*By Amanda Weston* Michael Cohen may have pleaded guilty to eight criminal counts, but one GOP strategist said President Trump's former personal attorney and fixer could still pose a serious threat, since he "knows where a lot of the bodies are buried." "Michael Cohen has the keys to the kingdom," said Rick Wilson, author of "Everything Trump Touches Dies." "He knows about Trump's finances. He knows about Trump's taxes. He knows about Trump's dalliances with various porn stars and models and God knows who else. He is a guy who could cause a lot of damage on the Trump perception front." Cohen pleaded guilty on Tuesday to charges including tax fraud, false statements to a bank, and campaign finance violations. He also admitted he made payments in 2016 to silence two women who claimed they had affairs with Trump. In his plea, Cohen said he acted at the direction of a candidate for federal office, implicating his former boss and mentor. Wilson said in an interview on Cheddar Wednesday that Cohen may testify that Trump was aware of a conspiracy to meet with Russian officials in Trump Tower to gather information on Hillary Clinton during the 2016 election. "He may be able to point to the fact that the president encouraged it," Wilson said. "So, we're in a situation where Trump has got some really serious peril when it comes to the Russia case. But again, he also can expose a lot of other parts of Donald Trump's life that Trump does not want out there." Cohen [once said](https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2017/09/michael-cohen-interview-donald-trump) he would take a bullet for the president, but his attorney painted a very different picture on Wednesday while discussing a presidential pardon on NBC's "Today." “He considers a pardon from someone who acted so corruptly as president to be something he would never accept,” Lanny Davis, Cohen’s attorney, [said](https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/white-house/michael-cohen-willing-share-all-he-knows-mueller-lawyer-says-n902801). Trump later took a jab at Cohen, [tweeting](https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1032247043992023040), "If anyone is looking for a good lawyer, I would strongly suggest that you don’t retain the services of Michael Cohen!" Still, despite all the drama, Wilson said it's premature to talk about impeachment, calling recent developments "the first inning of the first game of the World Series." "There has to be a realistic expectation you can move from an impeachment procedure in the House to a conviction in the Senate," Wilson said, adding, "we are very far away from that." "If the Democrats are smart, they're going to focus on the corruption and not on the impeachment. These things fill in the blank on their own." For full interview, [click here] (https://cheddar.com/videos/former-trump-attorney-michael-cohen-pleads-guilty).

Share:
More In Politics
NY State Sen. John Liu Discusses AAPI Representation in Politics, Ongoing Hate Crimes
New York State Senator John Liu spoke with Cheddar News about Asian-American representation in politics, his bill to make Asian-American history mandatory in schools, and the ongoing hate crimes against his community. State Sen. Liu also discussed the debate over student loan forgiveness and gave his take on artificial intelligence in education.
Criminal Defense Attorney Discusses NY Rep. Santos Charges
Criminal defense attorney Tamara Holder joined Cheddar News to break down the charges that New York Republican Congressman George Santos is facing. "When the feds come after you -- and this is for anyone, a politician or not -- they generally have already built their case before they indict you," Holder said, regarding the timeline of Rep. Santos' arrest.
Load More