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Cohen surrenders — plea deal coming
Posted by: One big can of worms.,. ()
Date: August 21, 2018 02:44PM

Bank fraud, tax fraud, campaign finance violation.

Options: ReplyQuote
Re: Cohen surrenders — plea deal coming
Posted by: The Heat ()
Date: August 21, 2018 02:58PM

Oh-wo-ho, oh-wo-ho
Caught up in the action I've been looking out for you
Oh-wo-ho, oh-wo-ho
(Tell me can you feel it)
(Tell me can you feel it)
(Tell me can you feel it)
The heat is on, the heat is on, the heat is on
Oh it's on the street, the heat is on

Options: ReplyQuote
Re: Cohen surrenders — plea deal coming
Posted by: More Fruit From A Poison Tree ()
Date: August 21, 2018 03:05PM

That's all it is, where's the RUSSIAN COLLUSION Mueller

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Re: Cohen surrenders — plea deal coming
Posted by: Democrats hopes are dashed ()
Date: August 21, 2018 03:07PM

The plea deal does NOT include cooperation with federal authorities.

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Re: Cohen surrenders — plea deal coming
Posted by: Brown Onion ()
Date: August 21, 2018 03:15PM

Mueller is probably singing "all by myself." His bowels must feel awful despite not doing shit.

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Re: Cohen surrenders — plea deal coming
Posted by: The Heat ()
Date: August 21, 2018 03:17PM

Oh-wo-ho, oh-wo-ho
Caught up in the action I've been looking out for you
Oh-wo-ho, oh-wo-ho
(Tell me can you feel it)
(Tell me can you feel it)
(Tell me can you feel it)
The heat is on (yeah) the heat is on, the heat is on
(Burning, burning, burning)
It's on the street, the heat is on

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Re: Cohen surrenders — plea deal coming
Posted by: facts of the case ()
Date: August 21, 2018 03:24PM

The Heat Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Oh-wo-ho, oh-wo-ho
> Caught up in the action I've been looking out
> for you
> Oh-wo-ho, oh-wo-ho
> (Tell me can you feel it)
> (Tell me can you feel it)
> (Tell me can you feel it)
> The heat is on (yeah) the heat is on, the heat
> is on
> (Burning, burning, burning)
> It's on the street, the heat is on


The plea deal does NOT include cooperation with federal authorities.

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Re: Cohen surrenders — plea deal coming
Posted by: Dark skies... ()
Date: August 21, 2018 05:27PM

Guilty on eight counts. Sentencing in early December. Plea implicated Trump.

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Re: Cohen surrenders — plea deal coming
Posted by: Trumpet is a Traitor! ()
Date: August 21, 2018 07:36PM

Michael Cohen says he paid off women at Trump's direction to influence election
Michael Cohen says he paid off women at Trump's direction to influence election
Michael Cohen says he paid off women at Trump's direction to influence election
Michael Cohen says he paid off women at Trump's direction to influence election
Michael Cohen says he paid off women at Trump's direction to influence election
Michael Cohen says he paid off women at Trump's direction to influence election

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Re: Cohen surrenders — plea deal coming
Posted by: So What ()
Date: August 22, 2018 05:44AM

Trumpet is a Traitor! Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Michael Cohen says he paid off women at Trump's direction to influence election

The purpose of the payoff is mere speculation: Cohen can't know what was in Trump's mind. Anyway, even if it was to influence the election,
that's not a crime, unless it was campaign money.
Which we already know it's not.

This is how Muller makes Cohen sing a song that makes Trump look bad,
since he can't actually get evidence of a crime committed by Trump.


Also, how is this about Russian inteference, again?

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Re: Cohen surrenders — plea deal coming
Posted by: Trumpet is a Traitor! ()
Date: August 22, 2018 07:01AM

^^^^ Ivan, nice try with the redirect & gaslight.

However,

Michael Cohen says he paid off women at Trump's direction to influence election

"paid off" & "to influence election"

GAME OVER
GAME OVER
GAME OVER

Michael Cohen just dropped a collusion bombshell in the Russia investigation

https://www.cnn.com/2018/07/26/politics/michael-cohen-donald-trump-russia-meeting/index.html

Ha! Ha! Ha!

This is why don the don is falling apart

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Re: Cohen surrenders — plea deal coming
Posted by: It's happening... ()
Date: August 22, 2018 09:34AM

TankS are rolling into Trumpland. Defenses are crumbling all around. The Fooler is retreating to his bunker. It will all be over soon.

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Re: Cohen surrenders — plea deal coming
Posted by: xvfph ()
Date: August 22, 2018 09:51AM

They got him for sure now.

Answer: no they don't.

The Cohen campaign finance plea is going to be thrown out by a judge. You can't plead guilty to something that is not a crime. Making a reimbursed third party payment on behalf of someone else is not illegal. This is a political ploy laughable on its face.

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Re: Cohen surrenders — plea deal coming
Posted by: wmdyw ()
Date: August 22, 2018 09:55AM

That article is just a hysterical 100th re-hash story about the ONE and ONLY 15 minutes "collusion" meeting. That one 15 minute meeting is literally the only thing they have found after 2 years of investigation. That's what's called a nothingburger.

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Re: Cohen surrenders — plea deal coming
Posted by: London Bridge... ()
Date: August 22, 2018 10:07AM

^^^ The desperation drips from the lips of these right-wing retards as they begin to realize that the walls are falling down. The end draws near.

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Re: Cohen surrenders — plea deal coming
Posted by: m4yp6 ()
Date: August 22, 2018 11:08AM

Dark skies... Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Guilty on eight counts. Sentencing in early
> December. Plea implicated Trump.


Lying (or being ignorant) does nothing to further your cause.

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Re: Cohen surrenders — plea deal coming
Posted by: Dark skies... ()
Date: August 22, 2018 11:38AM

What? Are you simply oblivious?

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Re: Cohen surrenders — plea deal coming
Posted by: Laughing Now ()
Date: August 22, 2018 12:00PM

Libtards got their hopes up YET AGAIN that Trump's election will be overthrown. Do libs ever get tired of losing? MAGA!

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Re: Cohen surrenders — plea deal coming
Posted by: ck3tc ()
Date: August 22, 2018 12:01PM

Sorry I can't help you, other than to suggest you stop watching CNN and instead listen to some federal attorneys who really understand the plea.

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Re: Cohen surrenders — plea deal coming
Posted by: Laugh laugh laugh ()
Date: August 22, 2018 12:21PM

The plea states directly that illegal acts were taken in coordination with and at the direction of a candidate for federal office. Are you trying to implicate Mike Pence?

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Re: Cohen surrenders — plea deal coming
Posted by: F4MT4 ()
Date: August 22, 2018 01:13PM

Trumpet is a Traitor! Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Michael Cohen says he paid off women at Trump's
> direction to influence election
>
> "paid off" & "to influence election"

You're missing the point: It doesn't matter WHY Cohen thought the money
was being paid. Just because Cohen thought that is what the money was for,
does not mean that is what (Trump thought) the money was for.

You're missing point #2: Paying off sluts to improve your image,
even done to "influence the election" is NOT A CRIME.

Unless you think Stormy Daniels is a Russian agent and she
was being paid to hack the voting machines. Is that what you think?

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Re: Cohen surrenders — plea deal coming
Posted by: wgnyc ()
Date: August 22, 2018 01:34PM

Laugh laugh laugh Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> The plea states directly that illegal acts were
> taken in coordination with and at the direction of
> a candidate for federal office.

We are not stupid. We know what the plea deal says. If Cohen had pled guilty to shooting John Lennon would that make it true? If he pled guilty to sharpening a pencil would that make sharpening pencils illegal? The answer to both is NO!

