navigator a year, with perfect technologies and skills, to keep track of where Trump's lies have led the dwindling numbers of citizens who listen to him now. It's just getting plain silly. If his intent is to make the nation dizzy enough to fall down, it's well on the way to working.
3
The White House, room full of lawyers and Don the Con, enter Rudy...."I'm going on Hannity tonight and I'm going to say...." All in the room put in earbuds or place their hands over their ears and babble until Rudy stops speaking. At that point Rudy says: "Any objections?" "No, sounds great, go get 'em."
And that's how the leader of the free world and his staff handle most situations. As long as I don't hear, I don't know.....so what are you going to do about it?
If there's another explanation I'd like to hear it!
2
I don't see how it helps Trumps case to have paid back the money "some time after the campaign is over". The law typically doesn't say "well if you pay it back no harm no foul". Bank robbers don't get off the hook by giving the money back.
Looks to me like they are fumbling around trying deal with a series of off the cuff positions that were taken by Trump early on. "Trump knew nothing about it. He never paid." Then after learning it might be illegal. "No he paid for it" and "its not clear if he knew or not." These guys can't get their story straight. Classic example of what happens when someone spouts off without thinking or listening to their lawyers.
1
Every day they must all have a mandate to tell another new and different whopper. Otherwise the news would subside and people might catch on to their game of keeping everyone off balance. Don’t let us catch our breaths otherwise the magnitude of the lie will sink in and we will see how wacky this circus is. The WHite House has truly become the Home of the Whopper.
Trump is between a rock and a hard place here:
Admit to paying off a woman, not his wife, with hush money OR admit to breaking campaign finance law. Guess he chose the option that wouldn’t immediately indict him. Not yet anyway.
Nothing in this Guiliani story adds up; there are contradictions everywhere in what Trump said, what Cohen said, and now what Guiliani says, as the article and many commenters point out.
Their web of lies and deceit is so tangled now that they are lying about their lies, and have to hire lawyers to protect their lawyers.
Last night on CNN, Anderson Cooper devoted part of his show to Trump's lies, which the Washington Post tracked and said Trump lied about 3000 times during his first year in office--many times more than any other president.
Former Trump campaign strategist David Urban was on to defend Trump, and he claimed Trump didn't lie, he just engages in "campaign hyperbole." So now Trump enablers and supporters lie about Trump's lies.
These days in the Republican party, a lie isn't a lie until Trump declares it a lie, which, of course he says he never does, while accusing everyone else of lying--especially Comey, Mueller, the NYT, mainstream media--when they say Trump lies,
Growing up, my father told us many times: "Don't start lying because it will get very complicated. Just be honest; no one can fault you for that."
Only with Trump in office, honest people are now faulted for lying, and lying people are given free reign to lie--at least on Fox and Friends and in the GOP.
Please tell me why, with all Trump's lies and after all Trump has put this country through, his presidential approval ratings are going up (from 38 to 42%), not down.
3
New York Times, I sincerely wish that you would do proper reporting on this issue. You continue to repeat Trump's claim that the contract in dispute with Stephanie Cliffords is a standard Non-Disclosure Agreement. It is not. It is a Settlement Agreement, which by its nature can only be entered into if Trump had originally acknowledged that Ms. Cliffords had material, tangible property that could damage Trump. In other words, this wasn't a typical hush document, but an agreement that tacitly acknowledges that Ms. Cliffords has or had damaging material on Trump, hence making much of the rest of Trump and Cohen's narratives moot.
3
Only reason why Giuliani (and Trump) admitted to lying now is to protect Cohen from going to jail over the campaign finance stuff. And the only reason to protect Cohen is because he likely knows WAY worse about Trump.
4
Still, in a brief pause in all the sanctimonious hysteria among "Resistance" which may be too much to ask, $130000 in hush money to hide a consensual affair is only 15% of the out-of-court $850000 Bill Clinton paid Paula Jones so she would not press actual rape charges against him. Last time I looked, especially in these days of #Me Too, rape is most definitely NOT consensual. And as I think about it aging myself just a bit, I still can't recall the same progressives who are soooooo besides themselves now over Trump's affair moving even a muscle when Clinton pulled that one off.
1
Hey, now: don't undermine your own argument by lying yourself. According to court docs, Jones offered to be Clinton's mistress (a witness heard her make the offer.) She then sued Clinton for "harassment" (not rape or assault) after their affair was over and he had picked up another girlfriend. He settled out of court for $850k (of his own money.) So what does that prove? Democrats pay better? Men in power are prone to ill-advised hookups with gold-diggers? Neither of these is a surprise.
I can't wait to see what they say the truth is tomorrow.
4
Here’s what y’all need to understand: “…celebrities and people of wealth” (AKA, the elites), unlike the rest of us, have reputations to uphold!
Is this not shameful? Nay, the height of evil. Not the payment, not the act, but rather all the lies. With Trump, they never stop. I guess there is also the betrayal of his wife. How can such a person serve our country as president. There is no ambiguity about "is" in this case.
