Trump's White House vs. Consumes By Michael Cohen Tape Scandal

Michael Cohen Tape Scandal Consumes President Donald Trump's White House | The 11th Hour | MSNBC
ALSO WATCH VS. VIDEO of President Trump On Defense After Report Cohen Taped Playmate Payment Chat | The 11th Hour | MSNBC
The New York Times breaks the story of a Michael Cohen recording of Trump before the election discussing a payment to a former Playboy model. Our panel reacts to the latest Trump legal drama.
Versus Video Transcripts:
00:00
day 552 of the Trump administration and
00:03
we are still tracking continued fallout
00:06
over the release of that taped
00:07
conversation between then candidate
00:10
Donald Trump and his former lawyer and
00:12
fixer Michael Cohen again we learned
00:15
tonight the feds have over a hundred
00:17
more Cohan recordings more on that in a
00:19
moment
00:20
back to last night's released recording
00:23
here is a key portion where Trump and
00:25
Cohen are apparently and
00:27
matter-of-factly discussing buying the
00:30
rights to the story from a former
00:32
Playboy model who claims she had an
00:34
affair with Trump in 2006 I need to open
00:39
up a company for the transfer of all of
00:42
that info regarding our friend David you
00:45
know so that I'm gonna do that right
00:47
away I've actually come up on TV and I
00:49
just broke into Alan why superb about
00:52
how to set the whole thing up with
00:56
funding yes and it's all the stuff all
01:02
the stuff because here you never know
01:04
where that company never know what he's
01:05
gonna get correct so I'm all over that
01:08
and I spoke to Alan about it when it
01:10
comes time for the financing which will
01:12
be the audio was given to CNN by Michael
01:23
Cohen's attorney Lanny Davis NBC News
01:25
has authenticated the recording with
01:27
Davis but we don't know if the original
01:29
recording has been edited at all as
01:31
we've reported both sides dispute what's
01:34
on the tape you just heard Cohen's
01:36
attorney says Trump brought up by paying
01:39
in cash president Trump's attorney Rudy
01:41
Giuliani flatly says the president can
01:44
be heard saying don't pay with cash
01:47
according to the president's lawyers the
01:49
payment was never made earlier today
01:52
President Trump refused to answer
01:53
questions about the recording at the
01:55
White House
02:02
a boisterous day in the oval office to
02:22
be sure but no more boisterous than many
02:24
other days that went on for about 30
02:26
more seconds you just heard CNN reporter
02:29
Katelyn Collins in that clip she went on
02:32
to ask the president a few more
02:33
questions mostly about Vladimir Putin
02:36
according to CNN after the White House
02:38
announced another event in the Rose
02:40
Garden later in the day Collins herself
02:42
was asked to come to former Fox News
02:44
executive bill shines office in the West
02:46
Wing she was met by shine who is these
02:49
days deputy chief of staff for
02:51
communications in the White House and by
02:53
White House press secretary Sarah
02:54
Huckabee Sanders Collins said they told
02:57
her she was disinvited from the Rose
02:59
Garden event that was open to all press
03:01
because the question she asked earlier
03:03
were inappropriate for the venue and
03:06
that she was shouting condemnation of
03:09
the move quickly poured in from members
03:10
of the news media the White House
03:12
Correspondents Association even Fox News
03:15
supported the CNN correspondent in this
03:18
case the White House released a
03:20
statement today that read quote at the
03:22
conclusion of a press event in the Oval
03:24
Office reporter shouted questions and
03:25
refused to leave despite repeatedly
03:28
being asked to do so subsequently our
03:30
staff informed her she was not welcomed
03:32
to participate in the next event but
03:34
made clear that any other journalist
03:35
from her network could attend she said
03:37
it didn't matter to her because she
03:39
hadn't planned to be there anyway to be
03:40
clear we support a free press and asked
03:43
that everyone be respectful of the
03:44
presidency and guests at the White House
03:46
meanwhile President Trump did respond to
03:49
news of the Cohan recording being
03:52
released this morning he said on Twitter
03:54
what kind of a lawyer would tape a
03:56
client so sad is this the first never
03:59
heard of it before
04:01
why was the tape so abruptly terminated
04:03
cut while I was presumably saying
04:05