It's a political ploy - if you have any doubt look at his Democrat hack lawyer making the rounds today. What lawyer goes around trying to tell everyone who will listen how many crimes his client has committed? It's part of the plea deal. "Make Trump look bad."

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Re: Cohen surrenders — plea deal coming
Posted by: Trumpet is a Traitor! ()
Date: August 22, 2018 04:28PM

Trumpet is the ‘unindicted co-conspirator' in the Mueller probe!


Lisa Kern Griffin, law professor, Duke University
The president’s personal attorney has given sworn testimony in open court that he committed campaign finance violations in coordination with and at the direction of the president. Although the president is not named in the charges, he is all but an unindicted co-conspirator.

This turn in the president’s fortunes is dramatic and damaging, and it should have political repercussions even if it does not have immediate legal ones. All of this is occurring in the Southern District of New York and involves wrongdoing in addition to the campaign activities that are the focus of the special counsel’s investigation.


Jens David Ohlin, law professor, Cornell University
Trump is clearly guilty of violating campaign finance laws and also guilty of federal conspiracy as well (because he agreed with Cohen, and possibly others, on a plan to violate federal law). Normally he would be indicted right away. But that won’t happen only because he’s the president. But I suspect he’ll be named as an unindicted co-conspirator and also there’ll be a separate section of the Mueller report titled “Conspiracy to Violate Campaign Finance Laws” or something like that.


Michael Kang, law professor, Northwestern University
Michael Cohen’s guilty plea to campaign finance violations has important implications for President Trump. Cohen reportedly admitted that the payments he arranged for Stormy Daniels and Karen McDougal on Trump’s behalf were campaign related, not personal expenditures, and were made with the coordination and at the direction of a federal candidate.

Assuming he or prosecutors can substantiate this claim, the payments were illegal campaign contributions that exceeded the applicable limits and needed to be reported. What’s more, if Trump knew the payments were campaign related and directed them, as Cohen alleges, then Trump too violated campaign finance law.


Diane Marie Amann, law professor, University of Georgia
The president’s lawyer, Michael Cohen, has just pleaded guilty to violating federal tax, banking, and campaign finance laws. The big question, of course, is the extent to which the case against Cohen involves others. If the Cohen investigation unearthed evidence implicating the President in the crimes of conviction — whether through statements by Cohen or through documents seized from him — that is very good news for Mueller and very bad news for Trump.


Joshua Dressler, law professor, Ohio State University
Cohen’s admission that the hush money that constituted 2 felony convictions, was done at the direction of a candidate for federal office, clearly implicates the President in those campaign violations. Essentially, Cohen, under oath, in a federal court, has alleged that the President of the United States conspired to violate federal law.

If he were not a sitting president this would constitute grounds for indictment on those charges. As a sitting president this constitutes, if Congress wishes to do so, impeachable offenses. But, as we know, impeachment is a political rather than a legal concept, and it would seem pretty clear that nothing will occur with the current Congress.


Ciara Torres-Spelliscy, law professor, Stetson University
Two counts that Michael Cohen plead guilty were for campaign finance violations: (a) for causing an illegal corporate contribution and (b) for an excessive personal campaign contribution for his payments to two women during the 2016 campaign.

United States campaign finance laws have been watered down by the Roberts Supreme Court since 2006, but there are a few pillars of campaign finance law that the Supreme Court has upheld again and again: (1) bans on corporations’ giving directly to federal candidates, (2) bans on foreigners’ spending in US elections, (3) the lawfulness of contribution limits and (4) the requirement that money going into and going out of federal campaign be fully disclosed.

Another fundamental requirement of campaign finance law is that campaign funds be used for legitimate campaign expenditures and not for personal use. The Cohen pleas on counts 7 and 8 appear to acknowledge his working with candidate Trump to violate federal campaign finance laws by violating two of those pillars (the corporate ban and the contribution limits), which aim to prevent corruption of the American political process.


