Even before he entered courtroom 1530, Michael Cohen’s role as a key witness in Donald Trump’s hush money case put the former president’s lawyer-turned-fixer at the center of the proceedings.
For example, famed attorney Keith Davidson was asked about a message he received asking him to “call that jerk back.”
“Who was that jerk?” he was asked by prosecutor Joshua Steinglass during the second week of the trial.
“Michael Cohen,” he replied to laughter in the public gallery.
It’s one thing for Trump’s defense to cast doubt on the testimony of a disbarred lawyer who changed his story about paying porn star Stormy Daniels $130,000; It’s quite another for the prosecutor, who will rely on Cohen’s testimony to draw a direct link from Trump to the payment, to highlight his shortcomings.
Michael Cohen has faced intense criticism from witnesses during the hush money trial of Donald Trump, without even setting foot in the Manhattan courtroom
Copies of checks from Donald Trump to attorney Michael Cohen from 2017 shown as exhibits by prosecutors in hush money trial
Still, legal experts see the two sides in the case laying out their strategies for a courtroom showdown when he finally appears Monday.
The defense is planting the idea in the jury that someone who has served time in prison after pleading guilty to federal crimes in 2018 cannot be trusted to tell the truth.
Meanwhile, the prosecution is happy to air out the dirty laundry, with a series of witnesses gently mocking Cohen.
“I think the prosecutor is hoping the jury won’t be shocked when they see him,” said Catherine Christian, a former assistant district attorney in Manhattan.
‘That could be a double-edged sword. Will the jury say, ‘Oh, here’s that liar. We’re not going to believe what he says.’
The digs so far have come from Trump insiders like Hope Hicks, who went to the White House with her boss.
She was asked about Cohen’s role as a fixer for Trump. “I always said he liked to call himself ‘a repairman’ or ‘Mr. Fix It, and just because he broke it the first time he could come and fix it,” she said.
And the Trump Organization controller drew laughter when asked if it was accurate to say Cohen was a lawyer. “Okay,” was his sharp reply.
Trump denies 34 charges of falsifying documents to conceal hush money payments
Trump and Cohen in happier times, pictured in 2011 during a visit to New Hampshire, amid intense speculation that the New York real estate mogul was about to enter politics
A series of prosecution witnesses, including former Trump spokeswoman Hope Hicks, have expressed disdain about Cohen from the witness stand
Davidson, another prosecution witness, compared Davidson to the eager dog character in the animated film “Up,” who was repeatedly pulled off course by random things.
Cohen is at the center of the prosecution’s case. It is alleged that Cohen helped his boss, who was then a presidential candidate, to silence Daniels and prevent a damaging story from being published just before the 2016 election.
The court has seen documents showing how Daniels entered into a non-disclosure agreement for $130,000, as well as invoices and checks signed by Trump for $35,000 per month through 2017.
Prosecutors have traced Cohen’s path to Trump Organization employees, showing how a scheme came together.
But Christian said there was still one missing link: “So far, no witness has said that Donald Trump ordered me to do this.”
That’s where Cohen’s testimony will likely prove crucial, and where the defense will see its best chance to sabotage the case.
Cohen began working for the Trump Organization in 2006 after helping the real estate mogul in a battle with the Trump World Tower condominium board.
The court also saw the handwritten “chicken scratch” note that the Trump Organization comptroller made when discussing a repayment plan for Cohen.
The court has seen text messages between Cohen and Hicks when the story broke, days before the 2016 election, about hush money payments to women
He quickly relished the idea that he was Trump’s enforcer, telling ABC News in 2011, “If someone does something that Mr. Trump doesn’t like, I will do everything I can to resolve it in Mr. Trump’s favor .
“If you do something wrong, I’m going to come at you, grab you by the neck and not let you go until I’m done.”
Days before the 2016 election, the Wall Street Journal revealed that Cohen had made a secret payment to Stormy Daniels.
The loyal fixer, who once said he would take a bullet for Trump, initially insisted he acted alone.
“Neither the Trump Organization nor the Trump campaign … have reimbursed me for the payment,” he said in 2018.
But midway through Trump’s presidency, he turned on his former employer when federal investigators closed in on him. He was ultimately sentenced to three years in prison after pleading guilty to campaign finance violations, tax fraud and bank fraud, partly related to the hush-money schemes.
In 2019, he told a congressional committee, “I’m embarrassed because I know what Mr. Trump is. He’s a racist. He’s a scammer. He’s a cheater.’
Yet that was just the beginning of his credibility problems.
Cohen initially said he acted alone in arranging the payment for Stormy Daniels (pictured), but later changed his story to say he acted for Trump
Trump Organization controller Jeff McConney testified about payments to Cohen
Last year, he appeared in New York state court in a civil fraud case against Trump and claimed under oath that he had not committed tax evasion. He said he lied to the judge in 2018 when he pleaded guilty.
Trump’s lawyers used that to ask the judge in the Manhattan criminal case to ban Cohen from appearing and warned of the risk of “further perjury” if he were to appear.
Judge Juan Merchan denied their request without giving Cohen much credit, simply pointing out that there was no law or statute barring witnesses whose credibility was questioned.
It all means that prosecutors must not only prepare the basis for his testimony, but also prepare their testimony appropriately.
Andrew Weissmann, a former chief prosecutor at the Justice Department, said: “They need to prepare him to admit his misdeeds and not be thin-skinned. Easier said than done.
“I don’t think they can turn him on anytime soon because he has a lot of information relevant to the trial.”
In the meantime, Cohen has done nothing to suggest that he is anything other than a highly partisan witness, using a podcast and social media platforms to demand that the former president receive jail time.
‘Trump 2024?’ he said in a recent TikTok post. “More like Trump 20-24 years.”
Christian said it’s one thing for prosecutors to prepare for witnesses with credibility issues…
‘Michael Cohen is different. “I must say that I had witnesses with criminal records, including for violence,” she said.
“I’ve never had a witness convicted of lying… ever.”