Trump attorney William Scharf said former Trump fixer Michael Cohen blew his time on the stand in former President Donald Trump’s criminal hush money trial in New York.
“Michael Cohen, I believe, has just completely collapsed on the stand under withering cross-examination by President Trump’s trial team,” Mr. Scharf said on “Fox News Sunday.” “So, at this moment, I don’t think there’s any further need to call into question Michael Cohen’s credibility because I think he has none.”
Mr. Cohen was on the witness stand multiple times last week, including being cross-examined by the former president’s defense team as part of the hush money case against Mr. Trump involving porn actress Stormy Daniels.
Mr. Trump pleaded not guilty last year to 34 felony counts of falsifying business records in connection with reimbursement payments to Mr. Cohen. His lawyers have said the payments to Mr. Cohen were actual legal expenses and not to cover up his alleged sexual encounter with Ms. Daniels ahead of running for president in 2016.
Prosecutors have put a lot of weight behind Mr. Cohen’s story, but recently a former attorney for Mr. Cohen has threatened to blow the whole thing up.
In a hearing last week, Robert Costello told the House that Mr. Cohen has lied on the stand, claiming that Mr. Cohen told him he dealt with the Stormy Daniels cover-up of his own volition. There has been talk of getting Mr. Costello on the stand.
“I think based on Costello’s public statements and also his testimony before Congress, he would absolutely undercut any remaining credibility of Michael Cohen and therefore, key parts of the prosecution’s case,” Mr. Scharf said on the show.
Mr. Scharf also said that “any fair jury reviewing the record would immediately and unanimously vote to acquit” the case.
“As of now, to me, this looks like a directed verdict or at the very least, an absolute acquittal just based on the prosecution’s total failure to prove anything, even approximating the crime,” he said.
• Mallory Wilson can be reached at mwilson@washingtontimes.com.
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