Asha Rangappa, former FBI agent and senior lecturer, Yale University
It remains to be seen whether or not Michael Cohen has any valuable information to offer to prosecutors that may be able to reduce his sentence for the charges he is now pleading guilty to. Most of the focus has been on the information he could potentially provide to Special Counsel Robert S. Mueller in the Russia probe.

But a potentially bigger threat to President Trump is what Cohen could provide to the Southern District of New York about potential crimes committed by Trump or members of his family that are unrelated to the Russia probe. Michael Cohen, as Trump’s longtime “fixer” knows where the proverbial bodies are buried when it comes to the Trump Organization and particularly its finances going back many, many years.

If Cohen provided information on potentially criminal activities to the Southern District and it opened an investigation into them, it would place the President in a double bind: First, since it would be an investigation separate and apart from the Mueller probe, he wouldn’t be able to argue that the Special Counsel exceeded his mandate or crossed a “red line” — after all, any U.S. Attorney’s office is legally authorized (and duty-bound) to investigate any violations of federal law it learns about.

More importantly, such an investigation would be completely insulated from any steps Trump might take to fire Mueller, Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein, or even Attorney General Jeff Sessions (especially since his interim pick to head the Southern District who recused himself from overseeing the Cohen investigation, would undoubtedly recuse himself from any other Trump-related investigation as well). So Trump has much more to fear from Cohen than just what he knows about Russia-related matters.


Christopher Slobogin, law professor, Vanderbilt University
If Cohen pleads guilty to violating campaign finance law by making payments to Daniels, and it can be proven that Trump sought, or encouraged him to make, the payments, Trump would be guilty of conspiring to commit a federal crime.

His defense might be that he did not know the payments would violate campaign finance law, but ignorance of the law is typically not an excuse. Whether that type of crime is an impeachable offense, however, is up to Congress.


Ric Simmons, law professor, Ohio State University
The fact that Cohen implicated President Trump in his plea allocation is extremely significant, since it ties Trump directly to illegal campaign activity. Although the plea agreement does not mention cooperation with the special prosecutor’s office, Cohen’s willingness to speak out against Trump now implies he will cooperate with the special counsel moving forward, perhaps in the hopes of obtaining a lower sentence.

Also newsworthy is the fact that last week the special master in the case finished her review of the documents seized from Cohen’s office and determined that almost none of the documents are protected by attorney-client privilege. Judge Wood formally adopted that finding on Monday. This means that almost all of these documents will be available to prosecutors investigating the Trump campaign. Given Cohen’s admissions today, these documents from his office may prove to be very valuable to the special prosecutor’s office.


Andrew Wright, law professor, Savannah Law School
If Michael Cohen engaged in federal crimes at the direction of Donald Trump, then Trump will likely be guilty of those crimes on some combination of solicitation, aiding and abetting, and conspiracy. This is not the Mueller investigation, and it is not obstruction of justice inquiry in which the Trump legal team can assert some theory of executive power impossibility for obstruction crimes grounded in his official acts. If Donald Trump conspired with to commit felonies as a candidate, the only thing that might protect him is the question of whether he couldn’t be indicted for the duration of his tenure in office.


Douglas Spencer, law professor, University of Connecticut
While Cohen’s guilty plea has no bearing on the question whether the Mueller investigation was properly instigated, claims that the Mueller investigation is a “witch hunt” will be further undermined as yet another individual connected to the Trump campaign admits that he broke the law.

Substantively, while Michael Cohen never held an official position on the campaign team, his guilty plea reportedly says he acted at the direction of a candidate (presumably Donald Trump) with the purpose of influencing the election. President Trump admitted via tweet on May 3 that he reimbursed Cohen for his (now admittedly illegal) payment to Stormy Daniels, so Cohen’s guilty plea will certainly implicate President Trump.

The media is reporting that Cohen will not cooperate with Mueller. But he may not have to. Rudy Giuliani drew the dots and Cohen’s admission now arguably connects them.


