First, Trump recently turned in his written answers to Mueller. If Mueller asked about the Moscow Trump Tower deal and Trump lied, saying that it had ended in January, that would be a strong basis for a perjury charge.
Second, Trump appears to be conducting foreign policy to avoid implicating himself in wrongdoing, it seems, and therefore has to cancel a meeting to avoid underscoring the appearance that he is under Putin’s thumb. The idea that Trump would meet with Putin and read him the riot act appears to be out of the question.
Third, Cohen plainly is cooperating with Mueller — and not communicating with Trump. Unlike the situation with Manafort, Trump has no way of seeing inside the Cohen-Mueller talks. That creates enormous uncertainty and risk. Trump may already have contradicted himself under oath.
Fourth, if it weren’t obvious already, Cohen’s plea agreement shows that the Mueller probe is not a “witch hunt.”
Fifth, the Cohen revelations emphasize the need for legislation to protect Mueller.
Finally, if Cohen is telling the truth, Trump lied during the campaign in flatly denying any deals in Russia. That in itself is a big deal.
www.washingtonpost.com/...
With lemons like Fox News’s Gregg Jarrett and Matt “not the sharpest hot tub in the drawer” Whitaker, 45* is making lemonade and trying explain away a penthouse bribe to a head of state. This is only symptomatic of how deep a hole Trump has dug for himself.
The Associate Press reports that on Thursday morning, former Trump lawyer Michael Cohen pleaded guilty in the Southern District of New York to making false statements to Congress related to his involvement in real estate deals in Russia on behalf of Donald Trump. At the hearing, Cohen's lawyer told the judge that his client was entering a plea agreement with Special Counsel Robert Mueller.
Rep. Mark Meadows (R-N.C.), set to be the ranking Republican on the House Oversight and Government Reform committee in January, penned a confidential document detailing his plans to fight back against Democratic-led investigations of President Trump and his administration.
In a 28-page document obtained by Bloomberg News, which had been watermarked "confidential" on every page, Meadows explains how Republicans on the oversight committee can paint Democrats as pursuing partisan, costly investigations while not passing major legislation.
thehill.com/...