On Friday, former longtime Trump “fixer” Michael Cohen announced that he had “agreed to cooperate with multiple government agencies” in investigations targeting outgoing President Donald Trump and his family. Presumably, these investigations include at least one effort in New York, where state Attorney General Letitia James and Manhattan District Attorney Cy Vance are both investigating issues related to the Trump Organization. Vance, for his part, is leading a criminal investigation, and any tentative shield from criminal proceedings that Trump has as president will evaporate within weeks once he leaves office.
Cohen tweeted the following message:
‘I have been asked and have agreed to cooperate with multiple government agencies to provide testimony on the wrongdoing by #Trump and the #TrumpFamily. I am doing this in large part as #Trump and family have tried, and thankfully failed, to destroy America’s democracy.’
I have been asked and have agreed to cooperate with multiple government agencies to provide testimony on the wrongdoing by #Trump and the #TrumpFamily. I am doing this in large part as #Trump and family have tried, and thankfully failed, to destroy America’s democracy.
— Michael Cohen (@MichaelCohen212) January 9, 2021
Cohen has already publicly revealed apparent fraudulent asset valuation adjustments at the Trump Organization, which the president’s family business used in pursuit of financial kickbacks like loans and tax breaks. The Trump family business apparently repeatedly adjusted their valuations of their assets in order to make their financial situation artificially appear more conducive to whatever particular end that they were after. In one example, N.Y. AG James is investigating a potential fraudulent inflation of the value of a conservation easement on a New York Trump property, which provided a significant tax boon for the Trump Organization.
Talk of consequences for Trump’s behavior has intensified following the violent Wednesday riot at the U.S. Capitol, which he incited and then attempted to publicly justify. In a Twitter post discussing the Capitol violence, which is now connected to five deaths, Trump said that “[these] are the things and events that happen when a sacred landslide victory is so unceremoniously & viciously stripped away from great patriots who have been badly & unfairly treated for so long.” The idea that Trump’s rightful election victory was stolen is, of course, delusional — but the damage from his remarks is real. Twitter has completely removed Trump’s account, citing the potential of further incitement of violence.
Check out Twitter’s response to Cohen below:
