Tensions Flare as Trump's Lawyer Cross-Examines Cohen in Fraud Trial
Michael Cohen testified against Donald Trump in the Trump Organization's civil fraud trial in Manhattan. This was the first time Cohen and Trump had been in the same room in 5 years. Cohen described how Trump directed him to manipulate Trump's financial statements by inflating the value of his properties to hit arbitrary net worth numbers Trump wanted. Cohen said he would "reverse engineer" valuations with the CFO to increase the values of properties like Trump Tower, Trump Park Ave, Trump World Tower, and others. Cross-examination of Cohen by Trump's lawyer got heated as Cohen loudly objected to one line of questioning.
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00:00 It's Benzinga and here's what's on the block.
00:02 Michael Cohen testified against former President Donald Trump and the Trump Organization in
00:06 an ongoing fraud trial, with Trump's lawyers attacking Cohen's credibility due to his past
00:10 conviction for lying to Congress.
00:12 Under cross-examination, Trump's lawyer highlighted Cohen's guilty plea for lying to Congress
00:16 in 2018 and asked if he lied to the judge then, which Cohen acknowledged.
00:20 New York Attorney General Letitia James' lawsuit accuses Trump and his company of falsely inflating
00:25 assets over 10 years to get better terms for loans and tax benefits.
00:29 James seeks around $250 million in damages and to bar Trump from running businesses in
00:33 New York if found liable for fraud.
00:35 For all things money, visit Benzinga.com.
00:37 (upbeat music)