Victoria Nourse, law professor, Georgetown University
This was a sad day for America, but a spectacular day for the Mueller investigation. Cohen’s New York plea was not handled by Mueller’s office, but it told the same story as the jury verdict obtained by Mueller in the Manafort trial in Virginia. We now know that the president claimed to unearth the swamp, but he hired it.

Federal law calls what Cohen and Manafort did by the simple name of fraud — lying when you have a legal obligation to tell the truth. If Cohen is correct that he aided the President in a crime, the President’s only defense is to diminish the seriousness of the violation to the public or insist that Cohen lied.

Aiding a crime is a crime in America — if you authorize a murder, even if you authorize your lawyer to commit a murder, you are guilty of a crime, and one would hope so. Attention will now shift from foreign threats to our nation’s electoral system to porn star hush money. As I said, it’s a sad day for America.


Paul Butler, law professor, Georgetown University
There are two ways that convicted felons Paul Manafort and Michael Cohen avoid spending many years in one of those wretched places. One is to be pardoned by the president of the United States. The second is to deliver up Donald Trump to Special Counsel Robert Mueller.

Trump said, after the Manafort and Cohen convictions, that he “feels badly” for both. Manafort’s pardon seems virtually a done deal. But Michael Cohen has already implicated Trump as his co-conspirator to violate federal campaign financing laws. Providing more evidence to Mueller would be any lawyer’s recommendation to Cohen, to reduce his time in the pen.

But even if Trump pardons Cohen, it would have the same effect as immunizing him, meaning Cohen could be forced to testify about everything Trump has ever done. The president has no good options — Tuesday August 21 marks the beginning of the end of Donald Trump’s presidency, and possibly his freedom.



GAME OVER!
GAME OVER!
GAME OVER!


Cohen has pleaded guilty to eight criminal charges, two of which are related to his payment of hush money to women with whom Trump had affairs, including porn actress Stormy Daniels. And he has reportedly admitted that the payment was made “at the discretion of the candidate,” which in this case almost certainly means Trump.


GAME OVER!
GAME OVER!
GAME OVER!

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Re: Cohen surrenders — plea deal coming
Posted by: Can't stop laughing ()
Date: August 22, 2018 04:35PM

Libtards should all vow to leave America permanently if their latest hopes of overthrowing Trump fail yet again.

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Re: Cohen surrenders — plea deal coming
Posted by: Hmmm... ()
Date: August 22, 2018 04:44PM

Face it boys -- yesterday was a really bad day for you. We are now on s whole different path. Fasten seat belts.

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Re: Cohen surrenders — plea deal coming
Posted by: Don The Con! ()
Date: August 23, 2018 01:38PM

ck3tc Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Sorry I can't help you, other than to suggest you
> stop watching CNN and instead listen to some
> federal attorneys who really understand the plea.

Hey Stupid As Spit,

Let me help you out.... Hahahahaha!

Cannot stop laughing at you

Trumpet is the ‘unindicted co-conspirator' in the Mueller probe!


Lisa Kern Griffin, law professor, Duke University
The president’s personal attorney has given sworn testimony in open court that he committed campaign finance violations in coordination with and at the direction of the president. Although the president is not named in the charges, he is all but an unindicted co-conspirator.

This turn in the president’s fortunes is dramatic and damaging, and it should have political repercussions even if it does not have immediate legal ones. All of this is occurring in the Southern District of New York and involves wrongdoing in addition to the campaign activities that are the focus of the special counsel’s investigation.


Jens David Ohlin, law professor, Cornell University
Trump is clearly guilty of violating campaign finance laws and also guilty of federal conspiracy as well (because he agreed with Cohen, and possibly others, on a plan to violate federal law). Normally he would be indicted right away. But that won’t happen only because he’s the president. But I suspect he’ll be named as an unindicted co-conspirator and also there’ll be a separate section of the Mueller report titled “Conspiracy to Violate Campaign Finance Laws” or something like that.