Who cares. This isn't news. Maybe tabloid news. Trump is a choir boy compared to Bill Clinton.
What should be investigated is the use of the justice department by the democrats to target political opponents.
1
The only factual piece of opinion here is that it is indeed tabloid news, generated from the grotesque man currently disgracing the White House. The rest is projection.
Is there one person in America who will admit to being dumb enough to be surprised to find out Donald was lying about this? I thought not. What in the world would make anyone think he is not lying now? Emmet Flood's first order of business will have to be to get Rudy Guiliani off of television. When Rudy floated his name for Secretary of State the whispers were (1) he did not have the stamina, and (2) he was losing it mentally. I can't speak to the stamina, but I am sure about the mental critique.
1
The President repaid his attorney $470,000 for what was initially supposedly a $130,000 payment? Seems there's still more to this story ...
2
Rudy, thanks for keeping this story above the fold...might have forgotten about it.
1
And this is probably just a preamble. Soon the floodgates of facts confronting 'alternative facts' will gush out! I love it!
3
I find it amazing that Trump and Cohen won't even tell their lawyers what documents/recordings were confiscated during the FBI raid at Cohen's home, hotel room and office. So, all of this right now is just the tip of the iceberg.
3
How is it that Trump paying back Cohen is a contradiction? Cohen paid Stormy and then was reimbursed at a later date. You can believe that story or not, but it is not a contradiction.
1
So, if I understand correctly, Cohen used a California-chartered bank to pay off Ms. Daniels in an effort to keep her quiet. The money was laundered through a law firm and a shell company.
Mr. Trump might be subject to indictment under California law, in the California state courts. So might Mr. Cohen.
4
Finally, someone who thinks like Trump. Giuliani, no stranger to moral turpitude, has come forward to give us an insiders knowledge about how the president thinks. To date, we've mostly believed that Trump shoots from the hip and never ponders the consequences. Giuliani, Trump's good buddy, has been all over TV lately, dazzling us with his twisted logic. That smile tells us all we need to know.
2
So, just for once, let's get straight. 1) The guy running for the Presidency paid hush money to shut up the woman he had a one night stand with, fearing that if that information 'got out' he would lose the election. 2) Subsequently, he lied about every part of the transaction. 3) He attempted to coerce subordinates and paid employees to lie for him. 4) the whole episode is alongside the Russia investigation and is being conducted by entirely separate organisations and legal authorities. That about cover it?
We then have the matter of the Russia investigation. The guy in the White House is about to be forced to testify, under oath, about his conduct prior to and subsequent to the election and whether he engaged actively in obstruction of justice (at the least) and various monetary criminal acts which would normally be charged under RICO statutes or other similar laws. If any of these charges are brought to bear, whether found true or not, the guy in office may be impeached on the grounds of having pursued the obstruction of justice as a high crime or misdemeanor. There's really no way out of this now.
Say goodbye, guy. There's no way out for you now.
2
I knew that bringing Giuliani into this was for the purpose of injecting even more sleaze and obfuscation into an already ugly scenario. How can anyone, even if he wanted to or knew how to (which Trump doesn't), lead a country while dealing with so much scandal?
1
I saw this episode!
Eddie Haskell accidentally damages the Cleaver's neighbor's vegetable garden. The Beaver and Wally concoct a story to cover for Eddie, but the tale quickly unravels as the inconsistencies mount up. Lumpy confesses and the boys are sent to their room without dessert. Over coffee in the dining room, Ward and June ponder how the boys ever expected to get away with such a far-fetched ruse. (Stormy Daniels guest stars as their neighbor, Miss Clifford)
2
10,000 recommends. Perfect. Especially ‘Lumpy confesses.’ Wish I had a black-and-white VHS tape of this episode.
2
Nobody had believed when Mr. Trump repeatedly said that he knew nothing about the payment of $130,000 hush money his personal lawyer Michael D. Cohen made to the porn star Stormy Daniels. Mr. Giuliani’s disclosure only exposes yet another lie of Trump's.
What is new here is that Mr. Trump reimbursed Mr. Cohen all that hush money, at the rate of $35,000 a month and that the reimbursement was made out of Mr. Trump’s “personal family account.”
That, however, doesn’t free Mr. Trump from the legal troubles he is in. Even if the reimbursement came from his “personal family account,” the charge of campaign finance violation leveled against him still sticks. As correctly stated in the article, “The crucial question in determining" it would be "whether the payment was specifically intended to help Mr. Trump’s campaign.” As Paul S. Ryan, an official at the government watchdog group Common Cause, has been quoted as saying, “all the facts indicate that the payment was to influence the election.”
The Giuliani disclosure also points to another possible violation by Mr. Trump, violation of anti-money laundering statutes, which the porn star's lawyer Michael Avenatti has alluded to in his tweet. We won’t know it for sure until we get a chance to examine whether Mr. Trump employed any money-laundering tactic to account for the withdrawals made from the bank toward Cohen reimbursement. We will never know it until Mr. Trump is forced to disclose his tax returns.
