Angry Senate Investigators May Force Trump Lawyer To Testify Publicly On Russia

Tuesday was supposed to be the day that Donald Trump’s longtime personal attorney, Michael Cohen, would be meeting with and answering questions from staffers on the Senate Intelligence Committee. And even though Cohen had told the committee he would not speak to the media about the closed hearing, Cohen, much like his famous client, lied and did exactly that.

Cohen, prior to his Tuesday appearance, released portions of his prepared testimony to Vanity Fair magazine, and the meeting with committee staffers was canceled by the committee.

According to multiple sources, the Intelligence Committee now plans to subpoena Cohen and may also make him testify in an open hearing.

In his prepared testimony, Cohen denied he had any role in arranging for Russia to assist the Trump campaign or companies controlled by the president:

“Let me be clear that I am totally innocent of the allegations raised against me in the public square, which are based upon misinformation and unnamed or unverifiable sources. I have never engaged with, been paid by, paid for, or conversed with any member of the Russian Federation or anyone else to hack anyone or any organization.”


Cohen added that he had not tried to harm the Clinton campaign in the 2016 election:

“I have never engaged with, been paid by, paid for, or conversed with any member of the Russian Federation or anyone else to hack the Democratic Party computers; and I have never engaged with, been paid by, paid for, or conversed with any member of the Russian Federation or anyone else to create fake news stories to assist the Trump campaign or to damage the Clinton campaign.”

For their part, the committee released a statement in which they said they were:

“Disappointed that Mr. Cohen decided to preempt today’s interview by releasing a public statement prior to his engagement.

“The Committee expects witnesses in this investigation to work in good faith with the Senate.”

Of course, good faith is something neither Trump or anyone connected with him has ever demonstrated.

This article was originally published by the same author at LiberalAmerica.org

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