Trump allies seek to discredit 'star witness' ahead of hush money testimony

Although three of the four criminal cases against former President Donald Trump appear unlikely to go to trial before the November election, the trial in Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg Jr.'s hush money/falsifying business records prosecution has been moving along at a brisk pace — just as Justice Juan Merchan hoped.

Former National Enquirer Published David Pecker was the prosecution's first witness, and other star witnesses expected to be called to the stand include Michael Cohen (Trump's former personal attorney and fixer), adult film star Stormy Daniels and former Playboy model Karen McDougal.

In an article published by The Hill on May 1, reporters Ella Lee and Zach Schonfeld describe the Trump defense team's efforts to discredit Cohen ahead of his testimony.

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"Cohen's conduct is at the heart of the case," the journalists explain. "Prosecutors hope to convince a jury of 12 New Yorkers who will determine Trump's fate that Cohen, now working against his former boss, is credible."

Lee and Schonfeld continue, "But the image of Cohen portrayed to jurors, at this point, is hardly one of valor…. The (Manhattan) District Attorney's Office has warned the New Yorkers who will decide Trump's fate that Cohen has 'some baggage,' but prosecutors hope to convince the jury that their star witness can still be trusted."

During his opening statement, Trump defense attorney Todd Blanche said of Cohen, "I submit to you that he cannot be trusted." Blanche has made a point of attacking Cohen's credibility before he testifies, and Lee and Schonfeld point out that Cohen has been an "easy punching bag" for Trump's lawyers.

But Bragg's prosecution team has been up front about the fact that Cohen doesn't claim to have lived the life of a saint — and readily admits to engaging in bad behavior when he was working for Trump.

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Attorney Lanny Davis, who represented Cohen in the past, told The Hill, "All of the characterizations and personal accusations, and everything else about Michael Cohen, is in past tense. Ever since he raised his hand in front of the American people and around the world, in public, under oath, he's owned all of his misdeeds on behalf of Donald Trump."

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Read The Hill's full report at this link.