GOP Strategist: Cohen 'Knows Where a Lot of the Bodies Are Buried'
*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).
Tim Davis, Partner and Executive Managing Director at Steward Partners, joins Cheddar News' Closing Bell, where he discusses what activity we could expect to see from the crypto market this week as the Fed decision approaches, the prices of Bitcoin and Ether struggle to find a spark, and the industry continues to digest President Biden's executive order on crypto.
Russia may be asking China for help with its war in Ukraine, according to several reports citing unnamed U.S. officials. Russia is reportedly calling on its ally for military and economic assistance, in an attempt to avoid punishment from sanctions imposed by the U.S., Europe, and Asia, which have hammered Russia's economy. Chinese and Russian officials denied the reports. Meanwhile, top U.S. and Chinese officials are meeting today, with both countries confirming the conflict in Ukraine will be the meeting's main topic. Edward Wong, diplomatic correspondent for the New York Times, joins Cheddar News' Closing Bell to discuss.
A Ukrainian drone company is using its technology to help defend its home nation during the ongoing war with Russia. Valerii Iakovenko, co-founder and CEO of DroneUA, joined Cheddar News to discuss its efforts to help against the invasion. "These drones can be used to do strikes more precise and even cheap drones, even simple technologies can help to make a defensive possibilities more precise," he said.
Following the Texas Supreme Court's decision to end further challenges against the latest abortion restrictions, Texas saw a 60 percent decrease in abortions performed in the state — with an exodus of patients seeking care in other parts of the country. President, and CEO of Planned Parenthood Federation of America, Alexis McGill Johnson, joined Cheddar News at South by Southwest 2022 to discuss the impact of the court's ruling on reproductive health care in the Lone Star State and beyond.
Damian Mason, farm owner, agricultural economist and author of "Food Fear" joined Cheddar News to talk about how the Russian invasion of Ukraine is putting pressure on commodities, which could lead to a 20 percent price hike according to the United Nations. “Russia and Ukraine are responsible for about 35 percent of exports, 35 percent of grain exports, specifically wheat,” said Mason. He also added, "You've got Russia saying, 'we're going to hoard and hold back our wheat,' which of course crimps global supply, and you've got Ukraine that maybe won't even get harvested."
In order to qualify for one of the coveted first retail licenses in New York's adult-use cannabis program, you'll have to have a conviction on cannabis-related charges or have an immediate family member who does. It's part of the latest effort by New York lawmakers to create a diverse and inclusive industry — but some advocates still have reservations. Amber Littlejohn, the executive director of the Minority Cannabis Business Association, joined Cheddar News' Closing Bell to discuss. "We definitely applaud the state of new york, but ultimately the devil will be in the details as to whether or not this actually works out to create equity in the cannabis industry," she said.
David Daley, senior fellow for FairVote, joins Cheddar News to discuss the Supreme Court denying the GOP's challenge to congressional maps in North Carolina and Pennsylvania.