Michael Cohen postpones congressional testimony because of threats to family from Trump and Giuliani

[Acadia]

I'm not so sure. Throughout history many men have shouldered extreme risk to present their case to Congress. I think this makes Cohen look insincere, at least on the surface.

This is a pattern we've seen. Avenatti swore up and down that disk had all the proof and where is that now? Still gathering dust. The author who wrote one of the Trump books swore up and down he had proof Trump said the "n" word. Pfft...
Omarosa promise really damaging tapes on Trump. Pfft...

So, Cohen prattling on about how he was going to testify because he's such a patriot should have been met wiith skepticism from the start, but the appeal was too great to use common sense.

 

[Acadia]

Taking up Rudy Gs talking points.

I don't listen to Rudy. Haven't in a very long time.

 

[Chomsky]

This is pure speculation on my part but I have a sneaking suspicion that Cohen and Schiff discovered that a lot of the questions they wanted asked/answered in the public forum will be disallowed because of their relevance to the Mueller investigation. Bear in mind that just this past weekend a Cohen story was pretty much debunked by the Mueller team and it's a fair bet that the Mueller team isn't a fan of possibly being put in the position of making more statements.

However, if Cohen isn't allowed to answer the deep, probing, thoughtful questions the Schiff panel is sure to ask he can at least make a statement suggesting that Trump is threatening his life and the life of his family.

Perhaps.

I think it's either his fear of Trump's retaliation against his father-in-law (who does seem very much a shady guy), or Cohen is afraid to fully testify and hurt himself and others he cares about, or he may indeed be worried about fabrications he made.

But he's too deep, already. He needs to come clean before Congress and the America People, and let the cards fall where they may. It's too late for dithering and half-measures.

 

[TU Curmudgeon]

It is a lie that Trump or Giulani threatened Cohen's family. What they said is the Cohen was involved in illegal conduct that should be investigated and implied that if Cohen violates attorney-client privilege he is subject to being sued.

When the implication is "But if you shut up and don't tell what you know then none of that will happen." then simply stating the obvious legal peril he puts himself into if he does NOT shut up becomes a threat.

AT LAW a "threat" does NOT have to involve the potential of physical violence.

PS - People do not get sued because they "violated solicitor-client privilege" they get sued because they are accused of "violating solicitor-client privilege" and the legal bills are the same regardless of whether the law suit is successful or not.

Someone who has (let's say) $3,100,000,000 in net worth, can well afford to fund a $10,000,000 legal bill against someone who has a net worth of (let's say) LESS THAN $1,000,000 and someone who has a history of using the fact that they have REALLY deep pockets to force others to agree to terms simply because they couldn't afford the litigation might just do that.

Of course a "threat" that is not believed is not, at law, considered to be a threat (under most circumstances).

BUT, if Mr. Cohen knows anyone who has REALLY deep pockets that has used that fact to force others to agree to terms simply because they couldn't afford the litigation might just do that then Mr. Cohen might well believe that they would do the same thing to him if they were making the perfectly factual statement that he could be sued. That, of course, would make the "threat" a believable one.

 

[Chomsky]

Cummings isn't happy about this one bit. He may very likely choose to just subpoena Cohen.

Absolutely. What a mess! The last thing Cummings needs is a hostile witness. But I believe he has no choice but to drag Cohen's butt down to Pennsylvania Avenue, one way or another.

 

[lwf]

I agree. It would on the surface appear to be witness tampering, indeed.

That's what I don't get about the "nothingburger" arguments. If Cohen truly has nothing on Trump, why the threats and the accusations of Cohen being a 'serial liar' and a rat? If Trump is innocent, his best course of action would be to just ignore him. No one puts that much energy into impugning a witness unless the witness has information you don't want anyone to believe.

 

[Chomsky]

Fox News pundits are claiming that Cohen's testimony would be nothing but a repetition of what is already know so it's no big deal whether he testifies before Congress or not. But even if that were true, the fact that they're trying very hard to discourage Michael Cohen by going to the lengths of threatening or coercing in any way, then they must be afraid he's going to say a lot more than just repeating the same story all over again. There's just no other reason that Trump and Giuliani are so desperate to shut him up that they're willing to risk being accused of witness tampering to do it.

Well, there is another compelling reason: The P.R. aspects. Which will be huge. And P.R. can shape public (and voters') opinion.

 

[HumblePi]

I assume the allegations of threats against his family and threats from Giuliani are two separate things. Giuliani is a sleeze, but I doubt he would make physical threats. Litigious threats, perhaps.

That said, I’m sure he is getting anonymous threats against his life. That has become the norm in high profile cases like this.

Donny Deutsch, who is personal friends with Cohen and his family, had dinner with him last night. He said that Michael Cohen said "I can't do it, I just can't". His father in law that Trump threatened is in his 80's and according to Michael Cohen has never done anything illegal. But the real reason that Cohen is backing out is because of threats coming from others, not Trump or Giuliani but from regular Trump supporters, and particularly against his daughter Samantha. Donny Deutsch said that he can't even talk about the types of threats she's receiving other than they are 'heinous and disgusting'. I can't help but reflect on the fact that his family was with him while he was doing Trump's dirty deals and they all enjoyed the perks and lifestyle that a life of crime provides to the family on the backside. Nobody was complaining about the extravagant lifestyle of multi-millionaires they were all enjoying back then, were they?

As President, Trump is immune from prosecution, even on charges of witness tampering or obstruction, and he knows it so he has no misgivings about continuing that type of behavior. Michael Cohen has given 70 hours of testimony to Robert Mueller and he is still cooperating, that's ongoing. Congress can still subpoena him to testify and he'll have to comply if he is.

When the Mueller investigation wraps up and Robert Mueller hands over his findings, it's all going to boil down to this. With all the damaging facts, will the republicans in Congress remain loyal to Trump and if they do, then we're all going to have to accept the fact that our country as we have known it, is pretty much finished forever.

 

[tres borrachos]

Source: (CNBC) Michael Cohen postpones congressional testimony because of threats to family from Trump and Giulianil

This is freshly breaking, so I can't extensively comment due to not having a lot of information.

However, on the surface this appears problematic for Cohen. I can't imagine this will look good for him in the public eye. I do believe the circumstances involving his decision is more complex than we might easily recognize.

I liked this post and don't know why, since there is nothing to like about it.

 

[Chomsky]

It is a lie that Trump or Giulani threatened Cohen's family. What they said is the Cohen was involved in illegal conduct that should be investigated and implied that if Cohen violates attorney-client privilege he is subject to being sued.

But when it comes from the country's chief law enforcement officer, yes it can very much be construed to be a threat. That being said, I think Cohen should go ahead with testifying regardless.

 

[tres borrachos]

Cohen's a worm.

He was Trump's lawyer for years, and someone who gushed about Trump at the same time Trump was gushing about him. Of course he's a worm. What decent person would want to associate with Trump?

 

[Chomsky]

I liked this post and don't know why, since there is nothing to like about it.

You obviously did it because you like me, and wanted to reward me for my efforts!

:kissy:

 

[Chomsky]

That's what I don't get about the "nothingburger" arguments. If Cohen truly has nothing on Trump, why the threats and the accusations of Cohen being a 'serial liar' and a rat? If Trump is innocent, his best course of action would be to just ignore him. No one puts that much energy into impugning a witness unless the witness has information you don't want anyone to believe.

I rarely find myself defending Trump, but - for sake of argument - he may fear the PR coup the Dems will get here.

Alright, now I feel like I need a shower! :2razz:

 

[HumblePi]

Where's the proof?

The first time he threatened Michael Cohen's father-in-law was in a tweet on Jan. 18. The second time he tried to intimidate Cohen's father-in-law was a statement he made on Fox with Jeanine Pirro.

https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/who-is-michael-cohens-father-in-law-trump-says-he-should-be-investigated

 

[holbritter]

Donny Deutsch, who is personal friends with Cohen and his family, had dinner with him last night. He said that Michael Cohen said "I can't do it, I just can't". His father in law that Trump threatened is in his 80's and according to Michael Cohen has never done anything illegal. But the real reason that Cohen is backing out is because of threats coming from others, not Trump or Giuliani but from regular Trump supporters, and particularly against his daughter Samantha. Donny Deutsch said that he can't even talk about the types of threats she's receiving other than they are 'heinous and disgusting'. I can't help but reflect on the fact that his family was with him while he was doing Trump's dirty deals and they all enjoyed the perks and lifestyle that a life of crime provides to the family on the backside. Nobody was complaining about the extravagant lifestyle of multi-millionaires they were all enjoying back then, were they?

As President, Trump is immune from prosecution, even on charges of witness tampering or obstruction, and he knows it so he has no misgivings about continuing that type of behavior. Michael Cohen has given 70 hours of testimony to Robert Mueller and he is still cooperating, that's ongoing. Congress can still subpoena him to testify and he'll have to comply if he is.

When the Mueller investigation wraps up and Robert Mueller hands over his findings, it's all going to boil down to this. With all the damaging facts, will the republicans in Congress remain loyal to Trump and if they do, then we're all going to have to accept the fact that our country as we have known it, is pretty much finished forever.

Where do you get your information?

 

[Chomsky]

Donny Deutsch, who is personal friends with Cohen and his family, had dinner with him last night. He said that Michael Cohen said "I can't do it, I just can't". His father in law that Trump threatened is in his 80's and according to Michael Cohen has never done anything illegal. But the real reason that Cohen is backing out is because of threats coming from others, not Trump or Giuliani but from regular Trump supporters, and particularly against his daughter Samantha. Donny Deutsch said that he can't even talk about the types of threats she's receiving other than they are 'heinous and disgusting'. I can't help but reflect on the fact that his family was with him while he was doing Trump's dirty deals and they all enjoyed the perks and lifestyle that a life of crime provides to the family on the backside. Nobody was complaining about the extravagant lifestyle of multi-millionaires they were all enjoying back then, were they?

As President, Trump is immune from prosecution, even on charges of witness tampering or obstruction, and he knows it so he has no misgivings about continuing that type of behavior. Michael Cohen has given 70 hours of testimony to Robert Mueller and he is still cooperating, that's ongoing. Congress can still subpoena him to testify and he'll have to comply if he is.

When the Mueller investigation wraps up and Robert Mueller hands over his findings, it's all going to boil down to this. With all the damaging facts, will the republicans in Congress remain loyal to Trump and if they do, then we're all going to have to accept the fact that our country as we have known it, is pretty much finished forever.

Yep, the bolded is the $64,000 question.

But it won't be up to the GOP Senators, but rather the GOP rank & file voters. If the voters stay with Trump, the Senate will too. And I see nothing indicating the Trump supporters will leave him (Trump).

 

[tres borrachos]

I rarely find myself defending Trump, but - for sake of argument - he may fear the PR coup the Dems will get here.

Alright, now I feel like I need a shower! :2razz:

A cold one?

 

[tres borrachos]

Donny Deutsch, who is personal friends with Cohen and his family, had dinner with him last night. He said that Michael Cohen said "I can't do it, I just can't". His father in law that Trump threatened is in his 80's and according to Michael Cohen has never done anything illegal. But the real reason that Cohen is backing out is because of threats coming from others, not Trump or Giuliani but from regular Trump supporters, and particularly against his daughter Samantha. Donny Deutsch said that he can't even talk about the types of threats she's receiving other than they are 'heinous and disgusting'. I can't help but reflect on the fact that his family was with him while he was doing Trump's dirty deals and they all enjoyed the perks and lifestyle that a life of crime provides to the family on the backside. Nobody was complaining about the extravagant lifestyle of multi-millionaires they were all enjoying back then, were they?

As President, Trump is immune from prosecution, even on charges of witness tampering or obstruction, and he knows it so he has no misgivings about continuing that type of behavior. Michael Cohen has given 70 hours of testimony to Robert Mueller and he is still cooperating, that's ongoing. Congress can still subpoena him to testify and he'll have to comply if he is.

When the Mueller investigation wraps up and Robert Mueller hands over his findings, it's all going to boil down to this. With all the damaging facts, will the republicans in Congress remain loyal to Trump and if they do, then we're all going to have to accept the fact that our country as we have known it, is pretty much finished forever.

I was never a fan of Deutsch's because he's somewhat obnoxious, but he's shared a lot of his insider information from Cohen on Morning Joe the last few months. It's always interesting.

Was his daughter the one in her black bra and panty hose who he Tweeted a picture of?

 

[HumblePi]

Where do you get your information?

Directly from the mouth of Michael Cohen's best friend and confidant who just said this on national television because he just had dinner with Michael Cohen last night and it's what he told Donny Deutsch. Cohen told him this and he's particularly distressed by the threats to his daughter which he described as 'heinous and disgusting'.

 

[JANFU]

I don't listen to Rudy. Haven't in a very long time.

What crimes have Cohen's Family members/in laws been convicted of?

 

[Acadia]

The first time he threatened Michael Cohen's father-in-law was in a tweet on Jan. 18. The second time he tried to intimidate Cohen's father-in-law was a statement he made on Fox with Jeanine Pirro.

https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/who-is-michael-cohens-father-in-law-trump-says-he-should-be-investigated

LOL! "Watch FIL" is a threat? I think it's a threat if Cohen knows his FIL is compromised because he committed crimes. Really, Cohen's reaction pretty much confirms it.

 

[Mach]

Bear in mind that just this past weekend a Cohen story was pretty much debunked by the Mueller team

That's false.
Buzzfeed's story was pretty much debunked by Mueller, not Cohen's story.

 

[Sampson Simpson]

I think you are alluding to Cohen wanting to rehabilitate his public image via testifying and I've maintained that's not happening. He's a liar and a felon and really, are Dems so desperate that they need to scrape the bottom of the barrel and pull out this chucklehead in order to "get" Trump?
I knew Cohen would never testify. He went through a very public tantrum period and I think he wants to destroy Trump, but knows he'll destroy his criminal family in the process.

What bottom of the barrell? This is a witness with first hand knowledge of Trumps criminal activity. Speaking of bottom of the barrel, you guys elected Trump for crying out loud

 

[Acadia]

What bottom of the barrell? This is a witness with first hand knowledge of Trumps criminal activity. Speaking of bottom of the barrel, you guys elected Trump for crying out loud

Hillary Clinton is sub-barrel, that's why. Oh, and you really should preface your accusations with "allegedly".

 

[Acadia]

What crimes have Cohen's Family members/in laws been convicted of?

I guess we're not going to find out now...
I don't believe that they were all just enjoying the 5-star, lifestyles of the rich and famous, because Cohen was on the up and up, lol.
Live by the sword...