Former Donald Trump lawyer Michael Cohen is expected to face cross-examination Monday, which will mark week four of the ex-president's first criminal trial.
The MAGA hopeful's former fixer — who is at the center of Trump's New York hush money scheme — is likely the final key witness to testify before Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg's prosecution team.
On Sunday morning, CNN's Danny Freeman asked former prosecutor and legal analyst Joey Jackson, "If everything goes right for the prosecution, what is the best-case scenario for Michael Cohen's testimony?"
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Jackson replied, "I think everyone's waiting for the cross-examination of Michael Cohen. I think that we certainly know what he's going to say. To date, all the witnesses that the prosecution had are around this issue of conspiracy and cover up. That's their theory, and Michael Cohen will bring it home. If all goes right, that theory — that there was a conspiracy and cover up with respect to what? With respect to this whole 'catch and kill' scheme, not in and of itself illegal, but with regard to sealing it and covering it up — by invoices that were phony, by other types of business records like ledgers, like checks that were meant to reimburse, not for purposes of retainer fees or anything legally, services that were provided — but as a bonus, and, of course, as repayment for Michael Cohen's covering this up to boost election prospects of Donald Trump."
The CNN legal analyst added, "If everyone else puts Donald Trump in the room, certainly Michael Cohen puts Donald Trump at the table. Because he could speak to the issues of how this all came about, what the grand scheme was all about, how Allen Weisselberg — who's serving time in prison — who was the chief financial officer of the Trump Organization which was involved — who's not testifying by the way. So that is going to be the prosecution's wish, that he just brings it home — he as in Michael Cohen — to establish this conspiracy, its cover up, and to otherwise establish Trump's guilt. That's the best-case scenario. But again, Danny, everyone's waiting for the cross examination of Michael Cohen."
Freeman commented, "The main problem that Michael Cohen faces is this big question of credibility. He's been convicted of perjury, which he says he did for the former president. But especially after seeing the cross-examination of Stormy Daniels last week, does the defense need to beat up Michael Cohen on this credibility issue, or just leave it at, 'you can't trust anything this guy says,' and walk away?"
Jackson replied, "So I think there's a couple of imperatives: There's what the right thing to do legally to establish your case from a defense perspective, and then there's what their boss Donald Trump wants to see. You mentioned Stormy Daniels. What was the essence of the cross-examination on the second day of Stormy Daniels? You got everything out the first day that you want to argue when you're closing — that she hates the president, that she couldn't be trusted, and she knows nothing about the records. But Trump says, 'Get in there, humiliate her.'"
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He continued, "And I think that in answer to your question is, what we're going to see as it relates to Michael Cohen — Trump wants him to be really annihilated. And so we're going to hear about, 'You're a perjurer, is that right, sir?' Nothing that comes out of your mouth, we can trust. And in fact, you've made a living off of savaging the president. You were wearing a shirt that had him in jail, right? That was on your podcast.' We're going to hear all about that."
The former prosecutor emphasized, "The issue with me, Danny, is whether that matters. Why do I say that? Because so many of the other witnesses already said what Michael Cohen is going to say. As I noted, the other witnesses, in tandem, have Trump involved in this whole entire deal to really conceal and cover up, et cetera, they just, again, put them in the room. They just don't put them at the table. And that's what Michael Cohen's going to do, by saying, 'We have these face-to-face meetings. There was this Oval Office meeting where we talked about the whole reimbursement, that's where we said how we would do the deal, so that no one would know, but guess what? Everyone found out.' And the issue now is going to be what, if any, involvement Trump had, I think other witnesses would otherwise suggest he had a lot of involvement. But Michael Cohen will tell everybody about the specific nature of that involvement, and that's the open question."
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Watch the video below or at this link.
'Puts Trump at the table': Ex-prosecutor offers 'best case scenario' for final key witness www.youtube.com
