In their closing statements, the defense team in former President Donald Trump’s hush money trial presented the jury with a thorough analysis of Michael Cohen’s testimony and company records, which they claim clear the former leader.
Juror Todd Blanche guided the jury through Cohen’s testimony at around 10:30 a.m., questioning if it was credible that Cohen, Trump’s former fixer, planned to work “for free,” as Blanche alleges he claimed.
“Do you believe that for a second? That after getting stiffed on his bonus in 2016 when he thought he had worked so hard… Do you think Mr. Cohen thought ‘I’m going to work for free’ — Is that the man that testified or is that a lie?” he asked the jury.
In his testimony, Cohen also discussed how the Trump Organization’s reduction of his 2016 bonus infuriated him, leading him to work out a $420,000 payment plan with CFO Alan Weisselberg that reportedly included the $130,000 paid to adult film star Stormy Daniels. Blanche countered that none of the comments Cohen made regarding the encounter are supported by any other evidence or witness.
“The idea that President Trump would agree to pay (Michael) Cohen $420,000” even though he only owed him $130,000 “is absurd,” Blanche said, according to CNN. “That’s what Mr. Cohen wants you to believe happened in that meeting where Mr. Weisselberg walked in with that piece of paper and supposedly showed it to President Trump. That is absurd,” Blanche adds, placing extra emphasis on the last three words.
According to former Trump Organization controller Jeffrey McConney’s testimony, “nobody would know” about the disparity, Blanche continued.
Blanche contended that of the witnesses who had really testified in this courtroom, one said, “I don’t know and I didn’t care,” while the other claimed that no one would know. He added, holding up a bank statement that totaled the money. The document’s main argument is that it is false. Blanche remarks of Cohen, Weisselberg, and Trump, “Again, you have to understand — if you take Mr. Cohen’s narrative of what transpired — that they were all in this together.
Blanche stated that the prosecution would prefer the jury to think that Cohen and Trump negotiated a contract in the Oval Office regarding the repayment plan for the hush money at an early 2017 meeting, rather than concentrating on the evidence.”He informed you that he will be meeting his boss in the Oval Office for the first time in his life,” Blanche remarked. “He wants you to think that way.” But six days later, Cohen emailed McConney to inquire about the amount of the payment. Blanche went on to undermine the prosecution’s claims that Trump gave the order directly by saying, “Just six days later Cohen doesn’t even know how much it’s supposed to be.”
Blanche said that neither Trump Organization personnel tried to conceal the payment, noting that McConney would probably have destroyed the papers if they were evidence of criminal activity. The defense attorney contended, “He didn’t try to destroy them; he didn’t get rid of them.” In a similar vein, the Office of Government Ethics was informed of the payment by President Trump.
“How can it be that there was any intent to defraud by President Trump when he discloses it to the IRS, he tweets about it and he submits it on his Office of Government Ethics forms?” Blanche asked.
Legal experts predict that Trump might be found not guilty as soon as this week in the case against him. The majority of the proceedings in the case have gone Trump’s way, including the scathing cross-examinations of Daniels and Cohen and the jury’s choice of attorneys, who will probably concentrate on the case’s facts rather than the scandalous nature of the alleged crime.
