Michael Cohen arrives at New York Supreme Court for former President Donald Trump's civil business fraud trial, Wednesday, Oct. 25, 2023, in New York. Wednesday in his ex-boss Donald Trump's civil business fraud trial as the former president's defense team tried to undermine the credibility of his onetime personal attorney turned adversary.
Trump watched as his lawyer Alina Habba then cross-examined Cohen, emphasizing Cohen's federal criminal convictions and working to portray him as a liar, especially after he said Tuesday he had lied when he pleaded guilty in 2018 to tax evasion and lying on a bank loan application. Cohen now maintains he did not really commit those crimes and on Tuesday he sought to portray his conduct as a matter of omissions and failure to correct paperwork.
Cohen is a key witness in New York Attorney General Letitia James' civil case against Trump. James alleges that Trump habituallyTrump denies any wrongdoing and says James, a Democrat, is targeting the leading Republican presidential candidate in 2024 for partisan reasons. Outside court, Trump said the trial was “very unfair” and a “pure political witch hunt.” Nonetheless, he said, “We’re happy with the way it’s going.
Trump said the women's stories were false. Cohen has said he orchestrated payments to the women at Trump's direction.