Silicon Investor (SI) -- The First Internet Community

STOCKTALK

We've detected that you're using an ad content blocking browser plug-in or feature. Ads provide a critical source of revenue to the continued operation of Silicon Investor. We ask that you disable ad blocking while on Silicon Investor in the best interests of our community. If you are not using an ad blocker but are still receiving this message, make sure your browser's tracking protection is set to the 'standard' level.

Politics : Formerly About Advanced Micro Devices -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Brumar89 who wrote (1455229)	5/6/2024 5:40:23 PM
From: Broken_Clock	1 Recommendation Recommended By longz Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 1571690

Key Witness Says Trump Did Not Personally Ask Him To Carry Out 'Hush Money' Payments Monday, May 06, 2024 - 03:39 AM Authored by Jack Phillips via The Epoch Times [url=]Former President Donald Trump attends his trial for allegedly covering up hush money payments linked to extramarital affairs, at Manhattan Criminal Court in New York City, on May 6, 2024. (Peter Foley/Pool/AFP via Getty Images)[/url]A witness in former President Donald Trump’s New York “hush money” trial on Monday appeared to confirm his attorneys’ claims that payments at the center of the case were legal expenses and that he was not personally directed by the former president to make those payments. Former Trump Organization controller Jeffrey McConney testified Monday that payments that were sent to former attorney Michael Cohen were legal expenses, confirming defense attorneys’ arguments. “Michael Cohen was a lawyer?” Trump defense attorney Emil Bove asked Mr. McConney. “Sure, yes,” he replied. “And payments to lawyers by the Trump Organization are legal expenses, right?” asked Mr. Bove. “Yes,” said Mr. McConney. Later, Mr. McConney said that President Trump and Trump Organization official Allen Weisselberg never told him to log the payments to Mr. Cohen as legal expenses. “President Trump did not ask you to do any of the things you just described?” the attorney then asked. “He did not,” Mr. McConney replied. “And as far as you know, President Trump did not ask anyone to do those things?” Mr. Bove continued. “In none of the conversations that you had with Weisselberg, did he suggest that President Trump had told him to do these things?” he also asked. “Allen never told me that,” Mr. McConney said. Little Contact With CohenMr. McConney said his interactions with Mr. Cohen were “minimal.” He said that other than emails about invoices, he never spoke to Mr. Cohen about the reimbursement arrangement. In court papers, Trump lawyers have described that the payments that were sent to Mr. Cohen as legal expenses, while prosecutors say that it was an attempt to cover up the true nature of the payments during an election. Mr. Cohen used the funds to pay adult film actress Stormy Daniels to not speak publicly about allegations about an affair in 2006, which President Trump has denied. At one point, Mr. Bove asked Mr. McConney about the internal payment system, and Mr. McConney suggested that it was antiquated. “Legal expenses” were “part of a drop down menu?” Mr. Bove asked him. “Yes,” Mr. McConney answered It “was a bit antiquated?” Mr. Bove asked. “Yes,” Mr. McConney said. “These categories, there was a level of rigidity to them?” the lawyer also asked. “Yes,” the witness replied. “So if you are talking about payments to an attorney, legal expenses was the category that was used?” Mr. Bove asked. “Yes,” Mr. McConney said. The defense argued that the legal expenses were legitimate and not illegal. Mr. Bove got Mr. McConney to say that he didn’t know whether Mr. Cohen did legal work for President Trump in 2017. Also, when he was asked by the attorney if President Trump personally asked him to carry out any the tasks, the former controller said that he “did not.” He also said he didn’t speak to President Trump on a regular basis, adding that any talks with him wouldn’t be about accounting programs. Mr. McConney, who testified for about three hours on Monday, also confirmed in court that 1099 tax forms that were sent to Mr. Cohen for the payments in 2017 were disclosed to the IRS. “There’s no place on this form to break out payments for legal services versus expenses incurred, right?” Mr. Bove asked about the 1099 form, to which Mr. McConney agreed. “And it’s Michael Cohen’s job to figure out how to account for these payments on his personal taxes, correct?” Mr. Bove then asked him. “Yes,” the witness said. “And you don’t know what he did, right?” Mr. Bove asked. “That’s correct,” Mr. McConney said.