positive things I hear there are other
04:08
clients and many reporters that are
04:10
taped can this be so too bad meanwhile
04:14
Michael Cohen's attorney said today
04:16
his client is now committed and telling
04:17
the truth Michael Cohen has an answer to
04:20
why he taped conversations and I think
04:23
you'll have to give that answer himself
04:24
I can't reveal that but I will say that
04:27
Michael Cohen has turned a corner in his
04:30
life and he's now dedicated to telling
04:32
the truth to everyone and we'll see what
04:35
happens
04:36
Philip Rucker of the Washington Post
04:38
reports tonight that the tapes release
04:39
raises concerns in the White House that
04:42
Cohen could spill secrets about Trump to
04:44
the FBI quote Cohen has felt wounded and
04:47
abandoned by Trump waiting for calls or
04:49
even a signal of support that never came
04:51
Cohen got frustrated when Trump started
04:53
talking about him in the past tense
04:54
panicked last month when he thought the
04:57
president no longer cared about his
04:58
plight and became furious when Trump
05:01
lawyer Rudolph W Giuliani contradicted
05:04
some of his accounts according to his
05:05
associates in Cohen's gravest hour as
05:08
one associate described it Trump was
05:11
leaving him out in the wilderness the
05:13
result is open warfare between attorney
05:16
and former client with that let's bring
05:20
in our leadoff panel for a Wednesday
05:21
night Matt Apuzzo Pulitzer prize-winning
05:23
New York Times reporter Cynthia auxin is
05:25
back with us a former federal prosecutor
05:27
and a veteran of the Civil Rights
05:29
Division at the Justice Department and
05:30
the aforementioned
05:31
Philip Rucker Pulitzer Prize winning
05:33
White House bureau chief for the
05:34
Washington Post
05:35
good evening to you all Phil I'd like to
05:37
begin with you and your work tonight you
05:39
report that there are over 100 more
05:43
recordings that Cohen has made that have
05:45
been seized by the feds but that this
05:48
one that we just heard was the longest
05:51
and most substantive what else can you
05:53
add to the record tonight from your
05:55
reporting that's right Brian
05:57
and many of the recordings that the feds
05:59
have are actually of Michael Cohen
06:01
taping secretly taping conversations
06:03
that he had with reporters with
06:05
journalists during the Trump campaign
06:07
and and after Trump's election there are
06:10
a number of Congress know conversations
06:12
between Cohen and Trump but sources are
06:15
telling us that those conversations are
06:17
not as substantive as the one that was
06:18
released last night that said there is
06:21
concern inside the White House and more
06:24
broadly in Trump's orbit about these
06:27
recordings and I think more
06:28
importantly about what Michael Cohen may
06:31
now feel compelled to share with
06:33
prosecutors if he chooses he's clearly
06:36
decided to break with president Trump
06:39
with by releasing this audio with the
06:41
combative statements that his attorney
06:43
Lanny Davis has been making and there's
06:45
a lot of concern that he may want to
06:47
share what he knows with federal
06:50
prosecutors he'll further a lot of the
06:52
recorded conversations are said to be
06:54
with members of the news media and it's
06:56
further said about going that he just
06:58
would roll on his phone during
07:01
conversations kind of in lieu of
07:03
note-taking and as a matter of course
07:05
that's right that's what Lanny Davis his
07:07
attorney told us that Cohen had a
07:09
practice of recording conversations
07:11
instead of taking notes it sounds odd
07:14
for a lawyer to do that but he did and
07:16
he did it on his iPhone he would keep
07:18
hold of those audio files and you know
07:21
Lanny Davis said he didn't intend to do
07:23
anything with those audio recordings
07:25
other than to keep them as his own
07:27
personal record but that was the way he
07:30
chose to keep his records when he was
07:32
working as Donald Trump's personal
07:34
attorney Matt Apuzzo I'd like to play
07:36
for you Rudolph Giuliani with sean
07:38
hannity tonight because Rudy here's the
07:41
tape and views the transcript a
07:44
different way he's been talking about
07:45
his experience listening to mobsters on
07:48
tape and while this conversation likely
07:50
taped in Trump Tower and not the
07:52
ravenite social club is much clearer
07:55
than a lot of law enforcement mobster
07:58
wires let's listen to the former mayor
