Podcasts > Rachel Maddow Presents: Déjà News > The Jury Is Seated, with Readings from Robert De Niro and Glenn Close

The Jury Is Seated, with Readings from Robert De Niro and Glenn Close

By Rachel Maddow

In this episode of Rachel Maddow Presents: Déjà News, the summary delves into the financial activities of the Trump Organization, uncovering the manipulation of payments made to Stormy Daniels, handled by Michael Cohen. It explores how Cohen created a shell company to facilitate the payment to Daniels, using personal funds from his home equity line of credit.

The summary also examines the implications of these actions, including potential campaign finance law violations. It discusses the scheme to protect Donald Trump's presidential bid from negative stories, highlighting the 'catch and kill' strategy employed by Cohen, David Pecker, and AMI to manipulate the 2016 election. The legal quandaries faced by prosecutors in proving intent to conceal crimes such as tax fraud, election law infringements, and federal campaign finance law violations are also explored.

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The Jury Is Seated, with Readings from Robert De Niro and Glenn Close

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The Jury Is Seated, with Readings from Robert De Niro and Glenn Close

1-Page Summary

Arrangement of Trump Organization Invoices

An exploration into the Trump Organization's financial activities uncovers the manipulation of payments made to Stormy Daniels, particularly handled by Michael Cohen. Cohen claimed an additional profit of $50,000 on top of the original payment to Daniels, raising the sum from $130,000 to $180,000. Subsequent bookkeeping tricks inflated this figure to $360,000, which after accounting for taxes, led to the issuance of invoices totaling $420,000 by the Trump Organization. These were falsely recorded as legal service fees within the company's books.

Personal Funds Used for Payment

Michael Cohen created Essential Consultants LLC and subsequently opened a bank account for the entity in Manhattan. Using personal funds, Cohen transferred $131,000 from his home equity line of credit to the shell company's bank account. He then wired $130,000 from Essential Consultants LLC to Stormy Daniels' attorney to prevent the disclosure of her story.

Concealment of Campaign Finance Violations

Recent admissions have revealed a scheme to protect Donald Trump’s presidential bid from negative stories, implicating campaign finance law infringements. Cohen and David Pecker aimed to delay payments meant to suppress stories of Trump's alleged extramarital encounters until after the election, highlighting an attempt to conceal damaging information and avoid payment contingent on the election outcome. The actions by Cohen, Pecker, and the involvement of AMI demonstrate a concerted 'catch and kill' strategy to manipulate the 2016 presidential election outcome in favor of Trump. These maneuvers pose a legal quandary for prosecutors like Alvin Bragg, who must prove that there was intent by Trump to obscure such crimes, potentially encompassing tax fraud, New York election law infringements, and federal campaign finance law violations.

1-Page Summary

Additional Materials

Clarifications

  • Michael Cohen used funds from his personal home equity line of credit to transfer $131,000 to the bank account of Essential Consultants LLC, a company he established. This transfer was part of the financial transactions related to the payment made to Stormy Daniels. Cohen's use of personal funds in this manner was a key aspect of the financial dealings involving the Trump Organization and the efforts to keep Stormy Daniels' story from becoming public.
  • The 'catch and kill' strategy involved paying for exclusive rights to potentially damaging stories about a public figure, like Donald Trump, and then burying those stories to prevent them from being published. In this case, Michael Cohen, David Pecker, and American Media Inc. (AMI) worked together to buy the rights to stories about Trump's alleged affairs and then prevent their publication, aiming to protect Trump's image during the 2016 presidential election. This strategy was a way to control negative publicity and influence public opinion in favor of Trump by suppressing damaging information. The goal was to ensure that these stories did not become public knowledge and potentially impact Trump's chances in the election.

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The Jury Is Seated, with Readings from Robert De Niro and Glenn Close

Arrangement of Trump Organization Invoices

An examination of the Trump Organization’s financial practices reveals how payments made to Stormy Daniels were manipulated within their accounting.

Upcharges to Provide Michael Cohen Profit

Michael Cohen, involved in the payments to Stormy Daniels, claimed an additional profit from the Trump Organization beyond the initial sum given to Daniels.

Additional $50,000 from Trump

Cohen asserted he was to receive an extra $50,000 from Trump, which increased the total sum to $180,000. This amount was inclusive of the original $130,000 paid to Daniels.

Double Total to Reach $420,000

Ledger manipulations inflated the $180,000 figure to $360,000, following a doubling that Cohen co ...

