JUST IN: President Trump says the FBI raid of his personal attorney, Michael Cohen, is a “real disgrace, it’s an attack on our country,” and calls the investigation a “total witch hunt” https://t.co/tKhp8GSMjz pic.twitter.com/FaBP49jDTY
— CNN (@CNN) April 9, 2018
On Monday, the offices of Trump attorney Michael Cohen were raided by the FBI and documents regarding Stormy Daniels were seized. While the operation was partially on “referral” from Special Counsel Robert Mueller, it is not related to the probe into Trump’s possible collusion with Russia. Instead, this is potentially incriminating information of a completely different nature.
The saga of Trump’s dealings with Stormy Daniels has dominated the news cycle for months, and it soon became clear that Cohen could likely be the fall guy for the President in this situation. Daniels’ attorney, Michael Avenatti said as much to Rolling Stone:
“As I predicted last week on CNN and MSNBC, Mr. Cohen has been placed in the crosshairs by Mr. Trump. He has been set up to take the fall. An enormous amount of misplaced faith has been placed on his shoulders and I do not believe he has the mettle to withstand it. If I’m correct, this could end very, very badly for Mr. Trump and others.”
However, possibly the most predictable aspect of this situation is how Trump handled the news of this raid, repeatedly calling the operation “a disgrace.” Trump told reporters that “it’s an attack on our country in a true sense. It’s an attack on what we all stand for,” once again claiming to be the victim of a “witch hunt.”
“We’ve had that hanging over us from the very, very beginning. And yet the other side they’re not even looking. And the other side is where there are crimes and those crimes are obvious.”
By essentially calling a legitimate investigation a hoax meant to make him look bad, Trump is attempting to reframe the truth, possibly while trying to cover alleged tracks in his personal life. It’s a strange spectacle from the guy who runs the nation.
(Via CNN, Rolling Stone, The Hill)