Although Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s Russia investigation continues to move toward its conclusion, President Donald Trump is facing renewed legal scrutiny over issues like the illegal hush money scheme targeting women with whom he’d had affairs. Former executive vice president at the Trump Organization Barbara Res suggested this week that the scandal goes farther than is currently publicly known, including as many as more than five more payments, although she declined to suggest more than ten.
MSNBC host Ari Melber asked Res about the possibility this week, beginning with the “more than five” option, which Res instantly, “instinctively” answered, as she described it.
She explained:
‘Trump would do that kind of thing and Allen would be the guy that would draw out the check, and probably Trump would sign it himself.’
The payments could compound already in-place serious legal vulnerability for the president since his former personal lawyer Michael Cohen will soon be reporting for a three-year jail term in part because of his role in seeking to silence former Playboy model Karen McDougal and adult film star Stormy Daniels. The possibility of more payments has emerged after Cohen testified publicly before the House Oversight Committee this past week, repeatedly naming Trump Organization Chief Financial Officer and Trump family accountant Allen Weisselberg as someone concerned House Democrats should get in touch with for more information.
In the time since, both the Oversight and House Intelligence Committees have indicated plans to call Weisselberg for testimony.
Res believes that he’ll be an at least somewhat cooperative witness, explaining on MSNBC:
‘It’s hard to do ‘I don’t remember.’ I’ve been deposed many times, and after awhile, you’ve got to start lying on the other side, and that’s not going to ring too true. I don’t think Allen would perjure himself. I mean, I’ve been surprised at things I’ve seen that people I knew have done, but I would be surprised.’
Watch:
The potential ramifications of his cooperation could be breathtaking. He has worked with the Trump family for decades, and these days, even serves alongside Donald Jr. and Eric leading the Trump Organization in their father’s absence. He had a stake in the hush money scandal that took down Cohen, having helped reimburse him for a $130,000 payment to Daniels, which he’s already received limited immunity for from federal prosecutors.
He even served as the treasurer for the now defunct Trump Foundation, which is the target of significant litigation from the New York state Attorney General’s office, which is seeking millions of dollars in damages over the entity’s corrupt self-dealing.
Besides criminal liability for the hush money scheme, Trump has been alleged to be guilty of insurance fraud and tax fraud, the latter of which he pulled off through at this point well-documented deceptive valuations of his properties. He has refused to release his tax returns, which breaks with decades of precedent for major party presidential candidates not to mention presidents, but Cohen also specifically named those documents as containing more information and thanks to their subpoena power, the Democratic House majority could soon get their hands on them.
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