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Arrangement of Trump Organization Invoices

Additional Materials

Clarifications

  • The payments made to Stormy Daniels were part of a hush money scheme orchestrated by Michael Cohen, who was working on behalf of Donald Trump. Cohen arranged a payment of $130,000 to Daniels to keep her quiet about an alleged affair with Trump. Subsequently, Cohen claimed an additional $50,000 from Trump, inflating the total payment to $180,000. This amount was further manipulated to $420,000 through accounting tricks, with the excess being attributed to legal services to disguise the true nature of the payment.
  • Michael Cohen was a lawyer who worked for the Trump Organization. Stormy Daniels is an adult film actress who received payments related to her alleged affair with Donald Trump. The Trump Organization was Donald Trump's business entity. Cohen facilitated payments to Daniels on behalf of the Trump Organization.
  • The ledger manipulations involved inflating the $180,000 payment to $360,000 within the Trump Organization's financial records. This doubling allowed Michael Cohen to report a higher income from legal services on his tax returns. The final invoiced amount of $420,000 included the inflated sum after accounting for taxes. The manipulated invoices were falsely categorized as payments for legal services in the company's financial records.
  • When Michael Cohen declared the ...

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The Jury Is Seated, with Readings from Robert De Niro and Glenn Close

Personal Funds Used for Payment

Cohen Opens Shell Company Bank Account

Michael Cohen established Essential Consultants LLC and opened a bank account in Manhattan for this newly-created shell company.

Transfers $131k from Home Equity Line

Cohen secured a personal home equity line of credit (HELOC), from which he transferred $131,000 into the shell company’s bank account.

Wires $130k to Daniels Lawyer ...

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Personal Funds Used for Payment

Additional Materials

Clarifications

  • A shell company is a business entity that typically has no active business operations or significant assets. It is often used for specific financial purposes like holding funds or conducting transactions without revealing the true owner's identity. Shell companies can sometimes be used for legal or illegal activities, including money laundering or tax evasion.
  • A home equity line of credit (HELOC) is a type of loan where the borrower can access funds up to a set credit limit using their home as collateral. It operates like a credit card, allowing the borrower to withdraw funds as needed instead of receiving a lump sum upfront. Failure to repay a HELOC can lead to foreclosure since the home secures the loan. HELOCs are often used for major expenses like home improvements or education.
  • Stormy Daniels is an adult film actress who gained public attention for alleging an affair with Donald Trump, the former President of the United States. ...

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The Jury Is Seated, with Readings from Robert De Niro and Glenn Close

Concealment of Campaign Finance Violations

The acknowledgment of illegal actions by key players affiliated with Donald Trump’s presidential campaign has surfaced, revealing coordinated attempts to prevent negative stories from affecting his campaign and potential violations of federal and state election laws.

Delay Payment Until After Election

Michael Cohen pleaded guilty to two federal crimes involving illegal campaign contributions, and David Pecker admitted his liability in an agreement with prosecutors. The coordinated scheme they engaged in sought to prevent Woman 1 from publicizing an alleged sexual relationship with Trump that could damage his candidacy.

Avoid Payment if Trump Wins

The defendant directed Lawyer A, identified as Cohen, to delay a payment to another individual, Woman 2, to suppress her story as well. The strategy was to postpone the payment until after the election because if Trump won, the need to silence the story might be deemed unnecessary. In essence, the instruction was to avoid the payment altogether if it could be deferred until post-election, showcasing a blatant attempt to evade the repercussions of potential negative information surfacing.

Furthermore, AMI was involved in this concealment, admitting to orchestrating a payment to Woman 1 as part o ...

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Concealment of Campaign Finance Violations

Additional Materials

Clarifications

  • AMI, American Media, Inc., was involved in a practice known as "catch and kill." This strategy involves purchasing the rights to a story, often one that could be damaging to a public figure, with the intention of never publishing it. By acquiring the story and not releasing it, AMI effectively silences the information from becoming public knowledge. In the context of the text, AMI orchestrated a payment to prevent Woman 1 from publicizing a story that could harm Donald Trump's presidential campaign. This tactic was part of a broader effort to influence the 2016 presidential election in Trump's favor.
  • Alvin Bragg is a legal figure who is facing the challenge of proving that Donald Trump intended to conceal crimes related to campaign finance violations, potentially including tax fraud, violations of New York elections law, and federal campaign finance law. Bragg's task involves demonstrating that Trump knowingly engaged in actions to hide damaging information from voters until after the election, indicating an intent to evade the legal consequences of potential violations.
  • Delaying payments until after the election was significant because it allowed the individuals involved to potentially avoid making the payments alto ...

Counterarguments

  • The plea of guilty by Michael Cohen and the admission of liability by David Pecker do not necessarily implicate Donald Trump directly, as individuals can act without the consent or knowledge of others involved in a campaign.
  • The strategy to delay payment until after the election could be argued as a legal tactic to manage potential liabilities and not necessarily as an intent to violate campaign finance laws.
  • The involvement of AMI in a "catch and kill" operation, while ethically questionable, may not directly translate to a violation of election laws if it can be proven that their actions were not coordinated with the campaign or were within legal boundaries for media entities.
  • The legal challenge faced by Alvin Bragg to demonstrate Trump's intent to conceal crimes requires a high burden of proof, and it is possible that the evidence may not conclusively establish intent beyond a reasonable doubt.
  • The assertion that the actions violate federal and state election laws is a legal conclusion that would ultimately need to be determined by a court, and until such a determination is made, it remains an allegation.
  • The idea ...

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