Will that ever happen?
The sad thing is that I had no immediate reaction to this revelation. Another lie revealed. Another day.
1
Meanwhile, the level of anxiety amongst Americans is terribly high, the tax cuts appears to be benefitting the wealthy, children are concerned about gun violence at school, health care is frighteningly expensive, etc.
I'm no fan of Trump and his Bad News Bears crew. But this nonsense is part of the circus act.
Regrettably, there are no laws against lying or being incompetent. You would think that the evangelicals might have some consternation over this recent revelation, but I'm guessing they'll over look this too, because for them and all their hypocritical piety the ends obviously justify the means. At this point, I am seriously beginning to believe that Trump could shoot somebody in broad day light on 5th avenue in New York and absolutely nothing would happen. We the people are in some serious trouble!
"How broke is he?"
He has to use campaign contributions to pay hush money to porn star.
5
Liar. Liar. Liar. Liar. Liar. Liar. Liar. Liar. Liar. Liar. Liar. Liar. Liar. Liar. Liar. Liar. Liar. Liar. Liar. Liar. Liar. Liar. Liar. Liar.
Liar. Liar. Liar.
Pathological LIAR ad infinitum.
Everything the man says is a LIE.
Time to go to the big house, Donnie.
9
These people are thugs. Criminals. That’s it...
3
The oval office is full of Donald Trump gratifiers.
2
So, Trump paid Michael Cohen back for money that Cohen paid to Stormy Daniels because Trump didn't have sex with Daniels. That's the story, right?
3
The President of the United States attempted to cover up an affair with a porn star, and the GOP is rushing to his defense by throwing out anything that will stick. There it is folks, the party of "Family Values," the "Sanctity of Marriage," & "Law & Order."
1
Hey Evangelicals, better check your mulligan supply. Looks like your man is going to need a few more.
6
America badly needs a shower.
2
Oops.
2
Rudy Giuliani's advice to Trump is basically to act like you're stupid. I know that isn't hard for stupid Rudy, but I wonder if Trump can pull it off? The problem is Rudy won't be around long enough to find out.
1
Donald paid Cohen $470K and he was not aware what it was for? These liars need to get their ies straight.
3
Rudy G looks and acts more like Uncle Junior every day.
The Trump swamp gets muckier and more fetid by the day.
2
christie would have done a better job, shame jared's ex-con daddy holds grudges. christie would still take a job in this wh.
1
For now Trump would rather just be a liar than a criminal. And Giuliani, in delivering the news of Trump's latest lie, apparently wants the public to believe in the tooth fairy and the president's word on 'no collusion.'
You can't make this stuff up. I'd cast Alec Baldwin as Trump in the movie. Giuliani will suck up for a one-take cameo.
1
Blackmail is an ugly business, Stormy has made a small fortune out of it. Her fame, one would expect, has increased the clicks at her porn sites as well. Good money made all around.
1
The Gang That Couldn't Shoot Straight
3
What a liar.
1
The Republican President said he never had sex with that porn star while his wife was at home with their one year old child. He had no idea that his lawyer was paying off a porn star for sex that never happened.
Now he hires Giuliani to admit that he’s a liar. He had sex with a porn star while his wife was at home with their one year old child. He also reemburssed his lawyer for paying off the porn star he had extramarital sex with.
No wonder Christians love him so much and will continue to support a man who has sex with po m stars while his wife is at home with their one year old.
2
Not Christians, be specific or you create prejudice. Just like not everyone in the faith of Islam is a terrorist. Suggest you use the term "far right evangelical Christians who really love the Old Testament and not the Christ of the New Testament."
1
The most important thing Rudy said which the NYT left out is: Wouldn't you cover it up as we did because it was damaging???!!!
Game over!
Giuliani's just another clown with more lies.
3
Fix the headline please NYT- "Trump Lies About Knowledge of Daniels Payment"
3
.
^^ ... Mr. Cohen was paid $460,000 or $470,000 from Mr. Trump through those payments ^^
Let's momentarily leave aside any questions as to why Cohen had to resort to the oddball, desperate tactic of taking out a home equity loan to raise $130,000 to hand over to Stormy Daniels.
Just why in blazes was he reimbursed more than triple the amount?
This smacks of money-laundering.
.
2
Giuliani taking over the role as "fixer" and getting a small fraction "out" to the world, of what actually took with the "deal" that Trump and Cohen made. I say Stormy should get a bonus!
Oh my, lol, lol, lol. The clown administration rolls on. Everybody gets slimed, Rudy. Watch your back.
3
it certainly is tough to separate the statement on AF1 from "I did not have sex with that woman," which sent the Republican's into a tizzy of hypicritacal outrage in the 90s. How far the ritious have fallen. Thank goodness they stay true to their party's hypicracy.
2
Lock him up!
1
For the love of God resign already!
4
The Lyin' King at it again.
