Michael Cohen Reaches Plea Deal Over Payments to Two Women

Michael Cohen, Donald Trump’s longtime personal lawyer and fixer, pleaded guilty on Tuesday to campaign finance and other charges. In addition to these, he admitted to paying a pornographic actress during the 2016 presidential campaign to ensure her silence about an affair she had with Trump.

According to The New York Times, Cohen pleaded guilty to multiple counts of bank and tax fraud. The plea agreement does not mean Cohen has to cooperate with federal prosecutors in Manhattan, but it does not stop him from providing information to special counsel Robert Mueller, who is examining the Trump campaign’s possible involvement in Russia’s interference in the 2016 campaign.

According to The Los Angeles Times, Cohen’s plea deal included him saying he arranged the payoffs to porn actress Stormy Daniels and ex-Playboy model Karen McDougal “in coordination and at the direction of a candidate for federal office,” potentially putting Trump in direct legal jeopardy.