Prosecutors in New York on Monday showed a series of documents that Daily Beast reporter Jose Pagliery described as “the most damning” yet seen in former President Donald Trump’s Manhattan hush-money trial.
The documents related to the Trump Organization’s scheme to reimburse former Trump “fixer” Michael Cohen for shelling out hush money to adult film star Stormy Daniels during the 2016 presidential campaign.
It was these payments that prosecutors alleged were falsely logged as legal expenses when in reality they were an illegal campaign contribution made by Cohen to ensure that damaging information about Trump did not come out ahead of the 2016 presidential election.
As described by MSNBC’s Katie Phang, one showed Trump Organization officials making calculations on a piece of paper with the Trump Organization letterhead about how to pay back Cohen.
In total, the Trump Organization paid Cohen back a total of $420,000 over the span of a year in $35,000 monthly increments.
“We’re seeing the white corporate notepad that says TRUMP at the top,” marveled Pagliery in a post on Twitter. “It shows the coverup math. This is the most damning evidence we’ve seen so far.”
Legal reporter Adam Klasfeld was similarly wowed that Trump Organization members jotted down notes about the hush-money repayment scheme on their own corporate letterhead.
“During opening statements, the prosecution promised the jury that they would see these notes,” he wrote. “For ‘The Wire’ enthusiasts, some legal commentators have described this as the Stringer Bell rule in action. (Google it.)”
The “Stringer Bell rule” refers to a famous scene in the HBO series “The Wire” in which drug kingpin Stringer Bell scolds a member of his gang for taking minutes during a meeting.
“Are you taking notes on a criminal f—ing conspiracy?!” an incredulous Bell demanded to know.