08:00
of New York City
08:01
you got it listen to it four or five
08:03
times which is when I talked about mafia
08:05
tapes I talked about this being a mafia
08:07
tape I said I'm an expert on tapes I did
08:10
4,000 hours of men on tape saying Donald
08:18
Trump says don't pay with cash
08:22
interruption : no no no no I got it
08:27
check no no no and then very very
08:30
suspiciously he cuts the tape off
08:32
because it's a very very innocent very
08:36
solid exhalation so Matt there you have
08:39
it your reaction well I'm you so we live
08:42
into the tape four or five times and you
08:45
know I have not listened to as many
08:49
hours of of secretive mob recordings as
08:53
Rudy Giuliani so I can't I can't really
08:56
compare the two but but this is a case
09:00
where you know Rudy Giuliani is saying
09:02
well here believe our transcript because
09:05
you can't believe what you hear and and
09:09
this is the this is what we run into a
09:10
little bit with with both candidate
09:13
Donald Trump and Donald Trump in the
09:15
administration right now is they say
09:18
things and then it turns out that those
09:21
things are not true
09:22
and then reporters say ok but what about
09:24
the other thing and there's a and we're
09:27
not gonna talk about that and so it's
09:29
it's it's a strategy that we've not seen
09:31
in Washington ever really work before
09:34
because most press secretaries most
09:36
politicians realize that getting caught
09:39
in the lie is like usually way worse
09:41
than whatever it is you're being asked
09:43
about you know so whether it's you're
09:45
the president's got a plan to fire the
09:47
Secretary of State or the president
09:49
dictated misleading statement and his
09:51
son's name or there's a tape and it
09:54
shows that the president knew that the
09:56
National Enquirer had the rights to this
09:59
you know this this story about an
10:01
alleged affair and every time they say
10:04
they don't know anything about it other
10:05
stories fall so you know it's fake news
10:07
and then time after time it turns out
10:10
it's real and then they just say move on
10:13
so you know let's I will see what
10:16
happens if they can enhance the tape I
10:17
guess well let's turn to a former Fed
10:19
all right sent the nation turns it's
10:21
lonely eyes to you short of hiring a
10:24
skywriter as I've said before it appears
10:27
mr. Cohen is anxious to work with the
10:31
feds
10:31
two questions for you how does this tape
10:34
being out there affect that bid and
10:37
secondly what do you make of the tape
10:40
well I don't think it does mr. Cohen any
10:44
good to have released the tape what
10:46
we've seen over the last couple months
10:48
is Cohen trying to get a pardon from
10:52
Trump he was sort of fishing for a
10:53
pardon and that went
10:55
we're and now he spent the last time
10:57
with Lanny Davis kind of fishing for
11:00
some kind of agreement or some kind of
11:04
deal to flip and and so far they aren't
11:06
biting and the problem for him is
11:09
prosecutors are control freaks and we
11:12
like to be in charge of our case and we
11:14
like to do it in the courtroom we do not
11:17
as much as we love you Brian we do not
11:19
like to do it on the eleventh hour and
11:21
we do not like to do it on Good Morning
11:22
America and we do not like to do it on
11:25
the Today Show so it doesn't help it
11:28
doesn't help Cohen that Lanny Davis is
11:30
on this media campaign and that they're
11:33
releasing tapes in fact what he should
11:35
do is be quiet
11:36
he should hire he can hire Lanny Davis
11:39
or he can hire somebody who else who
11:41
likes to be quiet and they should have
11:43
private discussions with the US
11:44
Attorney's Office I think it's a mistake
11:46
and it almost makes me wonder because as
11:51
much as he's fishing around for a deal
11:53
and he can't seem to get one if he
11:55
angers them enough he won't get one
11:56
because they can just go ahead and
11:58
prosecute him and deal with them down
11:59
the road and that's kind of what he's
12:01
looking at if he doesn't start behaving
12:03
in in a in a smarter way
12:05
in my opinion and as far as the tape
12:07
goes whether it's cash or cheque I don't
12:09
think it makes a difference the point is
12:11
that the president has lied about this
12:14
he was involved in the discussions he
12:16
knew what they were doing and that
12:18
there's a real threat here for
12:20
conspiracy to violate campaign finance
