Donald Trump was already facing multiple criminal investigations when his legal troubles intensified in early January: The New York Times reported that the Manhattan district attorney’s office was poised to begin presenting evidence to a grand jury about the former president’s 2016 hush money scandal.
Soon after, NBC News confirmed that Michael Cohen, Trump’s longtime attorney, had scheduled his 15th meeting with Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, as part of the investigation.
It now appears Cohen may not be the only person who worked closely with the former president who’s begun speaking with prosecutors. The New York Times reported overnight:
Kellyanne Conway, who managed the final months of Donald J. Trump’s 2016 campaign, met with prosecutors from the Manhattan district attorney’s office on Wednesday, the latest sign that the office is ramping up its criminal investigation into the former president.
At first blush, Conway might seem like an unexpected witness, but the Times’ report, which has not been independently verified by MSNBC or NBC News, added that Cohen’s book referenced Conway and the minor role she played in the controversy.
“I called Trump to confirm that the transaction was completed, and the documentation all in place, but he didn’t take my call — obviously a very bad sign, in hindsight,” Cohen wrote. Instead, he added, Conway “called and said she’d pass along the good news.”
If that’s accurate, then Conway’s testimony could be relevant in bolstering Cohen’s version of events. What’s more, as my MSNBC colleague Lisa Rubin explained, Conway’s testimony to the Jan. 6 committee suggests she’s unlikely to lie for her former boss.
But for the former president, what probably matters most this morning is the fact that these developments are unfolding at all.
In case anyone needs a refresher let’s revisit our earlier coverage and review how we arrived at this point.
In a normal political environment, it would’ve been a career-ending scandal. Then-candidate Trump, in the run-up to Election Day 2016, allegedly paid illegal hush money to Stormy Daniels, a prominent porn actress, in the hopes of keeping secret an alleged extramarital affair. The Republican’s fixer took the lead in orchestrating the illegal payment. Cohen was ultimately charged, prosecuted, convicted, and sentenced to prison, even as his former client was rewarded with the presidency. It’s long been an open question as to why Trump wasn’t also charged in the case. If the latest reporting is correct, the door isn’t just open to a possible indictment, prosecutors have also spoken to prominent members of his inner circle. As for the former president’s response to these developments, he’s tried to push back against the advancing investigation, but he’s struggled to come up with anything persuasive. This post is a revised version of our related earlier coverage.
Steve Benen is a producer for "The Rachel Maddow Show," the editor of MaddowBlog and an MS NOW political contributor. He's also the bestselling author of "Ministry of Truth: Democracy, Reality, and the Republicans' War on the Recent Past."
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