Donald Trump: ‘I Never Directed Michael Cohen to Break the Law’

President Donald Trump said Thursday that he never asked his former private lawyer Michael Cohen to break the law on his behalf.

“I never directed Michael Cohen to break the law. He was a lawyer and he is supposed to know the law,” Trump said. “It is called ‘advice of counsel,’ and a lawyer has great liability if a mistake is made. That is why they get paid.”

Trump commented on the case after Cohen was sentenced to three years in prison on Wednesday. Cohen pleaded guilty in two campaign finance violations by facilitating payments to two payments to women who claimed an affair with the president prior to the campaign. He also pleaded guilty to financial crimes unrelated to the president.

But Trump argued that the case did not apply to campaign finance laws, and argued that it was not criminal, despite prosecutors charging Cohen.

“Cohen was guilty on many charges unrelated to me, but he plead to two campaign charges which were not criminal and of which he probably was not guilty even on a civil basis,” he wrote.

Trump questioned the charges against Cohen, arguing that prosecutors were just trying to get to him.

“Those charges were just agreed to by him in order to embarrass the president and get a much reduced prison sentence, which he did-including the fact that his family was temporarily let off the hook,” he wrote. “As a lawyer, Michael has great liability to me!”

I never directed Michael Cohen to break the law. He was a lawyer and he is supposed to know the law. It is called “advice of counsel,” and a lawyer has great liability if a mistake is made. That is why they get paid. Despite that many campaign finance lawyers have strongly……

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 13, 2018

….stated that I did nothing wrong with respect to campaign finance laws, if they even apply, because this was not campaign finance. Cohen was guilty on many charges unrelated to me, but he plead to two campaign charges which were not criminal and of which he probably was not…

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 13, 2018

….guilty even on a civil basis. Those charges were just agreed to by him in order to embarrass the president and get a much reduced prison sentence, which he did-including the fact that his family was temporarily let off the hook. As a lawyer, Michael has great liability to me!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 13, 2018