12:22
laws to the president United States
12:23
hey there I'm Chris Hayes from MSNBC
12:25
thanks for watching MSNBC on YouTube if
12:27
you want to keep up to date with the
12:29
videos we're putting out you can click
12:30
subscribe just below me or click over on
12:32
this list to see lots of other great
12:34
videos
00:00
day 552 of the Trump administration and
00:03
we are still tracking continued fallout
00:06
over the release of that taped
00:07
conversation between then candidate
00:10
Donald Trump and his former lawyer and
00:12
fixer Michael Cohen again we learned
00:15
tonight the feds have over a hundred
00:17
more Cohan recordings more on that in a
00:19
moment
00:20
back to last night's released recording
00:23
here is a key portion where Trump and
00:25
Cohen are apparently and
00:27
matter-of-factly discussing buying the
00:30
rights to the story from a former
00:32
Playboy model who claims she had an
00:34
affair with Trump in 2006 I need to open
00:39
up a company for the transfer of all of
00:42
that info regarding our friend David you
00:45
know so that I'm gonna do that right
00:47
away I've actually come up on TV and I
00:49
just broke into Alan why superb about
00:52
how to set the whole thing up with
00:56
funding yes and it's all the stuff all
01:02
the stuff because here you never know
01:04
where that company never know what he's
01:05
gonna get correct so I'm all over that
01:08
and I spoke to Alan about it when it
01:10
comes time for the financing which will
01:12
be the audio was given to CNN by Michael
01:23
Cohen's attorney Lanny Davis NBC News
01:25
has authenticated the recording with
01:27
Davis but we don't know if the original
01:29
recording has been edited at all as
01:31
we've reported both sides dispute what's
01:34
on the tape you just heard Cohen's
01:36
attorney says Trump brought up by paying
01:39
in cash president Trump's attorney Rudy
01:41
Giuliani flatly says the president can
01:44
be heard saying don't pay with cash
01:47
according to the president's lawyers the
01:49
payment was never made earlier today
01:52
President Trump refused to answer
01:53
questions about the recording at the
01:55
White House
02:02
a boisterous day in the oval office to
02:22
be sure but no more boisterous than many
02:24
other days that went on for about 30
02:26
more seconds you just heard CNN reporter
02:29
Katelyn Collins in that clip she went on
02:32
to ask the president a few more
02:33
questions mostly about Vladimir Putin
02:36
according to CNN after the White House
02:38
announced another event in the Rose
02:40
Garden later in the day Collins herself
02:42
was asked to come to former Fox News
02:44
executive bill shines office in the West
02:46
Wing she was met by shine who is these
02:49
days deputy chief of staff for
02:51
communications in the White House and by
02:53
White House press secretary Sarah
02:54
Huckabee Sanders Collins said they told
02:57
her she was disinvited from the Rose
02:59
Garden event that was open to all press
03:01
because the question she asked earlier
03:03
were inappropriate for the venue and
03:06
that she was shouting condemnation of
03:09
the move quickly poured in from members
03:10
of the news media the White House
03:12
Correspondents Association even Fox News
03:15
supported the CNN correspondent in this
03:18
case the White House released a
03:20
statement today that read quote at the
03:22
conclusion of a press event in the Oval
03:24
Office reporter shouted questions and
03:25
refused to leave despite repeatedly
03:28
being asked to do so subsequently our
03:30
staff informed her she was not welcomed
03:32
to participate in the next event but
03:34
made clear that any other journalist
03:35
from her network could attend she said
03:37
it didn't matter to her because she
03:39
hadn't planned to be there anyway to be
03:40
clear we support a free press and asked
03:43
that everyone be respectful of the
03:44
presidency and guests at the White House
03:46
meanwhile President Trump did respond to
03:49
news of the Cohan recording being
03:52
released this morning he said on Twitter
03:54
what kind of a lawyer would tape a
03:56
client so sad is this the first never
03:59
heard of it before
04:01
why was the tape so abruptly terminated
04:03
cut while I was presumably saying
04:05
positive things I hear there are other
04:08
clients and many reporters that are
04:10
taped can this be so too bad meanwhile
04:14
Michael Cohen's attorney said today
