Trump's America
Extract from ABC News
Updated
A secretly recorded tape of Donald Trump by his
long-time personal lawyer has been played on CNN in which the two can be
heard talking about a potential payment for a Playboy model's story
about an alleged affair.
The soon-to-be president is heard discussing whether to "pay with cash."The audio recording, surreptitiously made by Mr Trump's former personal lawyer Michael Cohen two months before the 2016 presidential election, was provided to CNN by Mr Cohen's attorney Lanny Davis.
The conversation between Mr Trump and Mr Cohen came weeks after the National Enquirer's parent company reached a $150,000 deal to pay former Playboy model Karen McDougal for her story of a 2006 affair, which it never published — a tabloid practice known as catch and kill.
Mr Trump denies the affair ever happened and his campaign had said he knew nothing about the payment.
What's in the recording?
Mr Trump and Mr Cohen appear to be discussing buying the rights to Ms McDougal's story from the Enquirer's parent company.Mr Cohen can be heard on the tape saying he needed to start a company "for the transfer of all of that info regarding our friend David," a possible reference to David Pecker — Trump's friend and president of the National Enquirer's parent company, American Media Inc.
When Mr Cohen begins to discuss financing, Mr Trump interrupts him and asks, "What financing?".
"We'll have to pay," Mr Cohen responds.
The audio is muffled, but Mr Trump can be heard saying "pay with cash," though it is not clear if he is suggesting to pay with cash or not to pay with cash.
Mr Cohen immediately says, "No, no, no" and Trump can then be heard saying, "cheque".
Trump 'not shocked money being paid to model'
Mr Trump's current attorney Rudy Giuliani said he had an expert enhance the recording and the President says "don't pay with cash"."It clearly indicates that the President did not want to pay with cash. Suggesting otherwise is ridiculous and is inconsistent with the rest of the conversation, during which it was discussed doing it through a corporation," Mr Giuliani said.
Mr Giuliani said Mr Cohen, as Mr Trump's lawyer, thought it would be best if he could buy the rights to Ms McDougal's story and the recording captured the two of them discussing how to do that.
"Cohen says I have to pay him. The President brings up cash and says 'don't pay with cash' and says 'cheque'. He wants it memorialised," Mr Giuliani said.
"Cohen then says 'No, no, no, no' and he cuts off the tape. He obviously cuts it off in mid-sentence and that in itself is suspicious."
"The President wanted to do it the right way. If you wanted to hide something, you would not do it by corporation or cheque."The payment was never made and Mr Giuliani said he did not know why that was the case and had not discussed it with Mr Trump.
"Listen to the tape. Donald Trump is not shocked money is being paid about someone named Karen McDougal," Mr Davis said during an interview with CNN.
Mr Davis said his client — who is under investigation by federal officials in New York — "has been disparaged and insulted and called all kinds of things".
"He's got truth on his side and he'll continue to tell the truth," Mr Davis said.
Campaign has 'no knowledge of any of this'
American Media, Inc.'s payment effectively silenced Ms McDougal through the election, though days beforehand news of the deal emerged in The Wall Street Journal.At the time, a Trump spokeswoman said his campaign had "no knowledge of any of this".
The FBI raided Mr Cohen's office, home and hotel room in April, searching in part for information about payments to Ms McDougal and porn actress Stormy Daniels, who says she had a sexual relationship with Mr Trump in 2006 — which the President denies — and was paid $130,000 as part of a non-disclosure agreement signed days before the 2016 election.
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