Michael Cohen recorded Trump discussing payment to ex-Playboy model



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Cohen has other recordings of the president in his files that were seized by the FBI, said a source familiar with the bands of Cohen and Giuliani, who described the other recordings as mundane discussions.

The recording on the former Playboy model, Karen McDougal, was among the documents and materials seized in the FBI raid on the hotel, residence and Cohen's office earlier this year. year. A transcript of the recording was reviewed by Trump's legal team, who does not believe this to be a legal problem for the president.

The disclosure of McDougal's record, which was first reported by The New York Times, raises new questions about the durations to which Trump and his confidante would go to remove the allegations of business. extramarital affairs before the election. Adult film actress Stormy Daniels sued Trump for a $ 130,000 deal that Cohen made her on behalf of Trump to keep her quiet on an alleged affair, which Trump denied, with McDougal's allegations.

McDougal finally signed a contract with owns the National Enquirer, which prohibited him from speaking publicly about the alleged case before the 2016 elections.

Giuliani says that Trump did not know that & ### 39; it was recorded during McDougal's discussion, which took place in the Trump Tower candidate's office in September 2016. When he was informed of the recording, Trump said, "I can" I think Michael would do that to me, "a source close to the tapes told CNN.

A spokeswoman for the US Attorney's Office declined to comment, and a Cohen lawyer declined to comment on the Times. 39 McDougal's lawyer Peter Stris tweeted on Friday: ". @ Karenmcdougal98 → When @realDonaldTrump said we're lying, do you think he meant we were not? "An apparent reference to Trump's assertion of being wrong at the summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin earlier this week

Other records exist

There are other tapes of Cohen and others "Powerful" individuals The FBI has seized beyond the president what could be embarrassing for people on the band and for Cohen, according to a source familiar with the gangs.The source said that people are "significant and consistent".

The source familiar with Cohen's recordings said that there was nothing illegal in the discussion, but acknowledged that there might be ethical issues regarding the The source noted that this is not the same as the affa Daniels, where there are questions about Cohen making payments on behalf of the president, possibly in violation of the campaign finance laws.

Giuilani knows the recordings for several days. reviewed the transcripts, he told CNN.

Cohen is currently under criminal investigation in New York. In recent weeks, documents and other evidence obtained during the April searches began to be handed over to the government as a former federal judge. Trump's and Trump's lawyers and lawyers have gone through the process of determining which of the millions of articles are subject to solicitor-client privilege.

"I thought I was the only one"

In August 2016, McDougal signed an agreement with American Media Inc., which owns The National Enquirer, Us Weekly, Men's & # 39; 39; s Journal and several other publications. She believed at the time that the contract was a work contract that would allow her to be photographed and write articles that would be published in company publications.

His lawyer for this negotiation was Keith Davidson. She told CNN that she later discovered that Davidson was in contact with Cohen. In one lawsuit, she accused Davidson of "working closely with Mr. Trump's representatives while claiming to plead on his behalf." Davidson denied the allegations and told CNN that he had reached out to Cohen during the latter part of the 2016 campaign to let him know that he had negotiated the deal with AMI.

McDougal later realized that she could cope with a financial situation. to talk to the media about his story. In April, she entered into an agreement with AMI to discuss the alleged case.

Speaking with CNN's Anderson Cooper in March, McDougal claimed that she and Trump were together "dozens of times" and responded in the affirmative

McDougal described the case presumed from 2006 to 2007 as a consensual and loving relationship, and said that she did not know that Trump could have seen other women at that time than his wife – and that throughout their entire relationship, "I did not know that he was intimate with other women," she said on CNN's "Anderson Cooper 360" at the time. "I thought I was the only one."

CNN's Eli Watkins contributed to this report.

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