Trump trial: Cohen faces Trump team grilling over past lies, recollections

Michael Cohen told jurors that he kept Donald Trump in the loop about his effort to kill a false story about Trump having a child out of wedlock, which was shopped by former Trump doorman Dino Sajudin.

"I provided him with all the information," Cohen said about his conversation with Trump.

"He told me to make sure that the story does not get out. You handle it," Trump said according to Cohen. "He asked me to speak to [the two employees] and let them know it was taken care of."

Pecker said he worked with David Pecker and Dylan Howard of the National Enquirer, who purchased the life rights to the story.

"Did you tell them that Mr Trump would be grateful?" Hoffinger asked.

"Absolutely," Cohen said.

Cohen said he offered feedback on AMI's contract with Sajudin, suggesting they add a $1 million penalty if Sajudin breached the contract.

When Cohen first became aware of Sajudin's claim, Cohen said, "I went to [Trump] immediately to advise him that there was a story -- because it was a negative story for him -- and to get his direction on what he wanted me to do."

Cohen said he shared the news of Sajudin's contract with Trump to keep him in the loop and "in order to get credit for accomplishing the task."

"What was Mr. Trump's reaction when you told him that?" Hoffinger asked.

"That's great," Cohen said Trump responded.

Cohen said National Enquirer parest AMI would send him advanced covers of upcoming editions of the National Enquirer, which frequently showed negative stories about Trump's political foes -- including Hillary Clinton.

Asked what he would do with those copies, Cohen said he "immediately showed it to Mr. Trump."

"Why?" prosecutor Susan Hoffinger asked.

"So he knew that David was loyal, on board ... doing everything he said he was going to do in that August meeting," Cohen said.
Cohen said Trump's reaction would typically be akin to: "Fantastic."

The jury saw an email exchange regarding Cohen personally editing a story about Trump that was going to be in the National Enquirer. It was billed as an exclusive: "The Trump that Nobody Knows."

"Is this an example of your working with AMI to get stories out that would benefit the Trump campaign?" Hoffinger asled.

"It is an example," Cohen replied.

Before Trump announced his bid for the presidency, Michael Cohen recalled Trump warning him about stories that might emerge about his past interactions with various women.

"You know that when this comes out, meaning the announcement, just be prepared there's going to be a lot of women coming forward," Cohen recalled Trump saying.

Cohen recounted the August 2015 Trump Tower meeting where then-National Enquirer publisher David Pecker, Trump and Cohen agreed to the basics of a catch-and-kill scheme.

"What was discussed is the power of the National Enquirer in terms of being located at the cash register of so many supermarkets and bodegas. That if we can place positive stories about Mr. Trump that would be beneficial, and if we could place negative stories about some of the other candidates, that would also be beneficial," Cohen said.

"What he said was that he could keep an eye out for anything negative about Mr. Trump and that he would be able to help us know in advance what was coming out and try to stop it from coming out," Cohen said of Pecker, echoing Pecker's testimony from three weeks ago.

In 2011, Cohen flagged a poll to Trump that suggested he would be a competitive presidential candidate

"I took that article and I brought to Mr. Trump, and I said what do you think?" Cohen said. "He said it's interesting, we should look into it."

"It was further proof that his name recognition, his popularity … was so strong," Cohen said.

Cohen said that Trump backed away from the idea of running in the 2012 race to focus on his other commitments, including his television show.

"You don't leave Hollywood. Hollywood leaves you," Cohen recounted Trump saying.

While Trump backed away in 2012, Cohen said Trump made a vow about 2016.

"He promised to me that he would do it in the next election cycle," Cohen said.

Cohen. on the stand, appears earnest and somewhat morose -- different from his bombastic, showy persona on his podcast or on social media. He appears calm and speaks slowly, referring to his former boss as "Mr. Trump."