Topline
Former President Donald Trump’s lawyers called Robert Costello as their key defense witness Monday as they attempt to question the credibility of Trump’s former attorney and the prosecution’s key witness, Michael Cohen, who wrapped up four days of testimony Monday—but got scolded by Judge Juan Merchan, who cleared the courtroom after the witness repeatedly criticized him on the stand.
Michael Cohen leaves his apartment building on his way to Manhattan criminal court in New York on ... [+]
Key Facts
Prosecutors rested their case Monday afternoon, with the defense calling Robert Costello to the stand—over prosecutors’ objections—a longtime attorney to Rudy Giuliani who reached out to Cohen after his $130,000 payment to adult film star Stormy Daniels became public and tried to get Cohen to use him and Giuliani as a backchannel to communicate with Trump, according to Cohen.
Merchan assailed Costello after he allegedly gave the judge “side eye,” “rolled his eyes” and at one point remarked, “jeez” in reponse to the judge, telling the witness he had to “discuss proper decorum in the courtroom” before ordering the jury and press to leave the courtroom, according to CNN.
Before the prosecution rested, Trump attorney Todd Blanche cross-examined Cohen for a third day on Monday, who testified Trump knowingly participated in a hush money scheme to pay Daniels to cover up allegations of an affair, and then was personally involved with a plan to reimburse Cohen for paying Daniels—Trump’s charges are based on those reimbursement checks.
Cohen admitted under questioning from Blanche that he stole $30,000 from the Trump Organization, as he received $50,000 in reimbursements from the company for a payment he made to tech company RedFinch, which rigged a CNBC poll in Trump’s favor, but only actually paid RedFinch $20,000—allegedly in a “brown paper bag”—while pocketing the other $30,000 for himself, a move that he later described to prosecutors as being “almost like self-help” after the Trump Organization reduced his annual bonus.
Blanche questioned Cohen’s testimony that he repeatedly talked with Trump on the phone about the Daniels payment ahead of the 2016 election, suggesting he and Trump had a lot of other matters going on at the time that they could have been discussing instead—which Cohen denied, saying his “recollection is that I was speaking to him about Stormy Daniels, because that was what he tasked me to take care of,” according to The New York Times.
Blanche then wrapped up his cross-examination and prosecutors questioned Cohen again, with prosecutor Susan Hoffinger countering Blanche’s suggestion about phone calls and getting Cohen to reassert that he was on the phone with Trump before the 2016 election to discuss the Daniels deal, and Cohen testified Trump approved a statement Cohen made in 2018 saying he paid Daniels of his own volition, and reiterated that the reimbursement payment he received from Trump was not for legal services, as the payments are labeled.
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Crucial Quote
“You don't give me a side eye and you don't roll your eyes. ... When there’s a witness on the stand, if you don’t like my ruling, you don’t say ‘jeez,’ you don’t say strike it,” Merchan told Costello, adding, “Are you staring me down?” before ordering the courtroom to be cleared.
Contra
During his cross-examination, Blanche repeatedly brought up Cohen’s history of lying under oath, though prosecutors noted in their redirect that when Cohen committed perjury, he was doing so because “my life was on the line, my liberty.” In this case, prosecutors noted Cohen is not “actually on trial,” as quoted by CNN, and the witness said he’s “just a non party subpoenaed witness”—suggesting to the jury that he wouldn’t have any reason not to tell the truth in his testimony at this trial.
Chief Critic
Costello took the stand Monday after slamming Cohen’s testimony in a congressional hearing last week, where he accused the ex-lawyer of lying under oath, because Cohen told him that Trump wasn’t involved with the Daniels payment. (Cohen testified he didn’t tell Costello the truth because he didn’t trust him.) “I read Michael Cohen’s testimony from yesterday’s trial in New York,” Costello told lawmakers on Wednesday, claiming, “Virtually every statement he made about me was another lie.” Cohen repeated that claim on the stand Monday, claiming Cohen told him “numerous times” in 2018 that Trump “knew nothing about those payments, that he did this on his own,” as quoted by the Times.
Tangent
Blanche accused Cohen last week of lying on the stand about a call he had with Trump before the 2016 election, which Cohen testified was about the Daniels payment but Blanche alleged was actually about a 14-year-old that Cohen was being harassed by. Trump’s lawyer claimed Cohen actually called Trump’s bodyguard Keith Schiller to ask him to take care of that situation, while Cohen alleged they likely discussed both, and Cohen asked Schiller to pass the phone to Trump, who he then told about the payment. Prosecutors entered a C-SPAN photo into evidence on Monday showing Trump with Schiller at around the time the call took place—proving the two were together—which was only entered into evidence following a lengthy debate, as Trump’s lawyers didn’t want the photo to be entered into evidence. Had they not eventually agreed, a representative from C-SPAN would have had to fly to the trial from Indiana to corroborate the photo’s authenticity.
Surprising Fact
Cohen testified Thursday his producer is currently pitching a television series based on Cohen’s life. According to press materials about the show reported earlier in May by The Wrap, “The Fixer” would be a reality show in which Cohen would “work with [contestants], offering expertise, advice and solutions to fix your problems,” he said in a sizzle reel. “Together we will change your life. I am your fixer.”
What To Watch For
Prosecutors are expected to rest their case as soon as Cohen is off the stand. Trump’s lawyers aren’t expected to call many—if any—witnesses to testify in the ex-president’s defense, but the trial will continue for at least another week, as Judge Juan Merchan told parties on Monday to expect closing arguments to take place right after Memorial Day next week on May 28. It’s still up in the air whether Trump will take the stand himself and testify, though legal experts have advised against him doing so. Trump faces 34 felony counts of falsifying business records, which could result in a fine and/or prison time if he’s convicted.
Key Background
Cohen served as Trump’s longtime attorney and “fixer” but has since become one of the ex-president’s harshest critics. He “flipped” on Trump in 2018 and pleaded guilty to crimes including lying to Congress on Trump’s behalf and campaign finance violations stemming from his payment to Daniels. Cohen paid Daniels $130,000 just before the 2016 campaign to cover up her allegations of an affair—which Trump has long denied—and Trump then reimbursed Cohen through a series of checks paid throughout 2017. Prosecutors allege those checks were handled through the Trump Organization and falsely labeled as being for business payments, which Trump denies. The ex-president has pleaded not guilty to the charges against him. Cohen has testified for three days during the trial already, detailing as prosecutors questioned him how he faithfully kept Trump in the loop on the payment to Daniels, and alleging that the payment could not have gone forward without Trump’s consent. The ex-president was also present when then-Trump Organization CFO Allen Weisselberg confirmed to Cohen the payments would be labeled as being for legal services, Cohen testified. Blanche has used cross-examination to hammer at Cohen’s credibility as a result, bringing up the ex-attorney’s criticism of Trump—including once calling him a “Cheeto-dusted cartoon villain”—and desire for revenge, as well as Cohen’s history of lying under oath.
