Michael Cohen's Trump Book - The Ex-Lawyer's Key Claims - BBC News

9/8/2020 Michael Cohen's Trump book: The ex-lawyer's key claims - BBC News
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Michael Cohen's Trump book: The ex-lawyer's key claims

3 hours ago
REUTERS
Donald Trump behaves like a mobster and has "a low opinion of all black people",
according to the US president's former lawyer Michael Cohen.
The allegations come from Cohen's new book, Disloyal: A Memoir, written during his jail term
for Trump campaign finance violations, among other crimes.
Cohen claims Mr Trump also made racist comments about Nelson Mandela and Hispanics.
The White House says Cohen is lying.
"Cohen is a disgraced felon and disbarred lawyer, who lied to Congress," press secretary
Kayleigh McEnany said in a statement at the weekend. "He has lost all credibility, and it's
unsurprising to see his latest attempt to profit off of lies."
In the book, Cohen alleges that Mr Trump is "guilty of the same crimes" that landed him in
prison, and calls his former boss "a cheat, a liar, a fraud, a bully, a racist, a predator, a
conman". He said he had the mentality of a "mob boss".
Various US news outlets have published quotes from the book, which comes out on Tuesday.
Here are some of the key claims.
On black people and Mandela

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-54060687 1/15
"As a rule, Trump expressed low opinions of all black folks, from music to culture and politics,"
Cohen writes in his book.
He claimed Donald Trump said the late South African president and anti-apartheid activist
Nelson Mandela was "no leader".
BBC/72 FILMS/MEDIA24/GALLO IMAGES/GETTY IMAGES
"Tell me one country run by a black person that isn't a shithole. They are all complete
[expletive] toilets," Mr Trump once said, according to Cohen.
The words echo similar allegations, from 2018, that Trump referred to African countries as
"shithole" nations.
Back then, Mr Trump told reporters: "I am not a racist. I'm the least racist person you have
ever interviewed."
Racism accusations have marred his first term and continue to be an issue as the Republican
president campaigns for a November re-election against his Democratic rival, Joe Biden.
How Donald Trump is doing in the polls?
How Mandela survived 27 years in prison
The Nelson Mandela foundation has responded to the allegations regarding the former South
Africa president affectionately known as Madiba.
"We do not believe that leaders who conduct themselves in the way Mr Trump does are in a
position to offer authoritative commentary on the life and work of Madiba," it said in a
statement.
"Reflecting on leadership, Madiba once said: 'A good leader can engage in a debate frankly
and thoroughly, knowing that at the end he and the other side must be closer, and thus
emerge stronger. You don't have that idea when you are arrogant, superficial, and
uninformed.' We would recommend these words to Mr Trump for consideration."
On Obama
In the book, Cohen alleges that Mr Trump has "hatred and contempt" for his predecessor,
Barack Obama.
REUTERS
"Trump hired a 'Faux-Bama' to participate in a video in which Trump 'ritualistically belittled the
first black president and then fired him'," Cohen writes.
US media has since shown an old video, showing Mr Trump reprising his role as the host of
The Apprentice television show and firing a man posing as President Obama.
It is believed to have been made for the 2012 Republican convention, when Mitt Romney was
nominated as the Republican candidate, but it was never aired.
On Hispanic voters
According to Cohen, Mr Trump once said: "I will never get the Hispanic vote. Like the blacks,
they're too stupid to vote for Trump. They're not my people."
His comments on Latin Americans have come under scrutiny throughout his presidency,
especially after he repeatedly disparaged Mexicans during his campaign.
In 2019, President Trump told a rally in New Mexico: "Nobody loves Hispanics more."
On evangelicals
GETTY IMAGES
Cohen says that after Mr Trump met with evangelical leaders at Trump Tower shortly after he
won the election, he turned and said: "Can you believe people believe that [expletive]?"
Mr Trump has heavily courted the evangelical vote and has said he is a deep believer himself.
His vice-president, Mike Pence, is a devout evangelical.
Editor quits in row over evangelist Trump backing
On Putin
Donald Trump admired Russian President Vladimir Putin because he was able "to take over
an entire nation and run it like it was his personal company - like the Trump Organization, in
fact," Cohen writes.
Cohen says Mr Trump was sycophantic to President Putin to ensure access to Russian
money if he lost the 2016 election.
However, Cohen also says that Trump's campaign was "far too chaotic and incompetent to
actually conspire with the Russian government" when it got into power.
On Stormy Daniels
In 2016, Cohen arranged a hush-money payment to adult-film star Stormy Daniels, who
claimed to have had an affair with Mr Trump. The payment, which violated campaign funding
rules, was among the crimes that led to Cohen's jail term.
Cohen has long insisted he was acting on the president's orders, but Mr Trump has always
denied this.
"It never pays to settle these things, but many, many friends have advised me to pay," Mr
Trump said, according to Cohen's book. "If it comes out, I'm not sure how it would play with
my supporters. But I bet they'd think it's cool that I slept with a porn star."
Who is Michael Cohen?