2
So the silent majority will think that Trump had a one time affair with a porn start and then paid her hush money to not spread it all over the National Enquirer. Lots of people might have been tempted to have affairs with porn stars and no one would want it publicized. This is a tempest in a teapot.
If Trump lied about a payment to a porn star, would he lie about collusion with Russia?
1
Whoa', potus is a liar. Who knew?
1
It’s good because even people as stupid as the Trump supporters are, they will see: Trump is a serial liar. Later, when their lives are no better, they will see: he lied about that too.
1
The Trump Administration should be renamed The Soap Opera Presiency.
Do the math! There’s one missing hush money scandal yet to break.
$460,000 to $470,000 paid to Cohen to keep people quiet
- $130,000 payment to Stormy Daniels, porn star
- $150,000 payment to Karen McDougal, Playboy model
= $180,000 to $190,000 remaining for one more sleazy cover up.
Dear NYT reporters please get on this.
2
Who cares?
She is probably mad that Bill Clinton paid Paula Jones $850,000.
1
are we missing the point that the president has paid an amount of hush money to a porn star in an amount that is greater than what most of his base earns in a year. Isn't this not only disgusting but really really out of whack?
Donald, are you now watching Road Runner cartoons? Fox News wasn't good enough for you? You are Wiley Coyote and Mueller is the Road Runner. There, I got my analogies straight.
What a bunch of clowns
The US is great country in which any kid can grow up to pay off a porn star.
1
“Rudy ! You’re fired !!”
A new record for the Trimp admonistration ???
1
So, once again, the Liar-In-Chief is exposed. The question, however, is when his supporters - among both the voting public and his Republican allies - will have had enough of this shameful fraud of a "President." It is as if we had elected Hugh Heffner to the White House! I would say that it is outrageous, but everything this man has said and done is outrageous, which leaves many people with little true outrage and only a numbing sense of complacency.
5
(Throwing my hands in the air)
Whelp, that about does it for me,
6
Trump is destroying even the concept of truth. To him, "truth" means saying what's advantageous at any particular moment in any particular interaction, legal, political, or otherwise. It would be a harmless failing of a weak, pitiful man if he weren't infecting his millions of followers with the same disregard for reality and honesty.
7
That is spot on. Reasonable and objective people know Trump is horrible. It’s the people that still support him that we should be concerned about.
1
I have to say that I finally agree with trump on something. He is being treated unfairly ... by himself! He is his own worst enemy.
1
My brother is a trump supporter. He see the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment as an impediment to American supremacy. He is a prototypical WASP, but also has two divinity degrees. If I were to hook up with a porn star to the detriment of my family life there would be no shortage of recrimination from him about the erosion of "Family Values". For, trump, however, there is a pass because my brother and his friends view trump as their path to eradicate the Muslim wave (abortion is secondary) and re-establishing a Protestant Culture.
7
I'm still waiting to read Republican comments to the effect of, "This just proves that Trump was telling the truth all along!". Or, perhaps, a pivot to, "So, what? None of this really matters anyway. It's his personal business." - Because for them, nothing sticks. Absolutely nothing. And their hypocrisy and duplicity know no bounds. Thank God they're the minority, and always have been.
6
Why don't we just get Trump's taxes?
7
Was this a calculated move / damage control because the Trump believes Michael Cohen has flipped, and they're trying to get ahead of it?
5
here's my 2cents. there was a comedy show on tv once where the skit involved a reading from a poem. "it was the best of times and the worst of times": the guy who this was being read to abruptly stopped the reader and asked "now which was it, the best of times or the worst of times?" This is the question I'd like to know Mr. President was the stormy deal the best of times or the worst of times?
2
Lincoln said “A jury consists of twelve men to determine which party has the best lawyer.” Right now, Avanati is running rings around Spankyand his Dream Team.
8
I'm so tired--so very, very tired, of getting up each morning to more unsavory revelations from this ongoing sideshow. Lies, lies and more lies every single day. How can our democracy endure when 35% of the American electorate continues to tolerate the mess in Washington and support this crook? What will it take for these people to realize the damage that is being done to their and future generations? It's time for every citizen--including the spineless Republicans in Congress, to stand up to this presidential imposter. 11/6/18 can't some soon enough...
10
Best defense is a good offense: expect Trump to attack everybody and everything. Think Mike Tyson in a bad mood.
3
This "president" is a sleazy operator no matter how you look at him. How anyone with the character of Donald John Trump ever became President of the United States is an embarrassment to America and a shameful episode in our national history. Unfortunately Trump is not our first national embarrassment, just our latest.
6
It's all come down to a simple sea tale of sleaze, lies, greed and incompetence, all leading to the intrinsic criminality of wealth & power. Capitalism is listing, and the stove ship isn't responding to more money and more power. Republicans are rudderless, and have lost control of their gilded yacht.
3
Is anyone really surprised that Trump lies?! Not exactly a revelation, he does it every day. I am much more worried about what his cabinet members are doing. They don’t grab the headlines but this is where the real damage is being done. It’s evolved from a swamp to a sewer.
