WASHINGTON _ Michael Cohen, President Donald Trump's longtime personal lawyer and fixer, told the House Oversight Committee on Wednesday that he had not seen proof of collusion between Trump and Russia or other foreign governments and knocked down several accusations of misconduct surrounding his former boss, but said he was aware of other possible criminal conduct involving the president.
"Was there something odd about his back-and-forth praise with President Putin? Yes. But I'm not really sure I can answer that question on collusion," Cohen, the president's longtime personal lawyer and fixer, said of Trump during Wednesday's hearing. "There's just so many dots that all seem to lead in the same direction."
Among the rumors Cohen disputed: He said he investigated but found no evidence that Trump had fathered a child out of wedlock. He knocked down a persistent rumor about a videotape that purportedly showed Trump hitting first lady Melania Trump in an elevator. He also said he did not believe a tape exists showing Trump engaged in sexual activities with prostitutes in a Moscow hotel, a report that first surfaced in the widely circulated Michael Steele dossier of reports about Trump.
Cohen said he had chased down rumors of all three. Cohen also said Trump never directly told him to lie to Congress. But he said the president clearly indicated to him that he should do so.
Facing hostile questions from the president's Republican allies, Cohen alluded to other possible criminal conduct involving Trump, but said he could not talk about because it's under investigation by the Southern District of New York. Specifically, he wouldn't answer a question about the last time he spoke with Trump or one of his representatives.
"Unfortunately this topic is something that's currently being investigated right now by the Southern District of New York," Cohen said when Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi, D-Ill., asked about his last conversation with Trump.
Cohen said he hopes his assistance to federal prosecutors will eventually allow him to apply for a reduction in his three-year prison sentence, which he is scheduled to begin on May 6.
