Within an hour of CNN reporting that President Trump’s ex-attorney is willing to testify that Mr. Trump personally approved a meeting with Russians to get dirt on Hillary Clinton, another of his nemeses was guaranteeing that the president would be tried.
Michael Avenatti, the attorney for porn star Stormy Daniels, said that Mr. Trump was going to face either a criminal trial under the auspices of special counsel Robert Mueller or a civil lawsuit, possibly alongside his longtime fixer Michael Cohen.
“I am not certain whether Mr. Mueller will ultimately indict Mr. Trump (although the evidence appears to be there). But this I do know - I am going to force him to ’stand trial’ one way or the other. The only question is how many jurors are we going to have,” Mr. Avenatti wrote on Twitter.
I am not certain whether Mr. Mueller will ultimately indict Mr. Trump (although the evidence appears to be there). But this I do know - I am going to force him to “stand trial” one way or the other. The only question is how many jurors are we going to have… #Basta #FightClub
— Michael Avenatti (@MichaelAvenatti) July 27, 2018
His adult-film actress client, whose real name is Stephanie Clifford, is suing both Mr. Cohen and Mr. Trump over a non-disclosure agreement and their public words about her.
Earlier Thursday evening, CNN reported that Mr. Cohen is saying he was present at a meeting where Mr. Trump gave the go-ahead for Donald Trump Jr., then campaign manager Paul Manafort and son-in-law Jared Kushner to meet with several Russians working on behalf of the Kremlin to support his campaign.
If true — and CNN cautioned that Mr. Cohen had no independent corroboration —this would contradict numerous public statements made by the president and at least possibly open him up to obstruction of justice charges. His son, who testified to the contrary before a Senate committee, could be in worse trouble.
• Victor Morton can be reached at vmorton@washingtontimes.com.
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