Donald Trump attorney Todd Blanche raised his voice and flailed his arms at Michael Cohen, wailing at the prosecution’s star witness and accusing him of making up a phone conversation with Trump just before he sent $130,000 to Stormy Daniels’ attorney in October 2016.
It was the most dramatic moment of the cross-examination of the key witness in the hush money case, and the clearest example yet of the defense’s effort to cast doubt on Cohen’s memory of phone calls and other significant interactions with Trump in 2016.
Here are some of the key takeaways:
- A heated confrontation over a key phone call: On Monday, Cohen testified to prosecutors that he reached out to Trump's former bodyguard Keith Schiller on October 24, 2016, to speak to Trump about Daniels. But on Thursday, Blanche read Cohen a text he sent Schiller minutes before that call about receiving prank phone calls. Blanche used the texts to challenge Cohen’s account of the call. “That was a lie, you did not talk to President Trump, you talked to Keith Schiller – you can admit it,” he pressed. Cohen responded, “No sir, I don’t know that it’s accurate.”
- Cohen navigates years of inconsistent statements: Trump’s lawyer spent hours tediously moving through inconsistent statements that Cohen has made to knock his credibility. Blanche questioned Cohen on a myriad of topics, including the recanting of his 2018 guilty plea on tax charges, whether he wanted to work in the White House and what he’s said about a pardon from Trump. Blanche suggested Cohen was unreliable and only acted like he’d taken accountability for the crimes when he pleaded guilty to get a reduced sentence.
- Cohen pressed on desire for a pardon: Blanche also challenged Cohen on his desires to be in Trump’s White House, as revealed in private communications with his daughter and people like Pastor Darrell Scott, whom Cohen asked to put in a good word with Trump. Still, Cohen maintained that he only ever wanted to be Trump’s personal attorney — the position he held until he became the subject of a federal investigation.
- Trump perks up for Cohen’s cross: For much of the week, while Cohen has been on the witness stand, Trump has been taking in the trial with his eyes shut. But Trump’s demeanor shifted on Thursday afternoon as the attention turned to Cohen and the media. He sat up in his chair facing directly toward Cohen as Blanche quizzed the witness about his conversations with New York Times reporter Maggie Haberman.
- Trial nearing an end? Before leaving for the weekend, Merchan told the lawyers to be prepared to give summations on Tuesday – meaning the jury could have the case as early as next week. Prosecutors told Merchan they have no other witnesses to call after Cohen is off the stand, and the defense said it plans to call one campaign finance expert, though that is not set in stone.
