Giuliani: Cohen Recorded 183 Conversations, Trump Is Mentioned In 12

Sunday on CBS’s “Face the Nation,” former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani, also an attorney for President Donald Trump, said the president’s legal team was aware of 183 conversations that Michael Cohen recorded, and that of those 183, Trump was only mentioned in 12.

Partial transcript as follows:

MARGARET BRENNAN: –how much of the evidence that the FBI seized from Michael Cohen’s- you know, place of work and residence relates to the president, beyond tapes?

GIULIANI: Well let me see if I can-  I can make it about as clear as possible. We know of something like 183 unique conversations on tape. One of those is with the president of the United States. That’s the three-minute one involving- involving the McDougal payment- AMI-McDougal payment. There are 12 others, maybe 11 or 12 others out of the 183, in which the president is discussed at any length by Cohen, mostly with reporters. All clearly corroborating what the president has said in detail on many of those tweets. In other words, that he didn’t know about the payments to either one when it happened; that he only found out later; that Cohen made them not for the campaign- he didn’t- didn’t like the campaign, he says very derogatory things about the campaign. Said ‘I only made it because I personally love the president and Melania. And that’s why I made the payments,’ which takes it right out of the campaign contribution arsenal. So these- these are tapes I want you to read. I want you to hear them. I didn’t think I’d be able to get them out publicly. And somehow, he and his lawyer have this crazy idea of just throw it all out there. I think they also don’t realize it’s going to hurt them with the prosecutors. When I was a prosecutor I don’t want some guy giving out all the evidence to the press.

MARGARET BRENNAN: But you do want these tapes released now.

GIULIANI: I can’t do it. I mean I’m not allowed to do it. We’ve not leaked a single tape. I think if you check with the reporters who did the stories they’d tell you that. The Times came forward and made that clear. We don’t violate these rules. However, we are allowed to refer to them if they put them out. Why they’re putting them out? Someday, somebody is going to have to figure it out. But, they’re doing it.

MARGARET BRENNAN: You mentioned Karen McDougal this recording that was made public earlier this week relates to her she claims she did have a consensual affair with the president. But I want to ask you beyond this case- beyond Stormy Daniels were other payments made to as yet unnamed women around the time of the 2016 campaign?

GIULIANI: There is there is a conversation about that. On one of the tapes in which I think Chris Cuomo asked him that. And Cohen says no. Denies it. Said that there were no other situations like this.

MARGARET BRENNAN: Was that an accurate statement by Cohen?

GIULIANI: As far as I know, yeah.  I have no evidence to disprove that. And we’ve searched the records. I mean -remember both these payments were made or at least to the McDougal payment was going to made through a corporation. Well you’re hardly going to make an illegal contribution through a corporation and that whole dispute about check or cash really couldn’t have been done any other way. But-but by check. It’s a corporation, after all, making the payment.

MARGARET BRENNAN: But, you maintain that payment didn’t actually-occur.

GIULIANI: That one didn’t happen for reasons I guess that AMI wanted to  keep it, they probably saw a value in keeping it. I mean, I know a lot of people raised questions about it but it’s pretty clear from the tape. This is a straight out and out legal and business transaction.

Follow Pam Key on Twitter @pamkeyNEN

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