Following the release of a recording that appears to show President Donald Trump knew about a payment Michael Cohen made to an ex-Playboy model, Trump slammed his former lawyer on Twitter — again.
“What kind of lawyer would tape a client? So sad!” Trump tweeted, suggesting that the recording was edited to make him look bad.
What kind of a lawyer would tape a client? So sad! Is this a first, never heard of it before? Why was the tape so abruptly terminated (cut) while I was presumably saying positive things? I hear there are other clients and many reporters that are taped – can this be so? Too bad!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 25, 2018
Michael Cohen’s attorney released a recording of a conversation between Trump and Cohen before the 2016 election in which the two are heard discussing a payment to American Media Inc. to purchase the rights to a story about former Playboy model Karen McDougal, who claimed to have had an affair with Trump. The recording appears to show that Trump was very much aware of the payment, contrary to what his campaign and legal team have argued.
Trump’s attorney Rudy Giuliani told the media on Tuesday night that whether the tape implicates Trump is “open to interpretation” and he disputed key claims made by Cohen’s lawyer — that the tape shows Trump suggested that Cohen use cash to make the payment. Giuliani claimed Trump said “don’t pay with cash.”
Read the full transcript (provided to the media by Giuliani) of the recording here and listen the audio of the exchange in question here.
