Dean Altman
On Thursday, BuzzFeed News published a bombshell report claiming that President Donald Trump instructed his then lawyer-slash-fixer Michael Cohen to lie to Congress about his potential deal to build a Trump Tower in Moscow. The information was reportedly obtained from two federal law enforcement officials who were involved in an investigation of the matter.
The report also says that Trump agreed to a plan made by Cohen to set up a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin during Trump’s presidential campaign in order to get the tower project jumpstarted, with Trump allegedly telling Cohen, “Make it happen.”
This goes against everything Trump has said (he repeatedly said he had no business dealings with Russia) during his campaign and is the biggest indication that Trump criminally obstructed the investigation into whatever ties he may have to Russia.
As you might have guessed, people had a lot of opinions on this situation and they took to Twitter to express them. And Trump was yet again trolled by the dictionary.
1.
'Suborn'
– specifically: to induce to commit perjury
– broadly: to induce secretly to do an unlawful thinghttps://t.co/fwgQ0kjVlN— Merriam-Webster (@MerriamWebster) January 18, 2019
2.
Will it be this that finally brings him down? Or the other hundred obviously illegal things? Find out in this episode of “Nothing Matters Anymore”! https://t.co/CcpBbu8U86
— Julius Sharpe (@juliussharpe) January 18, 2019
3.
when asked directly White House press secretary Hogan Gidley refuses three times to say whether the Buzzfeed report is true or false.pic.twitter.com/trP7ZlpolN
— Alex Thomas (@AlexThomasDC) January 18, 2019
4.
On Fox News, @LaraLeaTrump responds to report Trump directed Cohen to lie by trying to discredit Cohen.
"Cohen is a very desperate man. He holds no water whatsoever," she says.
She's not helping — team Trump still hasn't figured out Cohen wasn't a source for the piece! pic.twitter.com/QQ7rUr5d8d
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) January 18, 2019
5.
This tweet by @realDonaldTrump may be a felony.
18 U.S.C. § 1512(b):
"Whoever knowingly uses intimidation, threatens … or attempts to do so … with intent to … influence, delay, or prevent the testimony of any person …." is guilty of a felony.#FridayThoughts https://t.co/MDK6Z50WmW
— Ted Lieu (@tedlieu) January 18, 2019
6.
I just think we need to say this clearly, bc it's a very big deal:
The President committed a federal crime by instructing his lawyer to LIE to congress.
The REASON he did it was to help Russia attack American democracy in exchange for a $300 million real estate deal.
— Mikel Jollett (@Mikel_Jollett) January 18, 2019
7.
Five tweets this morning, and in every one, you’ve misspelled “I never had any conversation with Michael Cohen about his testimony concerning the Moscow Trump Tower deal.” https://t.co/aERNzFaJKG
— George Conway (@gtconway3d) January 18, 2019
8.
So far, neither Trump nor Giuliani has denied that Trump directed Cohen to lie to Congress.
Journalists need to get Trump on the record on this point—did he direct Cohen to lie to Congress? Get as much detail from him as possible about what he knew and what he told Cohen.
— Renato Mariotti (@renato_mariotti) January 18, 2019
9.
This bit from the Buzzfeed story isn’t getting the attention it should. Whether or not Cohen is a liar is irrelevant — Mueller has *actual hard evidence* from within the Trump Org. pic.twitter.com/STUjB3h7Pd
— shauna (@goldengateblond) January 18, 2019
10.
Kellyanne Conway Refuses to Deny Trump Directed Michael Cohen to Lie to Congress https://t.co/L14H6KDnmS pic.twitter.com/GxkpCSHRXa
— Mediaite (@Mediaite) January 18, 2019
