Washington D.C. attorney Lanny Davis, who was a legal adviser to Harvey Weinstein before stepping down, has been retained by Michael Cohen, President Trump’s former lawyer. Davis is an expert in crisis management who served as special counsel to Bill Clinton during the Monica Lewinsky scandal. Davis has joined Guy Petrillo as Cohen’s legal counsel.
“Like most of America, I have been following the matter regarding Michael Cohen with great interest,” Davis said in a statement to The New York Times. “As an attorney, I have talked to Michael many times in the last two weeks. Then I read his words published on July 2, and I recognized his sincerity. Michael Cohen deserves to tell his side of the story — subject, of course, to the advice of counsel.”
Cohen has admitted to his involvement in a $130,000 payment made in 2016 to adult film star Stormy Daniels, real name Stephanie Clifford, in exchange for her signing a non-disclosure agreement forbidding her to talk about an affair she says she had with Trump years earlier. The porn star is now suing the president over the NDA.
Trump has consistently denied any affair with Daniels and has maintained the money was to spare his family the pain of a lawsuit.
Cohen’s home and office were raided by the FBI in April 2018 and documents were removed from his possession.
There has been growing chatter among the White House press corps that Cohen would “flip” on Trump in return for a deal with prosecutors for some as yet unspecified criminal activity.
The speculation reached Trump himself last month, who told press before his visit with the G7 in Canada that he was not worried whatsoever about Cohen flipping because there was nothing to flip about.
Speculation started anew earlier this week, when Cohen told ABC’s George Stephanopoulis: “My wife, my daughter and my son have my first loyalty and always will. I put family and country first.”
Davis’ hire was first reported by The New York Times on Thursday.