President Donald Trump on Sunday repeated his lie that the Federal Bureau of Investigation “broke” into his former attorney Michael Cohen‘s property back in April. He called the lawyer, who implicated him in campaign finance violations, a “rat” for good measure.
FBI agents targeted Cohen in a search warrant executed in April. It reportedly targeted his office, home, and a hotel room. If this warrant was improperly obtained, it could’ve been a tool to fight prosecution, but Cohen pleaded guilty in August and November to financial crimes and lying to Congress about discussions with the Russian government about a Trump Tower deal in Moscow. He was sentenced to 36 months in prison.
The “rat” language didn’t play well with the president’s critics. They likened him to a mob boss for this turn of phrase.
The plea deal is quite problematic for the president. Prosecutors with the Southern District of New York say Cohen implicated Trump in campaign financial violations, though they pointed out the defendant never signed a cooperation agreement. The lawyer claimed his then-client paid off two women for silence amid the 2016 election. Porn star Stormy Daniels and Playboy model Karen McDougal claimed to have had separate affairs with the real estate mogul.
Trump attorney Rudy Giuliani is attempting to utterly discredit Cohen. He said on Sunday that he told the former “fixer’s” attorneys that there would be a “no discussion of a pardon.” Giuliani suggested that Cohen “double-crossed” the president.
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