04:16
his client is now committed and telling
04:17
the truth Michael Cohen has an answer to
04:20
why he taped conversations and I think
04:23
you'll have to give that answer himself
04:24
I can't reveal that but I will say that
04:27
Michael Cohen has turned a corner in his
04:30
life and he's now dedicated to telling
04:32
the truth to everyone and we'll see what
04:35
happens
04:36
Philip Rucker of the Washington Post
04:38
reports tonight that the tapes release
04:39
raises concerns in the White House that
04:42
Cohen could spill secrets about Trump to
04:44
the FBI quote Cohen has felt wounded and
04:47
abandoned by Trump waiting for calls or
04:49
even a signal of support that never came
04:51
Cohen got frustrated when Trump started
04:53
talking about him in the past tense
04:54
panicked last month when he thought the
04:57
president no longer cared about his
04:58
plight and became furious when Trump
05:01
lawyer Rudolph W Giuliani contradicted
05:04
some of his accounts according to his
05:05
associates in Cohen's gravest hour as
05:08
one associate described it Trump was
05:11
leaving him out in the wilderness the
05:13
result is open warfare between attorney
05:16
and former client with that let's bring
05:20
in our leadoff panel for a Wednesday
05:21
night Matt Apuzzo Pulitzer prize-winning
05:23
New York Times reporter Cynthia auxin is
05:25
back with us a former federal prosecutor
05:27
and a veteran of the Civil Rights
05:29
Division at the Justice Department and
05:30
the aforementioned
05:31
Philip Rucker Pulitzer Prize winning
05:33
White House bureau chief for the
05:34
Washington Post
05:35
good evening to you all Phil I'd like to
05:37
begin with you and your work tonight you
05:39
report that there are over 100 more
05:43
recordings that Cohen has made that have
05:45
been seized by the feds but that this
05:48
one that we just heard was the longest
05:51
and most substantive what else can you
05:53
add to the record tonight from your
05:55
reporting that's right Brian
05:57
and many of the recordings that the feds
05:59
have are actually of Michael Cohen
06:01
taping secretly taping conversations
06:03
that he had with reporters with
06:05
journalists during the Trump campaign
06:07
and and after Trump's election there are
06:10
a number of Congress know conversations
06:12
between Cohen and Trump but sources are
06:15
telling us that those conversations are
06:17
not as substantive as the one that was
06:18
released last night that said there is
06:21
concern inside the White House and more
06:24
broadly in Trump's orbit about these
06:27
recordings and I think more
06:28
importantly about what Michael Cohen may
06:31
now feel compelled to share with
06:33
prosecutors if he chooses he's clearly
06:36
decided to break with president Trump
06:39
with by releasing this audio with the
06:41
combative statements that his attorney
06:43
Lanny Davis has been making and there's
06:45
a lot of concern that he may want to
06:47
share what he knows with federal
06:50
prosecutors he'll further a lot of the
06:52
recorded conversations are said to be
06:54
with members of the news media and it's
06:56
further said about going that he just
06:58
would roll on his phone during
07:01
conversations kind of in lieu of
07:03
note-taking and as a matter of course
07:05
that's right that's what Lanny Davis his
07:07
attorney told us that Cohen had a
07:09
practice of recording conversations
07:11
instead of taking notes it sounds odd
07:14
for a lawyer to do that but he did and
07:16
he did it on his iPhone he would keep
07:18
hold of those audio files and you know
07:21
Lanny Davis said he didn't intend to do
07:23
anything with those audio recordings
07:25
other than to keep them as his own
07:27
personal record but that was the way he
07:30
chose to keep his records when he was
07:32
working as Donald Trump's personal
07:34
attorney Matt Apuzzo I'd like to play
07:36
for you Rudolph Giuliani with sean
07:38
hannity tonight because Rudy here's the
07:41
tape and views the transcript a
07:44
different way he's been talking about
07:45
his experience listening to mobsters on
07:48
tape and while this conversation likely
07:50
taped in Trump Tower and not the
07:52
ravenite social club is much clearer
07:55
than a lot of law enforcement mobster
07:58
wires let's listen to the former mayor
08:00
of New York City
08:01
you got it listen to it four or five
08:03
times which is when I talked about mafia
08:05
tapes I talked about this being a mafia
