Star witness Michael Cohen implicates Trump in hush money case

the last and perhaps most significant key witness in the case against former president Donald Trump took the stand today Michael Cohen who was once Trump's personal attorney answered questions about the alleged hush money payment made to adult film star Stormy Daniels ABC's Christian codo is outside the courthouse in Manhattan with the update today Michael Cohen who previously said he would take a bullet for Donald Trump took the stand against him saying under oath the former president directed him to pay for multiple women's silence we paid a lawyer a legal expense and we have a legal expense is a legal expense it's marked down in the book quote legal expense Trump is charged with falsifying business records linked to the $130,000 Cohen paid porn actress stormy Daniel's days before the 2016 election prosecutors say the payment was to prevent voters from hearing Daniel's graphic story about an alleged 2006 Affair Trump denies all wrongdoing including the alleged Affair the defense so far has claimed Trump wanted to kill the story to protect his family Cohen's testimony today directly contradicts that saying he wasn't thinking about Melania this was all about the campaign he claimed Trump called the stormy Daniel's situation a quote disaster for the campaign adding Trump said women will hate me Cohen also testified about a catch and kill scheme set up with national Inquirer publisher David pecker where they agreed to publish positive stories about Trump and stop negative ones from coming out pecker himself testified about that 3 week weeks ago jurors heard a conversation Cohen surreptitiously recorded between him and Trump in September 2016 it references one of those alleged cash and kills a $150,000 hush money payment to Playboy model Karen McDougall biper so what are we going to pay funding yes when it comes time for the financing which will be listen what financing we'll have to pay some previous Witnesses have taken swings at Cohen's reputation prosecutor Josh Stein glass conceded he has what you might consider to be some baggage the defense calls Cohen obsessed a convicted liar and that he cannot be trusted jurors have seen more than 200 pieces of evidence so far Cohen is the 20th witness to take the stand and is described as the Lynch pin in this case if the jury believes him in New York Christian Cordo Channel 6 Action News