Posted on 04/09/2018 1:24:44 PM PDT by gattaca
The FBI raided the offices of President Trump's personal attorney Michael Cohen on Monday.
The raid came after federal prosecutors in New York City obtained a search warrant following a referral from special counsel Robert Mueller, Cohen's lawyer told the New York Times. Mueller is investigating Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election, and related issues.
NBC News confirmed news of the raid.
The Times reported that FBI agents seized records relating to several issues, including a $130,000 payment Cohen has said he made to porn star Stormy Daniels.
Daniels has said that money was given to her in exchange for her agreement to keep quiet about an affair she had with Trump that began in 2006. The White House has denied that Trump had sex with Daniels, and Trump has said he was unaware of the deal Cohen made with her.
In addition to records related to Daniels, whose real name is Stephanie Clifford, FBI agents also seized emails, tax documents and business records, according to the Times, which cited a person briefed on the search.
Cohen is an executive vice president and general counsel of the Trump Organization.
It was not immediately clear where the raid occurred. Vanity Fair reported that FBI agents on Monday visited a room at the Lowes Regency Hotel in Manhattan, where Cohen has been staying and executed the warrants.
Cohen's lawyer, Stephen Ryan, said, "Today the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York executed a series of search warrants and seized the privileged communications between my client, Michael Cohen, and his clients. I have been advised by federal prosecutors that the New York action is, in part, a referral by the Office of Special Counsel, Robert Mueller."
"The decision by the U.S. Attorney's Office in New York to conduct their investigation using search warrants is completely inappropriate and unnecessary," Ryan said.
"It resulted in the unnecessary seizure of protected attorney client communications between a lawyer and his clients. These government tactics are also wrong because Mr. Cohen has cooperated completely with all government entities, including providing thousands of non-privileged documents to the Congress and sitting for depositions under oath."
Trump's spokeswoman Sarah Huckabee Sanders told CNBC that the White House has no comment on the raid.
Spokesmen for the FBI's New York field office and for Mueller did not immediately respond to CNBC's requests for comment.
When does the war start? The war between the patriots and the seditionists. I’m ready.
The Swamp Snakes strike. What does Q say?
Great, now when is Sessions sendi9ng in the SWAT team for Mueller over Uranium 1?
All this over a hooker..and she isn’t even Russian..so tell me Mueller, what does this have to do with Russian collusion???
The FRAME UP begins in earnest. Mueller plans to emerge as Godfather of America.
This is outrageous. Seizing financial and tax records because some porn star alleges she was paid money years ago? Fishing expedition indeed. And of course it's only a matter of time before all of it is published in the Washington Post thanks to "sources close to the investigation". This may be the straw that breaks the camel's back.
Ignoring attorney client privilege is a hallmark of the contempt for all laws except the ones that benefit them is a hallmark of the methods Weissman and Mueller employ.
So what is the justification for this little fishing expedition? Stormy is now Natasha Fatale, Russian agent?
The Get Trump “investigation” has now gone over the cliff entirely, and is off into the land of tabloid exploitation.
Still wondering what crime is being investigated in the Stormy Danials saga.
They never did anything like for hillary, who used her fund to collect money and to give out favors.
This is getting dirty. Mueller is looking for a Stormy Daniels PDJT smoking gun.
I have to laugh at just how desperate Mueller is getting.
He won;t get a thing . If he says he does, its been made up or planted evidence.
It sounds like Mueller is trying to provoke Trump into firing him.
This is way beyond the scope of Mueller’s investigation.
Where is the oversight and control of Mueller’s investigation?
Billboard on I75
Stormy Daniels to appear August 3-4 at Diamonds Cabaret, Centerville Ohio
Wonder how much she gets for that?
A bag of crack?
Yep, and regardless of what the facts are in this case one thing is certain: It is solely a civil matter. How on Earth does a special prosecutor ascribe to himself the right to “investigate” (and boy, is that a tortured word in this context) anything outside the realm of criminal law? My guess is that they will try to stretch this into a claim of obstruction of justice, but this is absolutely absurd.
This Mueller shitball is out of control.
I hope POTUS goes on the absolute warpath over this grandstanding coup attempt.
Times up Mr. President. You could have fired Rosenweasel a year ago and put someone in there to get Mueller and his Rat hit squad under control a year ago. Now they have the records of you and your personal attorney. They will find SOMETHING.
Operation: Sam Flagg
ARE YOU EFFIN KIDDING ME?!!!
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