Ex-Trump lawyer Cohen hands over new documents to Congress
CGTN
["north america"]
U.S. President Donald Trump's former personal attorney Michael Cohen testified before Congress again on Wednesday, a week after accusing his ex-boss of being a racist, a conman and a cheat in scathing public remarks.
Cohen's day-long appearance before the House Intelligence Committee on Thursday was held behind closed doors. It was the fourth and final scheduled interview with a congressional panel for Trump's longtime lawyer and general fixer.
Cohen made brief remarks to reporters following his testimony. "I believe that all of the members were satisfied with the statements and the responses that I gave to them," he said.
After the hearing, the panel's chairman, Democratic Representative Adam Schiff said Cohen provided the committee with new documents and may hand over more. Schiff told reporters that Cohen was cooperative and the eight-hour hearing was "very productive." 
He did not say what the new documents related to and declined to comment on the substance of Cohen's testimony. 
"We had requested documents of Mr. Cohen. He has provided additional documents to the committee. There may be additional documents that he still has to offer and his cooperation with our committee continues," Schiff said.
Michael Cohen, former attorney for President Donald Trump, arrives at the Capitol for a hearing in Washington, DC, March 6, 2019. /VCG Photo

Michael Cohen, former attorney for President Donald Trump, arrives at the Capitol for a hearing in Washington, DC, March 6, 2019. /VCG Photo

Cohen testified in closed session before the House Intelligence Committee and the Senate Intelligence Committee last week and in public before the House Oversight and Reform Committee.
The 52-year-old, who is to report to prison on May 6 to begin a three-year sentence for fraud, tax evasion, illegal campaign contributions and lying to Congress, expressed regret at the open hearing for his years of devoted service to Trump and accused him of engaging in illegal activity.
Cohen said Trump told him to lie about hush payments made to a porn actress to silence her claims of a 2006 affair with the real estate tycoon.
He said Trump knew in advance in mid-2016 that WikiLeaks would publish emails stolen by the Russians from rival Hillary Clinton's campaign.
And Cohen asserted that lawyers for Trump and his family reviewed and edited his written testimony to Congress in 2017 in which he lied about a Moscow real estate deal.
But he did not produce fresh evidence that Trump or his campaign colluded with Russia during the election, the subject of an investigation by Special Counsel Robert Mueller in addition to the House probe. 

Sweeping new probe 

On Monday, the Democratic-controlled House Judiciary Committee launched a sweeping new investigation into Trump's inner circle, demanding documents from dozens of individuals including the president's sons Don Jr. and Eric and son-in-law Jared Kushner.
U.S. President Donald Trump listens during a meeting with Danny Burch (L), a former U.S. hostage in Yemen, in the Oval Office of the White House, March 6, 2019. /VCG Photo

U.S. President Donald Trump listens during a meeting with Danny Burch (L), a former U.S. hostage in Yemen, in the Oval Office of the White House, March 6, 2019. /VCG Photo

The request is the most serious escalation of the probe into Trump since Democrats took control of the House of Representatives in early January, and seeks to uncover whether the president or his administration have engaged in obstruction of justice, corruption, or other wrongdoing.
"Over the last several years, President Trump has evaded accountability for his near-daily attacks on our basic legal, ethical, and constitutional rules and norms," House Judiciary Committee chairman Jerry Nadler said.
"Investigating these threats to the rule of law is an obligation of Congress."
The expansive new probe lays the groundwork for possible impeachment proceedings against Trump, who dismissed the ramped-up investigation as a "political hoax."  
Trump repeated his denials that there had been any collusion between his election campaign and Russia. 
Source(s): AFP ,Reuters