Michael Kang, law professor, Northwestern University
Michael Cohen’s guilty plea to campaign finance violations has important implications for President Trump. Cohen reportedly admitted that the payments he arranged for Stormy Daniels and Karen McDougal on Trump’s behalf were campaign related, not personal expenditures, and were made with the coordination and at the direction of a federal candidate.

Assuming he or prosecutors can substantiate this claim, the payments were illegal campaign contributions that exceeded the applicable limits and needed to be reported. What’s more, if Trump knew the payments were campaign related and directed them, as Cohen alleges, then Trump too violated campaign finance law.


Diane Marie Amann, law professor, University of Georgia
The president’s lawyer, Michael Cohen, has just pleaded guilty to violating federal tax, banking, and campaign finance laws. The big question, of course, is the extent to which the case against Cohen involves others. If the Cohen investigation unearthed evidence implicating the President in the crimes of conviction — whether through statements by Cohen or through documents seized from him — that is very good news for Mueller and very bad news for Trump.


Joshua Dressler, law professor, Ohio State University
Cohen’s admission that the hush money that constituted 2 felony convictions, was done at the direction of a candidate for federal office, clearly implicates the President in those campaign violations. Essentially, Cohen, under oath, in a federal court, has alleged that the President of the United States conspired to violate federal law.

If he were not a sitting president this would constitute grounds for indictment on those charges. As a sitting president this constitutes, if Congress wishes to do so, impeachable offenses. But, as we know, impeachment is a political rather than a legal concept, and it would seem pretty clear that nothing will occur with the current Congress.


Ciara Torres-Spelliscy, law professor, Stetson University
Two counts that Michael Cohen plead guilty were for campaign finance violations: (a) for causing an illegal corporate contribution and (b) for an excessive personal campaign contribution for his payments to two women during the 2016 campaign.

United States campaign finance laws have been watered down by the Roberts Supreme Court since 2006, but there are a few pillars of campaign finance law that the Supreme Court has upheld again and again: (1) bans on corporations’ giving directly to federal candidates, (2) bans on foreigners’ spending in US elections, (3) the lawfulness of contribution limits and (4) the requirement that money going into and going out of federal campaign be fully disclosed.

Another fundamental requirement of campaign finance law is that campaign funds be used for legitimate campaign expenditures and not for personal use. The Cohen pleas on counts 7 and 8 appear to acknowledge his working with candidate Trump to violate federal campaign finance laws by violating two of those pillars (the corporate ban and the contribution limits), which aim to prevent corruption of the American political process.


Asha Rangappa, former FBI agent and senior lecturer, Yale University
It remains to be seen whether or not Michael Cohen has any valuable information to offer to prosecutors that may be able to reduce his sentence for the charges he is now pleading guilty to. Most of the focus has been on the information he could potentially provide to Special Counsel Robert S. Mueller in the Russia probe.

But a potentially bigger threat to President Trump is what Cohen could provide to the Southern District of New York about potential crimes committed by Trump or members of his family that are unrelated to the Russia probe. Michael Cohen, as Trump’s longtime “fixer” knows where the proverbial bodies are buried when it comes to the Trump Organization and particularly its finances going back many, many years.

If Cohen provided information on potentially criminal activities to the Southern District and it opened an investigation into them, it would place the President in a double bind: First, since it would be an investigation separate and apart from the Mueller probe, he wouldn’t be able to argue that the Special Counsel exceeded his mandate or crossed a “red line” — after all, any U.S. Attorney’s office is legally authorized (and duty-bound) to investigate any violations of federal law it learns about.

More importantly, such an investigation would be completely insulated from any steps Trump might take to fire Mueller, Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein, or even Attorney General Jeff Sessions (especially since his interim pick to head the Southern District who recused himself from overseeing the Cohen investigation, would undoubtedly recuse himself from any other Trump-related investigation as well). So Trump has much more to fear from Cohen than just what he knows about Russia-related matters.


