Multiple CNN pundits have started to lose faith in Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s case against former President Donald Trump as the prosecution’s star witness Michael Cohen appears to falter under cross-examination.
Bragg charged Trump with 34 felony counts for allegedly falsifying business documents while reimbursing Cohen, his former attorney, for a $130,000 payment made to keep porn star Stormy Daniels silent about allegations of an affair ahead of the 2016 election. Cohen faced cross-examination again on Thursday, with CNN pundits casting doubt on the jury buying the admitted liar’s testimony. (RELATED: Witness Testifies He Thought Michael Cohen Would ‘Kill Himself’ Over Not Getting Trump Cabinet Slot)
Keith Davidson, who formerly represented Daniels and was a prosecution witness, testified that Cohen wanted to work in Trump’s White House and that he believed Cohen was going to “kill himself” because he did not receive a cabinet position. However, Cohen testified on Thursday that he did not really want a role, prompting CNN host Jake Tapper’s astonishment.
“Why deny this when there’s literally hundreds of people who know that he wanted to work in the Trump White House?” Tapper asked.
“There is all this testimony, there is all this evidence from Michael Cohen’s phones seized by the FBI and some of it is being used right now to show that Michael Cohen is currently not telling the truth,” he later said.
WATCH:
CNN political commentator Alyssa Farah Griffin, while acknowledging her dislike of Trump, said she currently could not reach a guilty verdict based on the trial so far.
“For me, even with my strong feelings about Donald Trump, my knowledge of how he behaves, I couldn’t today convict beyond a reasonable doubt,” she told Tapper. “Michael Cohen is just such a problematic figure and in this own cross, I was just waiting to see somebody who was above board, didn’t step in it, didn’t lie, didn’t end up getting kind of hostile and pushing back on some of these challenges, and it’s hard for me to believe him when he’s misrepresenting something as fundamental as having wanted a job in the White House.”
Trump Hater Alyssa Farah: “I couldn’t today convict beyond a reasonable doubt. Michael Cohen is just such a problematic figure.”
Wow!
— Alex Bruesewitz 🇺🇸 (@alexbruesewitz) May 16, 2024
Cohen made a secret recording of a conversation with Trump about potentially buying the rights to a story related to Playboy model Karen McDougal, who alleges she and the former president engaged in an affair. Cohen testified on Thursday that he did not inform individuals when he recorded them, according to CNN.
CNN legal analyst Michael Moore predicted on Tuesday that the tape would “come back to bite him.” CNN co-anchor Brianna Keilar and legal analyst agreed it was “highly uncool” for Cohen to do so.
“And ethically questionable even if it’s not illegal,” Keilar added.
WATCH:
Michael Cohen completely lost CNN when he admitted to secretly recording conversations without consent
“That is highly uncool”
“And in some states illegal”
“And ethically questionable even if it’s not illegal” pic.twitter.com/MqPnG2E20K
— johnny maga (@_johnnymaga) May 16, 2024
CNN host Anderson Cooper said that Blanche did an excellent job in cross-examining Cohen on Thursday as he seemed to poke holes in the witness’ credibility.
“It was an extraordinary cross-examination by Todd Blanche and Michael Cohen throughout the day,” Cooper said. “Michael Cohen, when cornered, when he found himself in a corner, he does have a pattern of suddenly not understanding the question being asked are seemingly kind of, I mean, one could say buying time to try to figure out what, how he wants to answer, but he definitely suddenly starts to have Todd Blanche repeat questions, saying I don’t quite understand what you mean, I’m confused by the question, but this time, Michael Cohen was cornered in what appeared here to be a lie, I think to many in the room.”
WATCH:
CNN senior legal analyst Elie Honig asked Cooper if he would have “doubts” about Cohen’s honesty if he was a juror on this trial.
“Absolutely,” the host answered. “If I was a juror in this case watching that, I would think this guy’s making this up as he’s going along, or he’s making this particular story up.”
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