Michael Cohen To Testify Before House Oversight Committee On Feb. 27

Michael Cohen, President Donald Trump‘s former personal lawyer, will testify before the House Oversight Committee, on Feb. 27, it was announced Wednesday.

Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-Md.), the Committee’s chairman, revealed the news of Cohen’s upcoming hearing just hours after a judge granted Trump’s longtime fixer a two-month reprieve on reporting to prison, as he is recovering from a shoulder injury. In December, 52-year-old Cohen was sentenced to three years in prison for several crimes including bank and tax fraud, campaign finance violations and lying to Congress about his involvement in plans for a Trump Tower real estate deal in Moscow in 2016.

Cohen’s public testimony before the House Oversight and Intelligence Committees had originally been set for earlier this month, although he and his attorney Lanny Davis urged for Congress to postpone it, citing threats to Cohen and his family — especially his father-in-law — from Trump and others. This week, it was revealed Trump may have attempted to tamper with an investigation into Cohen by asking U.S. Attorney Geoffrey Berman, an ally, to oversee this probe into Cohen and the Trump Organization. Davis has accused the president of using witness intimidation and “mafioso don” tactics.

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House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) said in a tweet Wednesday night that any attempts to intimidate Cohen’s relatives or witnesses “will not be tolerated.”

The House Intelligence Committee, which is led by Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.), is seeking to determine whether any foreign entities, including Russia, have gained leverage in any way over Trump, “his family, his business interests, or his associates.”

Meanwhile, the Oversight Committee will concentrate on Cohen and Trump’s roles in payments made to silence women with whom the former Apprentice host had extramarital affairs, including porn star Stormy Daniels and former Playboy model Karen McDougal. 

Cohen has been allowed to report to prison as late as May 6, after being initially asked to report by March 6.

Article by Pablo Mena

Writer for uPolitics.com. NY Giants and Rangers fan. Film and TV enthusiast (especially Harry Potter and The Office) and lover of foreign languages and cultures.

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