Liar, liar, pants on fire. Donald Trump lashed out at Michael Cohen outside the courthouse in a clip you’ll see below. Trump framed things as if Cohen was under indictment, which is a lie. Cohen’s testifying against Trump and he’s not in trouble legally for anything. He served three years in prison for illegal things he did as Trump’s fixer but since he’s been out, he’s squeaky clean.
But not in Trump world. Trump and his allies frame everything in false terms so that they can control the narrative and try to paint Trump as the victim of political persecution rather than as the blatant charlatan and mountebank that he is.
Trump heads into to court to face Michael Cohen: “He’s a liar trying to get a better deal for himself.” pic.twitter.com/uJOlLGUr73
— Ron Filipkowski (@RonFilipkowski) October 24, 2023
Cohen said, “This is about accountability,” which is an unknown concept in Trump world.
“This is not about Donald Trump vs. Michael Cohen, or Michael Cohen vs. Donald Trump. This is about accountability, plain and simple.”
— Michael Cohen arrives to testify at his former boss Donald Trump’s civil fraud trial in Manhattan. pic.twitter.com/TIYady3WJM
— The Recount (@therecount) October 24, 2023
Former Trump attorney and “fixer” Michael Cohen in damning courtroom testimony told Judge Arthur Engoron, presiding over New York Attorney General Letitia James’ civil fraud case, that his former boss directed him to “reverse-engineer” the value of his assets to meet a number Trump “arbitrarily” created. Trump reportedly was in the courtroom during Cohen’s testimony.
“I was tasked by Mr. Trump to increase the total assets based upon a number that he arbitrarily elected,” Cohen said Tuesday, as The Messenger reported. “And my responsibility, along with Allen Weisselberg, predominantly, was the reverse-engineer the various asset classes — increase those assets to achieve the number that Mr. Trump asked us.”
When asked what that number was, Cohen replied, “Whatever Mr. Trump told us to.”
Weisselberg is Trump’s now-former CFO, who served at the Trump Organization for decades. He is now a convicted felon after pleading guilty to 15 criminal charges.
Cohen in court also said “that he pleaded guilty to federal campaign violations and misleading congressional testimony ‘at the direction of, in concert with, and for the benefit of, Mr. Trump.’”
“The ex-fixer said he lied to protect Trump, but he added that others were involved in creating the statement, including Ivanka Trump, Jared Kushner, Alan Garten, and attorney Abbe Lowell.”
Whoa. He said, “Ivanka.” Ivanka has been subpoenaed to testify and this is a question that she will be asked, especially now. It’s well known that in trials of this type, the lesser fish are interviewed first and then it gets to the barracudas and the sharks and finally to the big orange whale himself.
Here’s more detail from the Guardian:
Michael Cohen has described how a group of Trump cronies—he, Weisselberg, Trump Organization COO Matthew Calamari, and company executive Ron Lieberman—were assigned to work together on insurance deals.
They were referred to as the “gang of four” or “group of four” by an insurance broker who helped secure coverage for Trump’s various properties. Cohen said that this cohort came together at Trump’s direction.
“All the final decisions were done by Mr. Trump,” Cohen said.
Cohen said that when brokering insurance deals, “there woud be a conversation about his extensive net worth, he’s actually richer than the insurance companies…we’ve got to get a good premium.”
During sit-downs between the group and insurers, Trump would generally show up “three quarters through the meeting;” Cohen appeared to intimate that Trump’s late arrival was meant to convey his importance.
“It was coordinated that he would arrive like that,” Cohen said.
While granular, Cohen’s rundown of how Trump’s cronies handled acquiring of insurance speaks to the Attorney General’s case that they conspired to commit fraud with his knowledge. Remember: Trump is accused of using questionable calculations to puff up his net worth when it suited his financial needs.
Cohen’s testimony clearly spells out how Trump picked a certain group of people–two of whom have pleaded guilty to felonies in relation to Trump–to carry out his wishes with insurance, at his direction.
It’s going to get hairy from here on out, just watch. And remember, Ivanka is one of the inside people, although she’s done her damnedest to distance herself from her father and brothers, and she’s going to be asked to testify to this. Hey, maybe she’ll not only send Pop to the House Of Many Doors, but her two doofus brothers as well.
Finally! Marie Antoinette Barbie Doll’s mask has slipped, assisted by Cohen. Priceless.Your “… in trials of this type, the lesser fish are interviewed first and then it gets to the barracudas and the sharks and finally to the big orange whale himself…” is a clarion call for one and all to have plenty of popcorn in store, the TV valves tuned, and the sofa well padded. It’s going to be more than a matinee, for sure. There’ll be thrusting and parrying, accusations and denials, objections and sustains a plenty … and that’s coming from the audience. Woot! 🙂
If Georgia is the canary in a coalmine…few people have the stomach for prison time for perjury. Ivanka, being the pampered barbie all her life, won’t trade her high class living for a concrete bunk, a toilet, a sink, and a cellmate that doesn’t like rich bitches. Just guessing. Uh oh spagettio!
“Better deal”? WTF for? Cohen is done with his punishment.
Hilarious! Trump obviously thinks accountability is something you pay accountants to fiddle with.