Michael Cohen, former lawyer and confidante of President Donald Trump, testified before Congress today regarding his dealings with the president.
Cohen, who has been convicted of lying under oath, stated that he hopes his testimony “helps in order to heal America.” His testimony was considered surprising by many commentators.
Cohen, once one of Trump’s closest confidantes, described his former boss is the harshest possible terms during the hearing. He used words like “racist,” “con man” “cheat” to refer to the president, stating that he regretted ever representing Trump. Cohen further stated that he regretted ever lying on behalf of the President.
For his part, the now-disbarred Michael Cohen is set to serve jail time for lying to Congress in 2017. The former lawyer claims that his 2017 statements were specifically written by the Trump Administration. “I am ashamed,” stated Cohen, “because I know what Trump is.”
One of the most notable things about Cohen’s testimony was that he brought a number of what he claimed were incriminating documents with him. Cohen brought, among other documents, a check for “hush money” he claimed was signed by Donald Trump. That “hush money,” Cohen asserts, was paid to Stormy Daniels, an adult film actress who is alleged to have had an affair with Donald Trump.
Cohen alleged throughout his testimony that other criminal activity, including conspiring with WikiLeaks, were going on during and after the election. These crimes would include the Moscow Trump Tower project, involvement with Russian hacking and even tax fraud. The veracity of Cohen’s claims are currently unclear.
Democratic lawmakers in the hearing largely focused on asking Cohen about alleged wrongdoing by the President. Republican lawmakers, however, directed their questions primarily to discrediting Cohen. They referred to him as a “pathological liar,” citing Cohen’s own false testimony to Congress.
For those lies, Cohen is slated to spend time in jail. Cohen was convicted on eight felony counts including tax evasion, bank fraud and campaign finance violations. Additionally, lying to Congress in 2017 is one of the crimes Cohen will serve time for.
It’s worth noting that if Cohen lied to Congress on Wednesday during this hearing then he will face perjury charges and could spend even longer in prison. He has been cooperating with federal investigators following his charges of lying to Congress in 2017.