08:07
tape I said I'm an expert on tapes I did
08:10
4,000 hours of men on tape saying Donald
08:18
Trump says don't pay with cash
08:22
interruption : no no no no I got it
08:27
check no no no and then very very
08:30
suspiciously he cuts the tape off
08:32
because it's a very very innocent very
08:36
solid exhalation so Matt there you have
08:39
it your reaction well I'm you so we live
08:42
into the tape four or five times and you
08:45
know I have not listened to as many
08:49
hours of of secretive mob recordings as
08:53
Rudy Giuliani so I can't I can't really
08:56
compare the two but but this is a case
09:00
where you know Rudy Giuliani is saying
09:02
well here believe our transcript because
09:05
you can't believe what you hear and and
09:09
this is the this is what we run into a
09:10
little bit with with both candidate
09:13
Donald Trump and Donald Trump in the
09:15
administration right now is they say
09:18
things and then it turns out that those
09:21
things are not true
09:22
and then reporters say ok but what about
09:24
the other thing and there's a and we're
09:27
not gonna talk about that and so it's
09:29
it's it's a strategy that we've not seen
09:31
in Washington ever really work before
09:34
because most press secretaries most
09:36
politicians realize that getting caught
09:39
in the lie is like usually way worse
09:41
than whatever it is you're being asked
09:43
about you know so whether it's you're
09:45
the president's got a plan to fire the
09:47
Secretary of State or the president
09:49
dictated misleading statement and his
09:51
son's name or there's a tape and it
09:54
shows that the president knew that the
09:56
National Enquirer had the rights to this
09:59
you know this this story about an
10:01
alleged affair and every time they say
10:04
they don't know anything about it other
10:05
stories fall so you know it's fake news
10:07
and then time after time it turns out
10:10
it's real and then they just say move on
10:13
so you know let's I will see what
10:16
happens if they can enhance the tape I
10:17
guess well let's turn to a former Fed
10:19
all right sent the nation turns it's
10:21
lonely eyes to you short of hiring a
10:24
skywriter as I've said before it appears
10:27
mr. Cohen is anxious to work with the
10:31
feds
10:31
two questions for you how does this tape
10:34
being out there affect that bid and
10:37
secondly what do you make of the tape
10:40
well I don't think it does mr. Cohen any
10:44
good to have released the tape what
10:46
we've seen over the last couple months
10:48
is Cohen trying to get a pardon from
10:52
Trump he was sort of fishing for a
10:53
pardon and that went
10:55
we're and now he spent the last time
10:57
with Lanny Davis kind of fishing for
11:00
some kind of agreement or some kind of
11:04
deal to flip and and so far they aren't
11:06
biting and the problem for him is
11:09
prosecutors are control freaks and we
11:12
like to be in charge of our case and we
11:14
like to do it in the courtroom we do not
11:17
as much as we love you Brian we do not
11:19
like to do it on the eleventh hour and
11:21
we do not like to do it on Good Morning
11:22
America and we do not like to do it on
11:25
the Today Show so it doesn't help it
11:28
doesn't help Cohen that Lanny Davis is
11:30
on this media campaign and that they're
11:33
releasing tapes in fact what he should
11:35
do is be quiet
11:36
he should hire he can hire Lanny Davis
11:39
or he can hire somebody who else who
11:41
likes to be quiet and they should have
11:43
private discussions with the US
11:44
Attorney's Office I think it's a mistake
11:46
and it almost makes me wonder because as
11:51
much as he's fishing around for a deal
11:53
and he can't seem to get one if he
11:55
angers them enough he won't get one
11:56
because they can just go ahead and
11:58
prosecute him and deal with them down
11:59
the road and that's kind of what he's
12:01
looking at if he doesn't start behaving
12:03
in in a in a smarter way
12:05
in my opinion and as far as the tape
12:07
goes whether it's cash or cheque I don't
12:09
think it makes a difference the point is
12:11
that the president has lied about this
12:14
he was involved in the discussions he
12:16
knew what they were doing and that
12:18
there's a real threat here for
12:20
conspiracy to violate campaign finance
12:22
laws to the president United States
12:23
hey there I'm Chris Hayes from MSNBC
12:25
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