3
Stop feeding the trolls. These people will say anything to the public because they know that lying to the public isn't a crime and the resulting furor over words and language allows them to continue their criminal actions. Get them to testify under oath.
1
Giuliani also said the money was for “expenses” and that Trump didn’t know. He says “Trump didn’t know about the specifics of [the payment], as far as I know, but he did know about the general arrangement that Michael would take care of things like this. Like I take care of things like this for my clients. I don’t burden them with every single thing that comes along."
Can we finally get rid of the idea that we are living in a meritocracy? Giuliani, Trump, and Cohen are rich buffoons who use money to buy power—literally: one of them is POTUS. Any other description of their success is outlandish and cruel to honest people who work hard. God save us from ourselves.
3
"He says 'Trump didn’t know about the specifics of [the payment], as far as I know, but he did know about the general arrangement that Michael would take care of things like this. Like I take care of things like this for my clients. I don’t burden them with every single thing that comes along'."
How deeply this must comfort Melania. What a guy....
Wow, its hard to keep track of all of the lies, partial lies, exaggerated for effect lies and outright magical thinking on the part of Trump & his various sycophants and apologists. No wonder he doesn’t want to answer any of the special prosecutors questions, he can’t possibly remember which lie goes where. Sad...!
3
Pay attention, boys and girls. This is how you get to be president of the United States of America. Now, always stand for the national anthem to show your respect for our country.
8
Can someone handle in a more stupid manner? Mr. Giuliani now claims that Mr. Cohen had “settled several problems for” Mr. Trump. What kind of problems? More things to be kept secret during the campaign? “That removes the campaign finance violation,” Mr. Giuliani said. Does it? How long will Mr. Guiliani work for Mr. Trump? What else will be revealed? As Mr. Trump likes to say instead of doing his job: "We'll see."
5
Surely we can impeach him for all the lying?? This is simply unprecedented. Please vote. Democrats must retake both chambers of congress and get this embarrassment out of office. If we can't impeach Trump, then no president can ever be impeached for anything.
3
If the law is not on your side argue the facts. If the facts are not on your side change them.
2
This is just Mr Trump and Giuliani, coming out with spin and lies, before the truth gets exposed in the 130,000$ payment case. Mr Trump has lied brazenly and defrauded without any fear of consequences for many decades and landed US presidency as a reward. Why should he stop now ? I think more bizarre and brazen the lies in face of facts, the better it is for Mr Trump. Past history proves it.
2
When I see Donalds tweets and see 65k of retweets and yet nearly all of the 25k remarks are anti Trump, it might be worth to do some research on these 65k retweeters. Easy to see a lot of these accounts are just made to retweets his tweets. Fake. Like the man himself. Lying fraud.
5
So Trump is now a certified (by his own all star legal team) pathological liar.
This disclosure may also strengthen Daniel's defamation case
5
President Trump lies continuously. With this disclosure on Stormy Daniels' hush money, why should Americans believe that the Mueller investigation is a 'witch hunt' because Trump says it is. President Trump, nobody believes what you say.
2
Deception, etc., etc. 'News,' perhaps, but not new.
Sarcastic comment: since when does a businessman like the president pay $130K hush money for a sexual encounter that did not happen.
The president usually just defames people into silence. But in this case the lie and the bluster is obvious. He had a voluntary sexual encounter and then tried to cover it up with hush money. Caught with his pants down, but not at the time it occurred.
Giuliani's pitiful damage control is coming a tad too late.
2
Greatest show on earth! It's like a watching a great movie. Trump is a disaster but he is not boring.
I see that the media is still running in every direction Trump and his team throw a bone.
REALITY: a contradiction of what the media claimed
"The president has repeatedly denied that he had an affair with Ms. Clifford, who has described having intimate contact with Mr. Trump before he became president." She described having unprotected sex with Mr. Trump. Do Times regulations forbid saying as much?
This entire group is nothing more than an organized crime syndicate masquerading as a legal political entity. I have written to the NY Times previously regarding the use of the RICO Act of 1970 to prosecute these individuals acting in concert to circumvent established law for their monetary benefit. The following is an excerpt from the 35 crimes defined in the RICO Act :
"...section 1503 (relating to obstruction of justice), section 1510 (relating to obstruction of criminal investigations), section 1511 (relating to the obstruction of State or local law enforcement), section 1512 (relating to tampering with a witness, victim, or an informant), section 1513 (relating to retaliating against a witness, victim, or an informant)....
From https://www.justia.com/criminal/docs/rico/
"While RICO was originally aimed at the Mafia, over the past 37 years, prosecutors have used it to attack many forms of organized crime: street gangs, gang cartels, corrupt police departments and even politicians."
To pretend these individuals are acting quae hominum is willful ignorance. Send them all to Club Fed.