Christopher Slobogin, law professor, Vanderbilt University
If Cohen pleads guilty to violating campaign finance law by making payments to Daniels, and it can be proven that Trump sought, or encouraged him to make, the payments, Trump would be guilty of conspiring to commit a federal crime.

His defense might be that he did not know the payments would violate campaign finance law, but ignorance of the law is typically not an excuse. Whether that type of crime is an impeachable offense, however, is up to Congress.


Ric Simmons, law professor, Ohio State University
The fact that Cohen implicated President Trump in his plea allocation is extremely significant, since it ties Trump directly to illegal campaign activity. Although the plea agreement does not mention cooperation with the special prosecutor’s office, Cohen’s willingness to speak out against Trump now implies he will cooperate with the special counsel moving forward, perhaps in the hopes of obtaining a lower sentence.

Also newsworthy is the fact that last week the special master in the case finished her review of the documents seized from Cohen’s office and determined that almost none of the documents are protected by attorney-client privilege. Judge Wood formally adopted that finding on Monday. This means that almost all of these documents will be available to prosecutors investigating the Trump campaign. Given Cohen’s admissions today, these documents from his office may prove to be very valuable to the special prosecutor’s office.


Andrew Wright, law professor, Savannah Law School
If Michael Cohen engaged in federal crimes at the direction of Donald Trump, then Trump will likely be guilty of those crimes on some combination of solicitation, aiding and abetting, and conspiracy. This is not the Mueller investigation, and it is not obstruction of justice inquiry in which the Trump legal team can assert some theory of executive power impossibility for obstruction crimes grounded in his official acts. If Donald Trump conspired with to commit felonies as a candidate, the only thing that might protect him is the question of whether he couldn’t be indicted for the duration of his tenure in office.


Douglas Spencer, law professor, University of Connecticut
While Cohen’s guilty plea has no bearing on the question whether the Mueller investigation was properly instigated, claims that the Mueller investigation is a “witch hunt” will be further undermined as yet another individual connected to the Trump campaign admits that he broke the law.

Substantively, while Michael Cohen never held an official position on the campaign team, his guilty plea reportedly says he acted at the direction of a candidate (presumably Donald Trump) with the purpose of influencing the election. President Trump admitted via tweet on May 3 that he reimbursed Cohen for his (now admittedly illegal) payment to Stormy Daniels, so Cohen’s guilty plea will certainly implicate President Trump.

The media is reporting that Cohen will not cooperate with Mueller. But he may not have to. Rudy Giuliani drew the dots and Cohen’s admission now arguably connects them.


Victoria Nourse, law professor, Georgetown University
This was a sad day for America, but a spectacular day for the Mueller investigation. Cohen’s New York plea was not handled by Mueller’s office, but it told the same story as the jury verdict obtained by Mueller in the Manafort trial in Virginia. We now know that the president claimed to unearth the swamp, but he hired it.

Federal law calls what Cohen and Manafort did by the simple name of fraud — lying when you have a legal obligation to tell the truth. If Cohen is correct that he aided the President in a crime, the President’s only defense is to diminish the seriousness of the violation to the public or insist that Cohen lied.

Aiding a crime is a crime in America — if you authorize a murder, even if you authorize your lawyer to commit a murder, you are guilty of a crime, and one would hope so. Attention will now shift from foreign threats to our nation’s electoral system to porn star hush money. As I said, it’s a sad day for America.


Paul Butler, law professor, Georgetown University
There are two ways that convicted felons Paul Manafort and Michael Cohen avoid spending many years in one of those wretched places. One is to be pardoned by the president of the United States. The second is to deliver up Donald Trump to Special Counsel Robert Mueller.

Trump said, after the Manafort and Cohen convictions, that he “feels badly” for both. Manafort’s pardon seems virtually a done deal. But Michael Cohen has already implicated Trump as his co-conspirator to violate federal campaign financing laws. Providing more evidence to Mueller would be any lawyer’s recommendation to Cohen, to reduce his time in the pen.

