Rudy Giuliani is making things up again
The Palmer Report has covered the tapes made by Michael Cohen of various conversations he has had, including with Donald J. Trump. The first such tape was released by Michael Cohen’s lawyer, Lanny Davis, on Tuesday to CNN. Davis released it because he claimed that Cohen is a new person, dedicated to telling the truth and distancing himself from being seen as Trump’s flak and fixer.
Rudy Giuliani, who also claims that an interview by Special Counsel Robert Mueller is “still on the table” and the media has bought it’s as if it’s happening, has claimed that rather than Trump on the released tape telling Cohen to make a payment in cash, Trump says, “don’t pay with cash.” While the distinction is really without a difference, given that the tape clearly has the two in a regular patter discussing fixing things, such as setting up a company to transfer certain things, addressing “our friend David,” and other activity that surely Mueller is reviewing, the reality is we have the president and his fixer clearly on tape talking about fixing Trump’s problems.
In addition, the tape is about former Playboy Playmate Karen McDougal, and appears to be discussions around settling either directly with her or through other vehicles. One can hear Trump also talking about delaying a few weeks – and this entire conversation was about covering up an affair that he has to date publicly denied. Davis summed it up well Tuesday night on CNN when he stated:
“What do they fear, Chris? …They fear that he has the truth about Donald Trump. He will someday speak the truth about Donald Trump. The truth is that when Donald Trump said ‘cash,’ which Rudy Giuliani knows that only drug dealers and mobsters talk about cash, it was, you heard Michael Cohen … say what? ‘No, no, no, no.’ … [L]isten to the tape and ask yourself: Is Donald Trump lying when he said he didn’t use the word ‘cash’ and accuses Michael Cohen of using the word ‘cash’? Cohen has been disparaged. Cohen has been insulted and called all sorts of things by people around Donald Trump….This is not a man shocked when Mr. Cohen said, we have to make payments.”
Daniel is a lawyer writing and teaching about SCOTUS, and is the author of the book “The Chief Justices” about the SCOTUS as seen through the center seat.