1
He paid $35,000 per month. I thought he was a billionaire. I remember him telling an adoring crowd at one of his rallies that he is worth $7 Billion. A billion here, a billion there, ach! who's counting. But even if he were worth not more than 7 million, that payment per month is difficult to understand. It is worth less than five peanuts based on what he says he is worth. Why drag it out? Pay them a lump sum. Why $35,000 per month !!?? AND BTW, Isn't this the same man who came to a debate with Hillary with Bill Clinton's accusers in tow and around the same time he was paying hush money all over the place? How much did he have to pay those ladies to show up? Was that reported as a campaign contribution? Or did they do it for free because they are all for truth and justice?
5
I can barely look at this unfolding disaster anymore, just too much ugly mayhem, our sweet democracy spinning out of control.
Well, except for Mr. Avenatti. I can certainly watch him. I love how beyond being smarter and sharper in every way than Trump & co., he also emasculates them at every turn.
8
As they said on Frasier: "Do you always make that beeping sound when backing up?"
1
Hollywood will make a movie out of this farce one day. Playing the leading role will be Harvey Weinstein.
3
Geez. All this to-do over an affair Trump didn't even have (according to him). It seems a lot of trouble to cover up something that never happened. Why go through all these shenanigans when the entire basis of the thing is false?
Even if the affair happened (which is probably the case), why would Trump care if Ms. Daniels went to the press with her story? Everybody knew he had had other affairs--heck, he was seeing his second wife while still married to the first one. That was common knowledge. So, why cover up his affair with Stormy?
He's lost no support because of the affair, so he could have told the truth from the get-go and avoided all this drama. It just seems like he makes everything so much harder than it has to be, mostly because his first reaction to everything is to lie. But, the lies hurt him more than the thing he's lying about.
2
I stopped taking Giuliani seriously after I saw him in those Lifelock commercials essentially saying you could lose your home if an identity thief has your Social Security number.
4
“ I swear to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth . So help me God . “
Did all the actors of this trumpian comedy say this oath ?
1
Sigh, . . . it has nothing to do with infidelity and everything to do with the fact that the President has now admitted that his personal life makes him susceptible to blackmail, that he keeps an attorney on retainer to resolve blackmail threats and funnel hush payments, and that he lies about it when asked directly.
If the President will succumb to blackmail by porn stars and Playboy bunnies, without calling the FBI or police, then wouldn't he do the same thing if a foreign government made a threat to reveal embarrassing personal information?
7
Our president, with the help of a stable of expensive lawyers. makes the lying of a five year old look sophisticated.
3
Oh right, that was all just fake news. We deserve so much more from the person we refer to as president.
4
At this point. The times should caveat every quoted pronouncement from Trump and the administration with “the president and his team have persistently lied about matters large and small.” If not your just being used as a medium to amplify lies.
1
Enterprising psychotherapists should start specializing in treating the emerging epidemic of PTTSD. The national healing process is going to take a long time.
3
My scary thought of the day is that Trump will be proven to be a liar and a criminal and that his supporters in Congress and throughout the country will do nothing. That these flag waving Republicans who are already calling the FBI Storm Troopers will allow our country to be taken over by an unhinged liar who cares nothing for our Democracy. If they don’t start turning on Trump and defending our country’s hard earned values ( I’m picturing Arlington Cemetery) than we will be in a Constitutional crisis that rivals the Civil War. You Mitch McConnel, you Paul Ryan and what about you Rand Paul? Are you Americans first or are you Republicans first? This is no time for partisanship. It is time to defend America from inside the halls of Congress, from the neighborhoods you represent, from your hearts and from your souls.
5
trump never released his tax returns. rudi who is famous for having busted organized crime appears to have gone over to the dark side. The swamp has been skillfully repopulated with the most outrageous pack of slithering, slimy, shills and con-men imaginable...
3
Sleaze upon sleaze and the bottom of the barrel is still far below. Play now pay later. What they don't can't hurt me.
1
If you ever find yourself pondering what white male privileged is, you can refer to this handy example. White male privilege is: paying off a porn star with whom you had an adulterous affair at the peak of a campaign, and still being able to be President. We all innately know this would have never flown with Obama, who was pummeled for wearing a beige suit, and even less with Hillary Clinton, who was pummeled for, well, everything.
645
The fact Trump has not been forced to resign yet is a sign of the moral turpitude of our country. It is way past time that we recognize that his constant lying, anti-social behavior and inablity to handle his own affairs much less those of the country's renders him way beyond the level of fitness to lead the country. Could anyone maintain a job who acts the way he does whether as a CEO or an assistant manager at a fast food restaurant?
37
Chris. You couldn't be more correct. In fact let me suggest that the entire point of this presidency is to assert exactly that privilege. That's what "making america great again" really means. It therefore isn't a problem that he lies and pays off porn stars - that is exactly what he is delivering to people. We are squarely back in an era when white men can do whatever they want, lie and then assert moral authority at the same time. All the incompetency only makes the case stronger and underscores the point. What would be the point of white-male privilege if you had to work hard or be smart to assert it? The authority of the enslaver was to be able to tell the enslaved he was hard-working and moral and smart when the opposite was true. Trump delivers this for America every single day.
40
Chris: This is not "white male privilege" but "rich person privilege" Trump and people like him do these things, not because they are white males but because their wealth gives them an inflated sense on importance and entitlement. The term "white male privilege" is sexist and racist.
10
One wonders how well Melania is holding up under the continuing humiliation of having the actions of her unfaithful husband put on daily public display. How she can stand next to him at public events as the faithful wIfe is beyond me. It shouldn't take much of a lawyer to get around whatever pre-nuptual agreement she had with Trump and stick him for substantial alimony and child support payments.
And people wondered how Hillary could stay married to Bill.
12
Mr. Trump lied--nothing new here. It's the only thing he knows. Surely at this juncture we expect nothing more from the man.
The real issue is the unwillingness of the Republican controlled US Congress to support the best interests of our nation as a whole--things like the rule of law, ethics, and personal integrity. In this country these things are now bought and sold; they are part of "The Free Market Economy".
Of course many have led the way into this mess we're now in. Most egregiously were Mr. Nixon and Mr. Clinton, but many of our other "leaders" from both the Democratic and Republican parties have laid the foundations for our current state of unethical and immoral governance.
And again of course, we need to remember just who elected and enabled this long list of scoundrels...
We, the American Electorate, are our own worst enemy.
MB
4
You mean Trump told a bald-faced lie to the country about Stormy Daniels? Or was it many lies?
Seriously, did anyone think he wasn't lying? That's a rhetorical question, of course. I'm glad we can stop the endless rounds of questions and silly denials. It's been a riot, but it's time to wrap up the Stormy Daniels circus. There's some serious work to be done cleaning up this misbegotten administration.
Nobody gets at the facts better than Sean Hannity. Awesome revelation on his show last night.
Did he care at all about all the lying revealed in the awesome revelation?
2
>Marie
Hannity got the revelation. Then by gently prompting Giuliani, he exposed the lies surrounding the revelation.
Not a Hannity fan but he owned last night.
Donald’s core competency is his willingness to lie about all subjects from the trivial to the sublime.
In his cloistered world filled with mafiosos, and third rate fixers like Michael Cohen and Dr. Borenstein, Donald was able to tell his whoppers with impunity. He built his “empire” and filled it with otherwise unemployable minions including family members. As everyone was busy feathering their glitzy tawdry nests, no one had any incentive to stop him.
But Donald took the escalator down to declare his candidacy, thereby catapulting himself right under the microscope. Another demonstration of his complete unfamiliarity with modern civic life.
The present day wizard of Oz has managed to fool a lot of people for 71 long years. So much so that 77,000 people in three states delivered him to the White House.
It is taking longer than it should to expose this charlatan. But reporters are dogged and the truth never really goes away. It is just hard to predict which of his myriad prevarications will finally undo him.
Emmett Flood, you’d be a fool to take him on. With friends like Rudy, blabbering on the Hannity circus, he does more damage to his cause by the day. And he is in charge.
People, roll up your sleeves. Register voters, chip in $5, canvass your neighbors, write postcards, volunteer as a poll watcher, drive voters to the polls. Make sure everyone you know votes. This is our democracy and we need to save it and ourselves. We can if we try.
12
Isn't this kind of like getting caught stealing a pack of gum from the store, then returning it and saying that you did nothing wrong?
2
I love Trump more and more every day. Wow!
And no one should be shocked that this President is involved in something like this, anyone that did a cursory examination of DJT before the election would grasp quickly that he is a very flawed human being. Oh, we knew of his many dalliances before the election, so unless you voted for him in a vacuum, I'm assuming the rest of the negative comments are from non Trump voters.
3
That's one heckuva defense attorney...
Pre-emptive reveal on the eve of advising the terrible imposter to resign?
1
Why not use the word LIE? What is the hesitancy? He lied, over and over again.
6
What is very strange about this affair is that President Trump never needed to lie to the American people, because his supporters have already forgiven him, or don't think his sexual history is that important. He could have honestly leveled with the American people long ago and put this issue to bed, even with his liberal detractors. Instead it is hurting him badly, now and for his legacy.
3
Can repeated, verifiable lying to the American people by a President ever transcend partisan politics and become simply illegal, constitutionally?
5
Which story is it Trump? You had no affair and no knowledge of any payments - then realizing that statement invalidates the NDA you were aware of the payment and reimbursed Michael Cohen. All the while claiming there was no affair, yet you paid Stormy Daniels $130K and required NDA about exactly what?
While this is sordid affair is not the most egregious behavior during Trump's "presidency" it's further demonstration he's not trustworthy and morally unfit. Yet his evangelical supporters (and Sarah Huckabee Sanders) continue to defend despite evidence of collusion, lies, adultery, incompetence and other malfeasance. Having Michael Cohen and Rudy Giuliani as your attorneys is also no ringing endorsement.
4
I’m not sure what is in the pre-nup but I’ll bet Melania is getting a ton of cash not to walk away from the marriage that Donald Trump has trashed. And I’ll bet the money has already changed hands. Follow the money.
6
Wondering, reading this latest, what Trump's evangelical cadre is thinking this morning. Perhaps his true believers will trot out two new commandments to justify their sticking to the man like ants on a cake:
Commandment 11: If a man transgresses but is somewhat ashamed of his actions and tries to hide his dirty deeds, he receives a mulligan for an entire front nine in his next round of golf:
Commandment 12: Any man who knowingly and repeatedly commits adultery, and can plead ignorance and looks pained, is in the clutches of Satan and, therefore, has not committed a sin, but has displayed sincere remorse and is therefore forgiven;
Thus sayeth the Lord.
9
So what? Democrats told us during the Clinton affair with a young intern....in his employ and 30 years younger than him....that it was nobody else's business. Even though he did it inside the Oval Office...the People's House as a sitting president and setting himself up for blackmail. And he lied about it publically and under oath....as the sitting president. Whatever happened in Trump's case was 12 years ago. His lawyer's money that Trump pays him back for....is not a campaign's money. However, there was a campaign fund payoff by the DNC and Hillary Clinton to her lawyer to pay for the bogus Dossier on Trump and paid to someone from another country. That was an intent to hide what they were doing. And apparently THAT payoff resulted in what was used in order to spy on the Trump campaign. Now....there's your crime. What are you waiting for??
1
P. It is still "hush money." Ask yourself what you would have thought if you'd learned President Obama had an affair and paid to have it hushed up. Would your reaction still be the same? I think not.
1
No, that's not our crime. But feel free to stick your head in the sand and believe the problem is still Bill Clinton and Monica Lewinsky. And, of course, Hillary. That'll definitely get us places as a nation.
“They (the $130,000.) funneled through a law firm, and the president repaid it,” Mr. Giuliani told Sean Hannity, the Fox News host.
Funneled?
5
It's interesting that Giuliani admits Trump made the payment to Stormy Daniels in order to avoid any illegality with campaign funds, in the process proving that Trump lied when he claimed the payment came from Cohen.
I guess they all feel it's better for Trump to be a confirmed liar than to be accused of violating campaign-finance laws.
And the whole group sinks lower into the muck.
4
Expect Giuliani to fade quickly from the Trump orbit/maelstrom. Like the "Mooch" who lasted a couple of weeks, the megalomaniacs streak and burst quickly, like roman candles.
5
i'm shocked, shocked, that Trump lied.
i'm also 100% sure that his base doesn't care about any of this and no matter how many times he lies, cheats, or steals, they'll still vote for him in 2020.
4
This is calculated. Trump's supporters, including Evangelical Christians (shame!), don't care about his cheating, lecherous ways. Me thinks that team Trump figured that admitting this transgression is small compared to potential criminal ramifications of keeping the affair and payment in Cohen's corner. Are we all having fun now?
3
As Twain pithily put it: If you tell the truth, you don't have to remember anything. What Trump would have to remember under oath is beyond the ken of a HAL 9000. The legal minefield he has to walk and talk through is incomprehensibly complex. That is, if you have any understanding of the law, or a conscience. Please, let’s push him quickly into the dustbin of history. He has soiled this country enough.
2
I have more respect for Stormy Daniels than for Trump. At least she is true to herself. Eventually pornography is all about obscenity and this administration IS obscene.
7
Giuliani came on board Team Trump as a cleaner this is a mess. One can only imagine the filth that this episode is meant to clean over and shield.
2
Rudy looked and sounded crazy on Hannity
Donald sounded crazy on Fox and Friends.
So maybe it's just the Fox effect, a reality distortion field.
8
EPA Pruitt spend $ 43 000 of taxpayers money for a phone booth in his office.lets do the same for trump and rep us sane.
Any execute that cannot protect a Tree in his garden ..cannot protect America. where are the cameras and the Secret Services?
This is what criminals do, they lie, then lie more and so on, that's what prosecutors/investigators love, because once they start telling lies its hard to keep the first lie straight because its was a "lie". After 24 years in law enforcement and interviewing suspects, and after asking the same exact questions at different times, the suspects answer(story) changes, it just gets ugly from there on. With this many people involved who are speaking for trump repeating his lies, it gets ugly faster, because he updates his old lie with a new lie they have to try and explain. All I can figure at this point that any one working for trump, or his base who seem to be clinging on like a death star, have lost there ability to separate fact from fiction (lies), or sadly just don't care about the truth.
4
The behind the scenes calculation is that the admission gets Trump off the hook on campaign finance violations--the only thing that was legally serious here. And against the standard that his 40% base would still vote for him if he killed a person on 5th Ave at noon time, they don't care that he lied about making the payments and then changed his story on 5th Ave at noon time. Big Deal!!
His 40% base has realized all along that he had the sexual relationship, that he made the payment and that he lied about it to the gullible Main Stream Media -- and they couldn't catch him at this game. This only increases their admiration for the blatant and obvious chutzpah that they so admire in him.
Trump and Rudy are have a good laugh again this morning about how they got their story out as breathy breaking news on MSNBC yet again.
1