Cohen worked closely with Mr Trump for years and was often known as his "fixer", but they
fell out and Cohen gave a brutal testimony to Congress last year, prior to Mr Trump's
impeachment.
In 2018, Cohen was jailed for tax evasion, false statements and campaign finance violations.
The disbarred lawyer is currently serving what remains of his three-year sentence at his home
in New York, having been released from prison amid concerns about the spread of
coronavirus.
He was briefly returned to jail, until a federal judge intervened and ruled that the government
had made the move in retaliation for him writing his book.
Mr Trump has called Cohen "a rat" and a liar.
Cohen once said he would take a bullet for Donald Trump. He has since said he has received
death threats from Trump supporters.
Related Topics
Michael Cohen Donald Trump US politics Stormy Daniels
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Michael Cohen's Trump Book - The Ex-Lawyer's Key Claims - BBC News

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9/8/2020 Michael Cohen's Trump book: The ex-lawyer's key claims - BBC News

Home News Sport Reel Worklife Travel Future M

Michael Cohen's Trump book: The ex-lawyer's key claims

The White House says Cohen is lying.

On black people and Mandela

BBC/72 FILMS/MEDIA24/GALLO IMAGES/GETTY IMAGES

How Donald Trump is doing in the polls?

How Mandela survived 27 years in prison

Editor quits in row over evangelist Trump backing

Who is Michael Cohen?

Mr Trump has called Cohen "a rat" and a liar.

Michael Cohen Donald Trump US politics Stormy Daniels

Share this story About sharing

More on this story

US election 2020 polls: Who is ahead - Trump or Biden?

Michael Cohen: Five things he said about Donald Trump

US presidential rivals spar over Covid-19 vaccine

Wildfires burn through record area in California

Prince Harry repays cottage renovation cost

Belarus opposition leader 'detained at border'

China says Indian troops fired 'provocative' shots

'Why are the media behaving like vultures?'

Does Biden want to cut US police funding?

Is Italian fashion racist?

Amazon's murky world of one-star reviews

'They shot him in cold blood'

How an African head of the WTO could make a difference

Can artificial intelligence create a decent dinner?

India's 'lockdown film' is an edgy thriller

BBC Worklife: New Zealand's 'brain gain' boost

PAID AND PRESENTED BY

Elsewhere on the BBC

BGT: Diversity BLM performance attracts complaints to Ofcom 2

Cheng Lei: China says journalist 'endangered national security' 3

Ethan Is Supreme: Beauty influencer Ethan Peters dies aged 17 4

Coronavirus: 'I paid for my student house, now all my lectures 5

Coronavirus: 'Long Covid' patients need treatment programme, 6

Earthquake hits towns in Bedfordshire and Buckinghamshire 7

Coronavirus: 300,000 redundancies planned in June and July 8

Kesgrave shooting: Gun found in schoolboy attack inquiry 9

Coronavirus: Caerphilly county lockdown to go into October 10

Why you can trust BBC News

BBC News Services

Get news alerts

Contact BBC News

Explore the BBC

Terms of Use About the BBC

Privacy Policy Cookies

Accessibility Help Parental Guidance

Contact the BBC Get Personalised Newsletters

Advertise with us AdChoices / Do Not Sell My Info

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