In a scene you couldn't script, Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort is found guilty on eight counts and Trump lawyer Michael Cohen pleads guilty to eight counts within minutes of each other. Trump is on Air Force One flying to a rally in West Virginia.
— Josh Dawsey (@jdawsey1) August 21, 2018
Today, in federal court, the President's fixer said the president ***directed him to break campaign law*** to cover up an explosive allegation a few days before an election that the president won by 77,000 votes across three states.
— Chris Hayes (@chrislhayes) August 21, 2018
An admitted felon is "saying that his co-conspirator and/or his aider and abetter was the president of the United States. That is something that I think is basically without precedent in American history" —@JeffreyToobin
— Brian Stelter (@brianstelter) August 21, 2018
Former Justice Department aide: “If Trump knew about the payments in advance or even agreed to them later, he’s looking at liability as a conspirator for what is now a proven crime.” https://t.co/IqXzdQ2DNT
— Eugene Scott (@Eugene_Scott) August 21, 2018
#MichaelCohen just said he committed felonies in coordination with and at the direction of @realDonaldTrump to violate campaign finance laws. Now we know precisely why Lanny Davis played the audio recording b/t Cohen & Trump AND precisely why Giuliani tried to get ahead of it.
— Laura Coates (@thelauracoates) August 21, 2018
Cohen committed crimes "In co-ordination with, and at the direction of" @realDonaldTrump . Thus, President appears to be co-conspirator and/or aider and abettor of a federal crime.
— Jeffrey Toobin (@JeffreyToobin) August 21, 2018
Whether or not *called* an unindicted co-conspirator, that’s what the sitting president IS as of close of business today, August 21, 2018, a day that will live in legal infamy. That’s the import of two of Michael Cohen’s guilty pleas.
— Laurence Tribe (@tribelaw) August 21, 2018
Just to summarize: Michael Cohen has admitted he paid hush money–at the behest of a "candidate"–to two women whose stories, if they had been fully known, might have changed a few votes in the 2016 election.
— Paul Farhi (@farhip) August 21, 2018
Trump is going to look for someone to go on TV and spin the Cohen allocution about being directed by Trump (described only as a federal candidate). It's…hard to spin.
— Maggie Haberman (@maggieNYT) August 21, 2018
A misleading statement at best. As part of his guilty plea, Michael Cohen says he violated campaign finance laws "in coordination and at the direction of a candidate for federal office." That is, at Trump's direction. Which is an allegation of wrongdoing. https://t.co/zmPQhm4IVT
— Jeremy Diamond (@JDiamond1) August 21, 2018
I despise Trump but I doubt the Stormy Daniels and Karen McDougal stories would have affected the election if we had known about them. Remember, we already knew about Access Hollywood, Mexicans are criminals, the birther lie, etc. and 62 million people voted for him anyway. We already knew he had been unfaithful in the past.
If Trump can’t be charged while he is president, I want him to be indicted as soon as he leaves office Lock him up!
Sad! 