Members-Only Article
…which means it’s a busy day for TPM’s Allegra Kirkland, who’s covering the federal court hearings in the case from Lower Manhattan.
This morning, as Allegra reported, Cohen’s lawyers filed a letter to the judge, who had asked them to list Cohen’s legal clients and say which materials seized by the FBI last week are subject to attorney-client privilege, in their view.
Two interesting points on the letter: First, Cohen’s lawyers claimed that one reason the materials should be reviewed by a special master, and not first by prosecutors, is the atmosphere of “toxic partisan politics” which has raised questions about the Department of Justice’s “impartiality.” In other words, they’re using Trump’s campaign to undermine DOJ and the FBI in their effort to shield Cohen from a federal investigation into his business affairs.