Former Trump lawyer Michael Cohen testifies to the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee Feb. 27, 2019
It was NYMag that suggested, when ex-Trump lawyer Michael Cohen testified for the prosecution in New York District Attorney Alvin Bragg's "misdemeanor-business-reporting-violations-are-felonies" case, he "could be derailing" the case.
Largely it was because he was engaged in a campaign to make claims about the case that was undermining his own credibility, which already was damaged by his own convictions.
The report noted Cohen, a "key witness," was not "making things easier" for Bragg. It warned Cohen was "constitutionally incapable of telling the same story twice in the same way."
Another report identified Cohen's testimony as "a challenge" for Bragg.
Now a door just opened for things to get a lot worse for Cohen, as House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, and House Oversight and Accountability Chairman James Comer, R-Ky., referred him to the Department of Justice for lying to Congress.
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The letter reminds the Justice Department of Cohen’s lies to Congress in February 2019 and asks what the DOJ has done to hold Cohen accountable for his false statements.
In that 2019 letter Republicans cited six specific lies told by Cohen to the House Oversight Committee and urged the DOJ to take action.
"Cohen's testimony is now the basis for a politically motivated prosecution of a former president and current declared candidate for that office," the Republicans noted in the new letter.
Their letter to AG Merrick Garland said, "As indicated in the 2019 letter, Cohen, while testifying under oath before the House Oversight Committee, made willfully and intentionally false statements of material fact that were contradicted by the record established by the Justice Department in United States v. Cohen. Cohen also made statements to the Oversight Committee that were contradicted by witnesses with firsthand knowledge of the subject matter."
The letter continued, "In 2023, Cohen admitted to lying to Congress during a separate proceeding before Congress in 2019. At a hearing in the politicized lawsuit brought by the New York Attorney General against President Trump, Cohen admitted to lying under oath during a 2019 deposition before HPSCI. President Trump's attorney asked Cohen if he lied during the deposition when testifying about whether he was directed to inflate certain financial numbers, to which Cohen responded, 'Yes.' This revelation in court prompted HPSCI to refer Cohen again to the Justice Department for perjury and knowingly making false statements to Congress."
The letter pointed out, "Currently, Manhattan’s popularly elected District Attorney, Alvin Bragg, is using Cohen as his star witness in an ongoing criminal prosecution of President Donald Trump. Bragg's case heavily relies on Cohen's testimony and credibility. Even more troubling, Cohen's advisor, Lanny Davis, boasted to Politico that Bragg's prosecution of President Trump all stemmed from Cohen's testimony to Congress in 2019. Davis confessed to calling the New York County District Attorney’s office after 'Michael was sent to prison' because 'the evidence of financial fraud was on the record in the [congressional] hearings and that Vance's office should interview Michael . . . . And that’s how it began.' In short, to prosecute President Trump, Bragg has revived this 'zombie' case relying on a known—and convicted—liar and his testimony at a congressional hearing in which he lied at least six times."
Fox News noted Cohen already pleaded guilty in 2018 to campaign finance violations, making false statements to Congress and tax evasion. He was given three years in prison.
Bragg has alleged Trump paid "hush money" to a porn star, through Cohen, and reported it as a legal expense, allegedly in violation of business reporting laws. However, both local and federal prosecutors reviewed the facts before Bragg took it over, and determined there was no case to be tried.
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