But even if Trump pardons Cohen, it would have the same effect as immunizing him, meaning Cohen could be forced to testify about everything Trump has ever done. The president has no good options — Tuesday August 21 marks the beginning of the end of Donald Trump’s presidency, and possibly his freedom.



GAME OVER!
GAME OVER!
GAME OVER!


Cohen has pleaded guilty to eight criminal charges, two of which are related to his payment of hush money to women with whom Trump had affairs, including porn actress Stormy Daniels. And he has reportedly admitted that the payment was made “at the discretion of the candidate,” which in this case almost certainly means Trump.


GAME OVER!
GAME OVER!
GAME OVER!

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Re: Cohen surrenders — plea deal coming
Posted by: No One Cares About Lib Cranks ()
Date: August 23, 2018 01:43PM

Nothing there, No impeachment by 67 senators or the house

Every one knows what leftist cranks, so called professors will say, they also say there's no individual right to bear arms and SCOTUS has shut them down twice

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Re: Cohen surrenders — plea deal coming
Posted by: Solicitor General ()
Date: August 23, 2018 01:55PM

No individual right prior to 2008 when Scalia — the king of the judicial activists — invented one out of whole cloth. Heller and McDonald will ultimately go the way of Ded Scott and Plessy v Ferguson.

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Re: Cohen surrenders — plea deal coming
Posted by: That Will Be Way After ()
Date: August 23, 2018 02:07PM

Roe vs Wade goes, hold your breath if you want to turn blue waiting for the 2nd to be struck down

You keep forgetting stupid, She Lost

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Re: Cohen surrenders — plea deal coming
Posted by: Going down... ()
Date: August 23, 2018 02:12PM

America lost, and millions are starting to realize that. Tuesday was a big
turning point.

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Re: Cohen surrenders — plea deal coming
Posted by: White House reeling ()
Date: August 24, 2018 08:29AM

There was an 11-point swing this week in polling on the Mueller probe. Approval of it went up by 11 points and disapproval went down by 11 points. Not all of the respondents would have heard of the Manafort and Cohen outcomes when the poll was taken, so further moves as the result are possible, and perhaps likely.

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Re: Cohen surrenders — plea deal coming
Posted by: Hammer time... ()
Date: August 25, 2018 10:07AM

Immunity for Pecker and Weisselberg means they can be compelled to provide what may be very embarrassing if not downright incriminating answers to prosecutors' questions on potential fraud, conspiracy, and other financial matters. It's not at all a happy time in Trump circles.

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Re: Cohen surrenders — plea deal coming
Posted by: Brown Onion ()
Date: August 25, 2018 10:17AM

I thought it said colon surrendering

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Re: Cohen surrenders — plea deal coming
Posted by: Postcards from the bottom ()
Date: August 25, 2018 10:42AM

No one doubts that you are indeed stupid enough to make that mistake. And a great many others just as egregious.

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Re: Cohen surrenders — plea deal coming
Posted by: Brown Onion ()
Date: August 25, 2018 10:53AM

Postcards from the bottom Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> No one doubts that you are indeed stupid enough to
> make that mistake. And a great many others just
> as egregious.


How are your sanctimonious bowels?

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Re: Cohen surrenders — plea deal coming
Posted by: Postcards from the bottom ()
Date: August 25, 2018 11:06AM

Also better than yours.

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Re: Cohen surrenders — plea deal coming
Posted by: Brown Onion ()
Date: August 25, 2018 11:24AM

Postcards from the bottom Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Also better than yours.

A superior attitude and superior bowels. You are a megalomaniac.

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Re: Cohen surrenders — plea deal coming
Posted by: Postcards from the bottom ()
Date: August 25, 2018 12:55PM

You’re a big fat nothing. No redeeming social value at all.

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