Michael Cohen has lost the credibility to be a witness against President Trump after he misled Congress last week over his interest in a presidential pardon, Mr. Trump’s lawyer said Thursday.
Rudolph W. Giuliani called Cohen a “serial perjurer,” and said he should get more prison time for the latest deception. Cohen has already pleaded guilty to lying to Congress before.
Mr. Giuliani demanded the House Democrats who held a day of public testimony with Cohen last week now take action to refer him for prosecution.
Cohen had told the House Oversight Committee that he had no interest in a pardon from Mr. Trump, the man he served for years as personal lawyer and “fixer,” but who he now says is a con man.
“I have never asked for, nor would I accept, a pardon from Mr. Trump,” Cohen told lawmakers.
But his team has since confirmed that a lawyer did reach on his behalf to scout out the possibility of a pardon.
The Wall Street Journal reported the outreach came at Cohen’s direction.
“Who first said ’Oh, what a tangled web we weave, when first we practice to deceive,’” Mr. Giuliana wondered on Twitter. “That surely explains the expanding perjuries of Cohen.”
Cohen’s current lawyer, Lanny Davis, said his client stands by his testimony, saying when Cohen said “never” he only meant after a point in time last year when Cohen had decided to turn against the president and was no longer part of a joint defense agreement.
Cohen has pleaded guilty to several crimes, including campaign finance irregularities and to lying to Congress about the timing of negotiations to build a Trump Tower in Moscow.
• Stephen Dinan can be reached at sdinan@washingtontimes.com.
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