Trump’s Lawyer Cohen: I’ve Never Spoken To Or Threatened Stormy Daniels

Michael Cohen, President Donald Trump’s personal attorney, arrives on Capitol Hill in Washington, Tuesday, Sept. 19, 2017. Cohen is schedule to testify before the Senate Intelligence Committee in a closed session. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)
Michael Cohen, President Donald Trump's personal attorney, departs Capitol Hill in Washington, Tuesday, Sept. 19, 2017. Cohen was scheduled to testify before the Senate Intelligence Committee in a closed session. (AP... Michael Cohen, President Donald Trump's personal attorney, departs Capitol Hill in Washington, Tuesday, Sept. 19, 2017. Cohen was scheduled to testify before the Senate Intelligence Committee in a closed session. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais) MORE LESS
Start your day with TPM.
Sign up for the Morning Memo newsletter

President Donald Trump’s personal attorney Michael Cohen said in an interview published Monday that he has never even spoken to adult film actress Stephanie Clifford, known professionally as Stormy Daniels, let alone threatened her.

“I have never spoken to her,” he told Vanity Fair on Friday, after Clifford’s lawyer claimed that she was threatened to stay silent about allegations that she had an affair with Trump years ago. “I have never e-mailed her. I have never met her. I have never texted her.”

“Every interaction with Ms. Clifford was always through her previous attorney,” Cohen added.

Asked if he knew whether anybody else connected to Trump had threatened Clifford, Cohen said, “I can only speak for myself,” and added, “I reiterate: I have never threatened her in any way and I am unaware of anyone else doing so.”

Clifford’s lawyer Michael Avenatti issued a cryptic response.

Avenatti on Friday told TPM’s “Josh Marshall Podcast” of Clifford: “I think she’s very concerned about her physical safety right now, and I think she has very — or a lot of reasons to be concerned. I likewise am slightly concerned about my physical safety.”

Avenatti said that he and Clifford have received “a series of death threats” and both fear for their physical safety. He told MSNBC and CNN the same day that Clifford was “physically threatened” — though he did not specify by whom — to stay quiet about her alleged affair with Trump.

Clifford has sued Trump and argued that, because he didn’t sign a non-disclosure agreement covering the alleged affair, she has the right to tell her story. Trump, in response, had his own attorneys join a lawsuit to prevent Clifford from speaking, and filed to move the lawsuit to federal court.

In every one of his interviews, Avenatti has promoted a CBS’ “60 Minutes” interview with Clifford scheduled to air Sunday.

Cohen has acknowledged paying Clifford $130,000 in October 2016 to stay quiet about the alleged affair, which he claims never happened, but on Friday denied reports that he has sought to prevent the CBS interview from airing through legal action. If the interview were to air, he told Vanity Fair, “It’s just another breach by Ms. Clifford and will only further increase the damages I will be seeking pursuant to the agreement.” 

Latest Livewire

Notable Replies

  1. I believe a Porn Star’s word over what a Trump Attorney says any day of the week.

  2. (Soto voce) Psst. And he’s so not been to Prague, neither.

  3. Of course not. He’s had some lower level thug threaten her.

    If they think we’re all this stupid, it’s gonna be so easy to take them down.

  4. A lying shyster?

    Time for the Cohen of Shame.

  5. There is a reason for me not believing a word Cohen says!

    Lately, he’s adopted a weak and meek Ray Donovan character.

Continue the discussion at forums.talkingpointsmemo.com

78 more replies

Participants

Avatar for lestatdelc Avatar for fgs Avatar for ncsteve Avatar for eldonlazar Avatar for imkmu3 Avatar for teenlaqueefa Avatar for irasdad Avatar for inversion Avatar for lastroth Avatar for gr Avatar for stradivarius50t3 Avatar for pshah Avatar for tena Avatar for texastwostep Avatar for tsp Avatar for bodie1 Avatar for warrenzevon Avatar for rickjones Avatar for lizzymom Avatar for castor_troy Avatar for katscherger Avatar for demosthenes59 Avatar for drtv Avatar for atldrew

Continue Discussion
Masthead Masthead
Founder & Editor-in-Chief:
Executive Editor:
Managing Editor:
Deputy Editor:
Editor at Large:
General Counsel:
Publisher:
Head of Product:
Director of Technology:
Associate Publisher:
Front End Developer:
Senior Designer: