Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

I see no possible difficulties whatsoever with this fool-proof plan.

Let me eat cake. The rest of you could stand to lose some weight, frankly.

The party of Reagan has become the party of Putin.

It’s the corruption, stupid.

The arc of history bends toward the same old fuckery.

They think we are photo bombing their nice little lives.

This blog will pay for itself.

The cruelty is the point; the law be damned.

You don’t get to peddle hatred on saturday and offer condolences on sunday.

Damn right I heard that as a threat.

Too often we confuse noise with substance. too often we confuse setbacks with defeat.

Take your GOP plan out of the witness protection program.

Give the craziest people you know everything they want and hope they don’t ask for more? Great plan.

Optimism opens the door to great things.

If you are still in the GOP, you are an extremist.

JFC, are there no editors left at that goddamn rag?

Republicans don’t want a speaker to lead them; they want a hostage.

Jesus, Mary, & Joseph how is that election even close?

Joe Lieberman disappointingly reemerged to remind us that he’s still alive.

Putin must be throwing ketchup at the walls.

Bad news for Ron DeSantis is great news for America.

fuckem (in honor of the late great efgoldman)

No Justins, No Peace

And we’re all out of bubblegum.

You are here: Home / Politics / America / Another Point For Christopher Steele: Mueller Has Evidence That Cohen Was In Prague In 2016

Another Point For Christopher Steele: Mueller Has Evidence That Cohen Was In Prague In 2016

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Gonna be that kind of Friday!

From McClatchy:

WASHINGTON 

The Justice Department special counsel has evidence that Donald Trump’s personal lawyer and confidant, Michael Cohen, secretly made a late-summer trip to Prague during the 2016 presidential campaign, according to two sources familiar with the matter.

Confirmation of the trip would lend credence to a retired British spy’s report that Cohen strategized there with a powerful Kremlin figure about Russian meddling in the U.S. election.

It would also be one of the most significant developments thus far in Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation of whether the Trump campaign and the Kremlin worked together to help Trump win the White House. Undercutting Trump’s repeated pronouncements that “there is no evidence of collusion,” it also could ratchet up the stakes if the president tries, as he has intimated he might for months, to order Mueller’s firing.

Cohen has vehemently denied for months that he ever has been in Prague or colluded with Russia during the campaign. Neither he nor his lawyer responded to requests for comment for this story.

It’s unclear whether Mueller’s investigators also have evidence that Cohen actually met with a prominent Russian – purportedly Konstantin Kosachev, an ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin — in the Czech capital. Kosachev, who chairs the Foreign Affairs Committee of a body of the Russian legislature, the Federation Council, also has denied visiting Prague during 2016. Earlier this month, Kosachev was among 24 high-profile Russians hit with stiff U.S. sanctions in retaliation for Russia’s meddling.

But investigators have traced evidence that Cohen entered the Czech Republic through Germany, apparently during August or early September of 2016 as the ex-spy reported, said the sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the investigation is confidential. He wouldn’t have needed a passport for such a trip, because both countries are in the so-called Schengen Area in which 26 nations operate with open borders. The disclosure still left a puzzle: The sources did not say whether Cohen took a commercial flight or private jet to Europe, and gave no explanation as to why no record of such a trip has surfaced.

Peter Carr, a spokesman for Mueller’s office, declined comment.

Much more at the link!

Stay frosty!

Open thread.

Reader Interactions

155Comments

  2. 2.

    Adam L Silverman

    I’m going for chow. Back in 90 minutes or so. Play nice or Christopher Steele will write a dossier about you!

  3. 3.

    lamh36

    @marthamaccallum
    Follow Follow @marthamaccallum
    More
    BREAKING: WH MEETING ON SYRIA STILL ON GOING. WSJ REPORTS: MATTIS FAVORING MEASURED RESPONSE , PRESIDENT WANTS SOMETHING STRONGER.

    5:56 PM – 13 Apr 2018

  9. 9.

    Yarrow

    Of course he was in Prague. It was only a matter of time until it became public. Remember when he showed a photo of his passport cover on Twitter to “prove” he wasn’t in Prague. Dumbass.

  11. 11.

    David ??Merry Christmas?? Koch

    Michael Cohen
    ‏Verified account @MichaelCohen212
    Feb 6

    For more than a year, I have sworn under oath, appeared on tv and provided written and verbal statements to press…I have never been to #Prague and none of the allegations about me in the #RussianDossier are true. #finally #truth @RepAdamSchiff @RepSwalwell

    97 replies 531 retweets 1,300 likes

    Ooops.

  12. 12.

    geg6

    Jesus. I can’t take any more. No mas! No mas!

    I’m going to watch the Pens, order some Chinese and forget that I’m living in my worst nightmare.

  13. 13.

    ? Martin

    It seems quite apparent that the only solution to Syria is an epic invasion that can secure the entire country so that some sort of non-military solution can be implemented. Nobody wants to pay for that, but bombs are cheap, so we get the Maslows law of the hammer approach to, well, everything.

  14. 14.

    jl

    Cohen’s expressions and behavior in photos and clips have indicated that the law has him by the windpipe and balls, with thumbs hovering over the eyeballs, while his head gets put into a vise (legally speaking in a metaphorical way, mind you). This news is consistent with that notion.

    I hope Mattis’ ability of overawe and BS Trump out of sinister crime and foolishness holds out over the next few days.

    Mattis looks like a central casting general, while Bolton was brought in despite his goofy ‘stache which don’t look good on TV. Avoiding a potentially very dangerous and costly ‘wag the dog’ military action may depend on that difference.

    I think Mattis has a passing resemblance to Smedley Butler. No one try to explain the (probably overly) optimistic implication to the vile Trump.

  15. 15.

    David ??Merry Christmas?? Koch

    This will force the WH to step up their scheduled firing of Rosenstein from the usual 10 PM time.

  16. 16.

    ? Martin

    If Cohen was in Prague, what name and passport did he travel there under, because it’s pretty clear it wasn’t ‘Michael Cohen’.

  17. 17.

    MomSense

    God dammit. Before this mess is resolved, we’re all going to have to watch the fucking pee pee tape.

    I’m still furious that we went from the most intelligent, ethical, dignified, elegant president to this fucking course, disgusting asshole.

    Hero to zero just like that.

  18. 18.

    Feebog

    I’m getting into a new suit and going to an installation dinner for my local chamber tonight. Going to record Maddow and not worry about any more of this shit show for a couple hours.

  21. 21.

    Yutsano

    This is what I get for not investing in popcorn futures earlier…

    @ Martin: No one could convince Dubya that wars require the Shinseki approach of millions of troops and hundreds of billions of dollars for the messy shit that happens afterward. You think anyone around Dolt45 has any clue about nation building, let alone the vision and wherewithal to pull it off?

  23. 23.

    Yarrow

    @? Martin:
    Are you asking what passport he used to get into the Schengen Area? Because once there he didn’t need a passport to go to Prague.

  24. 24.

    Jay

    @? Martin:

    As the article points out, Prague is in the Shenegian Area of the EU.

    As a result, you can fly to Frankfurt, pass customs, get a German stamp on your passport, then fly, drive, take the bus or train, to Prague, with out ever again passing through Customs.

  27. 27.

    ? Martin

    @jl: Cohen should be pretty calm about this. He’s the kind of guy who always knew he’d go to prison but managed to live large as long as he could before getting there. He’s probably pretty pleased with how things have gone overall.

  28. 28.

    jl

    @Yutsano: From links AS, and commenters in his posts, have provided, Mattis’ ability to flimflam Trump is about all that stands between our country and very dangerous and costly international crimes and blunders.

  32. 32.

    jl

    @? Martin: Sure. We all know that we have to die someday. Therefore, always very easy for all of us to deal with it when the the time comes. Just human nature. He had planned for all contingencies. It shows in the pics and interviews.

  37. 37.

    Roger Moore

    @? Martin:

    If Cohen was in Prague, what name and passport did he travel there under, because it’s pretty clear it wasn’t ‘Michael Cohen’.

    He could have flown anywhere else in the Schengen area, gotten his passport stamped there and then traveled to Prague without any record. It’s the same way an entry stamp on your passport saying you came into the US through New York doesn’t mean squat about where you traveled after you got here.

  38. 38.

    magurakurin

    @ruemara: pretty sure the reason for the bombing will have nothing to do with the country that gets bombed and everything to do with saving the hideously corrupt piece of shit occupying the White House.

  40. 40.

    David ??Merry Christmas?? Koch

    Congress Critter Jim Himes raises the common sense question: If they did nothing wrong in Prague, why are they lying about it.

  42. 42.

    SiubhanDuinne

    @Cheryl Rofer:

    Apparently Trump wants to “bomb the shit” out of someone, and Mattis is more measured. Bolton’s mustache is twitching.

    This is possibly the scariest thing you’ve ever posted, Cheryl, and you’ve posted some very scary shit.

  48. 48.

    Roger Moore

    @jl:

    I guess some RICO thing will be on the docket too. Need another team of lawyers for that one? What does the BJ legal flying wedge think?

    I think we’re going to need a bigger bucket of popcorn.

  51. 51.

    Tom Q

    To give the devil her due: this is something Louise Mensch has kept insisting was true even while being ridiculed over it.

    Feel free to go back to calling her a lunatic on other stuff, but she got this one right.

  53. 53.

    TenguPhule

    @Cheryl Rofer:

    Adam, I thought you said we should all chill five or six major newsbreaks ago.

    I think Adam actually meant we should get chili. I hear it helps against Frosty.

  56. 56.

    ruemara

    OT here, but I really want a computer that isn’t 6 years old. I mean, I’ve been rendering one 3d light bulb for 30 minutes. It’s a 10 second shot with one high luminance object, no reflections. Christ. I’m working with a rock and chisels here!

  58. 58.

    lamh36

    Speaking of passports…

    Some updates on my Australia trip.

    1) May 18, evening flight to DFW…May 19 ALLL DAY travel, morning to afternoon. DFW- ATL-LAX-MEL (with the longest layover in LAX, that 8hrs I was talking about, and the overnight flight to MEL)
    2) May 21-May 24 I’ll be in Melbourne, staying at the Doubletree by Hilton
    3)May 24 – flying from MEL to SYD.
    4)May 24-May 29 – I’ll be in Sydney, staying at the Radisson Blu Plaza hotel
    5)May 29-May 31 – back in Melbourne
    6)May 31 all day flying back..MEL-LAX-DFW, then flying back home to NOLA on June 1st.

    I haven’t quite yet started looking into itinerary things for MEL/SYD, since I’m mostly focusing on studying for the GRE that I’m scheduled to take on May 2…

    But I do try to look into things on a daily basis at work, where I don’t do GRE studying since I don’t want folks at work in my bidness..

  60. 60.

    lamh36

    @lamh36: Good news…

    Spoke with supervisor yesterday and she said she’s already approved me for the borrowed PTO time I will have to take for 3 of the days I need for the Australia trip!

    Bad news…

    My friend and her husband still haven’t gotten approval for their Australia VISA yet.

    I applied for mine in Feb…but I’ve only actually had only 1 other International trip on my passport…India…and that was like 2010.

    She and her husband have travelled internationally more extensively than I have.

    I told her that maybe it was cause of all their travels having to be confirmed?

  62. 62.

    Ruckus

    @Yutsano:

    You think anyone around Dolt45 has any clue about nation building, let alone the vision and wherewithal to pull it off?

    It’s obvious he and they don’t. They can’t even keep one going that is already built and for which they were supposed to have the vision and wherewithal to run.

  63. 63.

    Corner Stone

    @Mike in NC:

    Prague is spectacular and everybody should try to visit.

    I have heard it has gotten insanely expensive in the last few years?

  65. 65.

    MisterForkbeard

    @lamh36: The implication is “Trump wants an unmeasured response.” Okay then. :)

    @Corner Stone: The entire city is a giant tourist trap now. So it’s expensive, but it’s only expensive relative to the REST of the Czech Republic. Which is to say: Sort of affordable for a visit. :)

  70. 70.

    T S

    @Adam L Silverman: This is amazing. Even though I shouldn’t WANT there to be crimes where there aren’t, I can’t help but be happy Cohen was caught red handed in a really really bald faced lie.

    I’m still repeatedly shocked at how really truly awful they are. I mean, at a point, you’d think they wouldn’t be THIS risk-prone, despite obvious hallmarks of sociopathy, or at least grandiosity. How do these people make it this far? (That’s rhetorical, don’t “break it down” for me. Money and venality, I know.)

  73. 73.

    TenguPhule

    @Baud:

    Someday, I would like to go on a Trump Treason World Tour.

    I hear they’re shithole hotels though.

  75. 75.

    piratedan

    and with the revelations coming in every fucking day, what do we hear from our GOP Congressional leaders and Senators?

    anyone discussing an AUMF for Syria?
    Anyone have any comments on the sexual assault claims levelled against the President?
    Anyone have anything to say about Pruitt’s expenses on the taxpayers dime?
    anyone have a comment on the resignations of Farenthold? Ryan?
    Perhaps a snippet of thoughts on gun control?
    Facebook?
    Cambridge Analytica?

    Gee, you couldn’t go thru a fucking newscast without ZEGS and Mitchy weighing in fucking over Obama’s agenda at a moments notice… now… they got nuthin to say

  76. 76.

    Calouste

    @Mike in NC: I’ve been to Prague twice, the bars are pretty fun. I will have to go another time to see what it looks like in daylight.

  78. 78.

    TenguPhule

    @MomSense:

    Before this mess is resolved, we’re all going to have to watch the fucking pee pee tape.

    what’s this we, kemosabe?

  82. 82.

    MomSense

    @lamh36:

    There’s a wonderful farmers’ market at Manly Beach in Sydney. If you meet a delightful glass blower there who makes beautiful dolphin pieces, buy one! I treasure mine.

  83. 83.

    Fair Economist

    @MomSense:

    God dammit. Before this mess is resolved, we’re all going to have to watch the fucking pee pee tape.

    I hate videos. Transcript only.

    Now I’m wondering what they’ll do for sound effects in the transcript.

    Now I think I need some brain bleach.

  85. 85.

    p.a.

    I would give real money to anyone who leaked a foreign service psych profile of trump. The tweeting response would be beyond anything seen to date, and might just stroke him out.

  86. 86.

    ? ?? Goku (aka Amerikan Baka) ? ?

    So what does Putin think of Trump’s sabre rattling? Is he starting to regret helping this lunatic?

  88. 88.

    David ??Merry Christmas?? Koch

    Opening of tonight’s Chris Hayes newscast

    Oh, my, get out of the way, please! It’s burning and bursting into flames, and the—and it’s falling on the mooring-mast and all the folks agree that this is terrible, this is one of the worst catastrophes in the world.

    it’s a terrific crash, ladies and gentlemen. It’s smoke, and it’s flames now … and the frame is crashing to the ground, not quite to the mooring-mast.

    Oh, the humanity and all the passengers screaming around here. I told you, I can’t even talk to people whose friends are on there. Ah! It’s–it’s–it’s–it’s … o–ohhh! I–I can’t talk, ladies and gentlemen. Honest, it’s just laying there, a mass of smoking wreckage. Ah! And everybody can hardly breathe and talk, and the screaming. Lady, I–I’m sorry. Honest: I–I can hardly breathe.

  89. 89.

    Sean

    @Yarrow:He even went as far as to show an interior page with stamps, which was also useless. You can hold two passports, especially if you travel to Israel and other Arab countries (and CR is inside Schengen, so he could easily fly somewhere else first)

  92. 92.

    Waldo

    It’s amazing how quickly this is unravelling for comrade Trumpkov. Putin must be laughing his ass off.

  93. 93.

    gene108

    @Yutsano:

    No one could convince Dubya that wars require the Shinseki approach of millions of troops and hundreds of billions of dollars for the messy shit that happens afterward.

    Bush, Jr was a delegator. Rumsfeld was the one pushing to do it with a small force. I think Rummie wanted only 50k troops, but after lobbying by the generals agreed to the 100k+ we sent in.

    After all we would be greeted as liberators, Chalibi would be installed as dictator President and we’d be out of there six months tops.

  94. 94.

    jl

    @? ?? Goku (aka Amerikan Baka) ? ?: I think that depends on how much of it is pre-arranged, or covered under various ‘understandings’ BS done for show.

    Putin probably quit worried about movement on meaningful economic sanctions and obstacles to his ability to mess with upcoming elections, and AFAIK, Trump is doing squat on that.

  97. 97.

    TenguPhule

    @Fair Economist:

    Now I’m wondering what they’ll do for sound effects in the transcript.

    Borrow them from Japan. Which has visual sound effects for everything.

    Yes, everything.

  98. 98.

    Mike in NC

    @Corner Stone: We did a Blue Danube tour in 2010 (Prague, Vienna, Bratislava, Budapest and a few other places). Can’t comment on current rates.

  99. 99.

    ??‍? Martin

    @Baud: As it happens I’m going to Prague in July. Never been before. Looks like I might work in the Austrian GP as well.

  100. 100.

    jl

    @gene108: IIRC Chalabi said he had a horde of local shock troops that would help us with the invasion and with building Mainstreet, Ohio on the Tigris during the reconstruction. Which, IIRC, evaporated when needed.

  101. 101.

    lamh36

    The pics/video of Cohen out and about in NYC…are sooo fake…an obviously a PR move to make it seem like Cohen is calm, cool and collected…

    It’s like watching an episode of Scandal..and Olivia Pope is telling Cohen how to “handle” the situation.

  104. 104.

    jl

    @lamh36: Cohen’s face has the look of a person who knows they have swallowed a time bomb, and must depend on someone else to figure out how to defuse it, and time is very short.

  105. 105.

    rk

    @MomSense:

    God dammit. Before this mess is resolved, we’re all going to have to watch the fucking pee pee tape.

    I will not watch it unless someone put a gun to my head. Even then I’ll have to think about it for a few seconds.

  110. 110.

    David ??Merry Christmas?? Koch

    ?HOLY SHIT?

    Natasha Bertrand is saying Cohen was in Prague to pay hush money to the hackers

  111. 111.

    TenguPhule

    @jl:

    Mattis’ ability to flimflam Trump is about all that stands between our country and very dangerous and costly international crimes and blunders.

    I believe I’ve already posted a story that this is paying diminishing returns over time because Trump is actually learning how to get around this. The only time he puts any effort into anything at all.

  112. 112.

    Marcopolo

    Watching Chris Hayes. He has Natasha Bertrand, Mathew Miller & Ben Wittes on. Good group but the best part is Wittes wearing a cannon lapel pin!

    If you don’t understand the significance of that go check out his twitter feed—think he was doing tick tock even before Yarrow.

  113. 113.

    ? ?? Goku (aka Amerikan Baka) ? ?

    @jl:

    Putin probably quit worried about movement on meaningful economic sanctions and obstacles to his ability to mess with upcoming elections, and AFAIK, Trump is doing squat on that.

    What right does he have to do that? Yes, I know, because he can. But I wish I could personally hold people like him accountable.

  114. 114.

    NotMax

    @rikyrah

    In all honesty, don’t think it exists. Has always sounded like a red herring – disinformation intended to cast doubt on the veracity of the dossier.

  115. 115.

    Chet Murthy

    @jl:

    Chalabi said he had a horde of local shock troops

    He did though, didn’t he? It was called the IRGC, is all. All those guys were IRGC retirees, IIRC. I mean, from their POV, the US was just paying for the coup d’etat that Iran couldn’t quite manage on its own. In a way, I can imagine Putin looking at that, and going: “hey, that’s pretty clever, how can I turn that up to 11?”

  116. 116.

    lamh36

    @mikercarpenter
    24m24 minutes ago
    More Michael Carpenter Retweeted McClatchyDC
    Huge development. If Michael Cohen is confirmed meeting Konstantin Kosachev in Prague, then collusion happened. As I note in the piece, “everyone knows Kosachev speaks for the Kremlin.” Another tantalizing fact: Russian hacker Yevgeniy Nikulin was also in Prague at this time.
    https://twitter.com/mikercarpenter/status/984942272583225344

  117. 117.

    David ??Merry Christmas?? Koch

    A metal shark cuts into the night,
    spilling the colors of the neon lights.
    Papo, the hitman, is driving with his crew,
    the Pérez boys. All born and raised in Barrio truth.
    They’re looking for a man
    named “Sweet Tyrone.”
    In better days he was a friend
    but is no more.
    He broke the main rule that controls the street:
    don’t double-cross the ones you love, the ones you need.

  121. 121.

    NotMax

    @Jay

    Have long wondered about your use of Tribble as a besmirchment. If any living creature is devoid of guile, it is the tribble.

  123. 123.

    lamh36

    @Khanoisseur
    19m19 minutes ago
    More Adam Khan Retweeted Elizabeth Landers
    Rotem Rosen (in glasses) was Leviev’s (Dershowitz client) lietenant. Leviev (linked to Prevezon, Putin) sold his Times building to Kushner (Deutsche Bank loaned him $285 million for this). Rosen financed Trump SoHo with Alex Sapir and got married to Sapir’s sister at Mar-a-Lago.
    https://twitter.com/Khanoisseur/status/984944630570500096

    folks are, of course working on who it was Cohen was with

  125. 125.

    TenguPhule

    Am I the only one who tastes hints of coconut when I eat pineapple.

    Yes, John Cole. Pineapples should only taste of pineapple.

  126. 126.

    Roger Moore

    @Elizabelle:

    Betting pool: who thinks Rosenstein will not be fired, at least not this weekend?

    I think he won’t be fired this weekend because Trump won’t be able to find somebody to do it for him at Mar-a-Lago.

  128. 128.

    Mnemosyne

    @Ruckus:

    There’s a ton of stuff in Westchester and El Segundo. Worst case scenario, we take her on an In N Out run.

  129. 129.

    lamh36

    @cmclymer
    Talked to a friend with an ear deep in GOP leadership circles. Asked them what their read is on Rosenstein/Mueller situation.

    “All the scuttlebutt has Rosenstein fired in the next 48 hours.”

    Keep your head on a swivel, folks, and be prepared to raise hell.

    5:27 PM – Apr 13, 2018

  130. 130.

    MomSense

    @rk:

    I have to stay away from twitter on Thursday nights if I can’t watch Scandal when it airs or the whole show will be revealed. It’s impossible to avoid things that go viral.

  131. 131.

    lamh36

    @sarahkendzior
    60m60 minutes ago
    More Sarah Kendzior Retweeted Mooneen
    Notably, Christopher Steele was so worried that the FBI had been compromised (in Trump’s favor) that he stopped cooperating with the FBI

    @mpkennison
    Follow Follow @mpkennison
    More
    Replying to @sarahkendzior
    Turns out that dossier is pretty reliable. It’s pretty bad when Christopher Steele was more concerned about our democracy than our own Congress

    https://twitter.com/sarahkendzior/status/984936708104966144

  132. 132.

    David ??Merry Christmas?? Koch

    NEW YORK (AP) — Popcorn futures post sizable gains in after hour trading on news Michael Cohen was in Prague paying hush money to hackers who broke into Democratic servers during the 2016 election.

  136. 136.

    Elizabelle

    @lamh36: I wish they’d say “Republican Congress”. Hammer in that point. The Democrats are plenty curious, woke, and ready to act.

  137. 137.

    JohnO

    If this Cohen in Prague stuff turns out to be verified, aren’t we in treason territory?

  139. 139.

    Gin & Tonic

    @??‍? Martin: Prague, unfortunately, is overrun with loud, drunken British tourists. You should have gone there 20 years ago. In 2018 I’d give it a pass.

  140. 140.

    efgoldman

    @Yarrow:

    Of course he was in Prague. It was only a matter of time until it became public

    Every one of these shitstains, top to bottom, is a lying sack of shit. The remarable thing is, they’re so hideously awful at it. The need to have studied Tricksie (“modified, limited hangout”) and W/Turrdblossom/Darth (“we make our own reality”) to learn to do it right.

  141. 141.

    Gin & Tonic

    @lamh36: Don’t mean to pry, but what passport do they hold? The Australian entry permit for US passport holders is pretty much automatic. It’s not even an actual visa, it’s just an electronic record of permission to enter.

  142. 142.

    Elizabelle

    @rikyrah: Jonathan Chait, NY Magazine, for you. I’m a Peeliever and You Should Be, Too

    James Comey’s book describes a President Trump “obsessed” with allegations compiled in a dossier by British agent Christopher Steele that he was secretly recorded in Moscow in 2013 paying prostitutes to urinate on a bed that President Obama had slept in. I used to doubt that this episode really happened. I now believe it probably did. I am obviously far from certain, but since Steele’s dossier came out, an accumulation of evidence has tipped the balance from unlikely to likely. Let’s review what we’ve learned since the allegation first surfaced.

    1. Christopher Steele is credible.

    2. Trump is unhealthily obsessed with Obama.

    3. Trump has mixed his denials of the pee tape with obvious lies. (ex: Trump claims he never mocked the disabled reporter; lots of stuff that’s been caught on tape.)

    4. Trump’s alibi is at least partly false. Also according to Comey, Trump “argued that it could not be true because he had not stayed overnight in Moscow but had only used the hotel room to change his clothes.” But reporting by David Corn and Michael Isikoff reveal that Trump did spend a night at the hotel in Moscow where the episode was alleged to have taken place. Why would Trump offer up a false alibi for something that isn’t true?

    5. Trump is comfortable with gross sexual behavior and can be blackmailed.

    Chait expands on these points, but you get the picture.

    I am not sure about a pee tape, per se, but there is something he’s worried about. It’s interesting he had a conversation about “golden showers” with James Comey. I did not see that one coming.

  144. 144.

    jl

    Who knows what will happen? Maybe Trumpsters can convince Cohen to stay quiet. On the other hand, the rate at which news is coming out, maybe what worries Cohen is that he will be in trouble for state level crimes that put him away for a long time, and time is short for him to make a deal. Info about what Meuller knows is coming out at a rate that suggests everyone involved has to wonder how much their testimony will be worth for deal with feds for state law next week.

    Since the grand tradition of poetry and song lyrics in BJ comments to make a point seem to be coming back, the look on Cohen’s face that I’ve seen in the news reminds me a line from a John Berryman poem:

    “If I had this to do all over again, I wouldn’t”.

  147. 147.

    MisterForkbeard

    @lamh36: I wouldn’t be surprised to see this happening. At this point (especially with the news about Cohen in Prague) the bad news is coming so fast and so reliably for Trump that a Hail Mary is going to look more and more like his only option.

  149. 149.

    PVDMichael

    Buzzfeed called him on his passport cover… and Cohen let him look at the insides.

    Eight day trip to Italy in July. Nothing in August, September.

    And you also have to take Cohen at his word that he doesnt have a legally issued second passport.

  150. 150.

    PPCLI

    @PVDMichael: It’s easy to get a fake passport made. Not easy to get one that will pass close inspection by customs agents, but easy enough to get one that can fool a buzzfeed journalist.

  151. 151.

    efgoldman

    @JohnO:

    If this Cohen in Prague stuff turns out to be verified, aren’t we in treason territory?

    I think we need to stop throwing that word around. Nobody committed treason. Nobody is going to face prosecution for treason. It is not treason to travel to a country with which we are not at war. Nor is it treason to lie about it. There are enough real crimes to be prosecuted

  152. 152.

    TenguPhule

    @efgoldman:

    think we need to stop throwing that word around. Nobody committed treason. Nobody is going to face prosecution for treason. It is not treason to travel to a country with which we are not at war. Nor is it treason to lie about it. There are enough real crimes to be prosecuted

    Fuck em, make the pigfuckers deny it.

  153. 153.

    PVDMichael

    @PPCLI: one needed get a fake passport. The State Department issues second passports to applicants who intend to travel to counties who will deny entry to people who have certain stamps (in other words: Israel) in their passport.

  154. 154.

    rk

    @efgoldman:

    I think we need to stop throwing that word around. Nobody committed treason. Nobody is going to face prosecution for treason. It is not treason to travel to a country with which we are not at war. Nor is it treason to lie about it. There are enough real crimes to be prosecuted

    I’m pretty sure no one is saying it’s treason to travel to another country. But it’s treasonous to meet with the agent of a foreign government and plot with them to meddle in your country’s election.

  155. 155.

    NotMax

    @efgoldman

    Thank you, thank you, thank you. Treason is a very specific and definitively circumscribed crime, the only crime expressly defined in the body of the Constitution.

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