Special counsel disputes explosive report on Trump lawyer testimony
AFP/File / TIMOTHY A. CLARY, NICHOLAS KAMMUS President Donald Trump says former attorney Michael Cohen is lying in a bid to reduce his sentence
Special Counsel Robert Mueller's office took the rare step Friday of disputing a news report on his Russia investigation, saying a BuzzFeed article alleging that US President Donald Trump directed his former lawyer to lie to Congress is "not accurate."
Trump's lieutenants had already strongly pushed back against the report, which said that the president ordered Michael Cohen to lie about a Russian skyscraper project they pursued during the 2016 election.
"BuzzFeed's description of specific statements to the Special Counsel's Office, and characterization of documents and testimony obtained by this office, regarding Michael Cohen's Congressional testimony are not accurate," spokesman Peter Carr said in a statement.
Mueller's investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 vote and possible collusion between Trump's campaign and Moscow is the subject of frequent articles and even more frequent speculation.
But it is extremely rare -- if not unprecedented -- for Mueller's office to issue such a statement.
BuzzFeed's editor-in chief however said the news organization stood by its work.
"We stand by our reporting and the sources who informed it, and we urge the Special Counsel to make clear what he's disputing," Ben Smith tweeted.
The statement was nevertheless a cause for celebration for the president, who retweeted numerous supporters slamming BuzzFeed and later wrote it was "A very sad day for journalism, but a great day for our Country!"
"Fake News is truly the ENEMY OF THE PEOPLE!" he added, a now familiar refrain when talking about critical media.
Trump's lawyer Rudy Giuliani had earlier called the allegation in the BuzzFeed report "categorically false" in a comment sent to several White House reporters, while Deputy White House Spokesman Hogan Gidley labeled the report "ridiculous." He said Cohen is someone "who now quite frankly has been proven to be a liar."
AFP/File / SAUL LOEBDonald Trump's personal lawyer Rudy Giuliani, pictured in July 2018, suggested that his ex-attorney Michael Cohen was lying
Democrats in Congress had pledged to investigate the report to see if the president had committed an impeachable felony.
"These allegations may prove unfounded, but, if true, they would constitute both the subornation of perjury as well as obstruction of justice," said Adam Schiff, the chairman of the House Intelligence Committee.
BuzzFeed reported late Thursday that Cohen, who worked for Trump for more than a decade, has told investigators that the president personally instructed him to lie about the Moscow Trump Tower plan in testimony in 2017 to the House and Senate Intelligence Committees.
The BuzzFeed article was based on interviews with two anonymous "federal law enforcement officials" who are familiar with Cohen's testimony to the investigation led by Mueller.
"Any suggestion -- from any source -- that the president counseled Michael Cohen to lie is categorically false. Michael Cohen is a convicted criminal and a liar," Giuliani said in a statement quoted by New York Times reporter Maggie Haberman.
"Lying to reduce his jail time!" Trump said on Twitter of Cohen, who was convicted last year of fraud and perjury.
- A plea deal -
No other media have confirmed BuzzFeed's reporting.
GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA/AFP/File / CHIP SOMODEVILLASpecial Counsel Robert Mueller, head of the Russia meddling investigation, has already indicted 33 people, including members of Russia's GRU military intelligence, and secured convictions against former aides to Donald Trump
It came two months after Cohen pleaded guilty in a New York court to making "false, fictitious and fraudulent" written testimony to the House and Senate intelligence committees in August 2017 in connection with the Moscow project.
A statement of the facts in his November 29 plea deal with Mueller's prosecutors suggested that his testimony had been prepared in consultation with unnamed people in the White House.
Cohen had told the two committees that the Moscow project talks ended in January 2016, when in fact, as he later admitted, they went on at least six months longer, to June 2016 when Trump had already secured the Republican nomination for president.
Cohen had also testified that others in the campaign, including Trump, were not informed about the project.
But in the November plea deal, Cohen also admitted the project had been discussed with Trump -- designated "Individual 1" in court documents -- several times in early 2016.
"Cohen made the false statements to minimize links between the Moscow project and Individual 1... in hopes of limiting the ongoing Russia investigations," prosecutors wrote.
- Trump's right-hand man -
AFP / Gal ROMAMichael Cohen
Cohen was the president's right-hand man for years at the Trump Organization, the umbrella company, often relied upon to quietly fix difficult problems and negotiate deals for the real estate mogul.
But he turned on his former boss after he was charged with giving hush money to women alleging affairs with Trump ahead of the 2016 election -- payments that violated campaign finance laws.
Cohen, who has been sentenced to three years in jail, said Trump ordered him to make the payments, and now says he regrets his work for the president.
While Democrats could not confirm the BuzzFeed report, they said they were poised to further probe the allegations.
"Our committee is already working to secure additional witness testimony and documents related to the Trump Tower Moscow deal and other investigative matters," said Intelligence Committee chairman Schiff.
Kriechmayr wins epic Wengen downhill
AFP / Lionel BONAVENTUREVincent Kriechmayr earned his first win of the World Cup season at Wengen
Austria's Vincent Kriechmayr won the iconic World Cup downhill at the Swiss resort of Wengen on Saturday, edging home hope Beat Feuz into second at a barnstorming, daredevil event.
In bright sunshine and in front of vast crowds on the hair-raising 4.27km run, Kriechmayr timed 2min 28.36sec and hit top speeds of around 140km/h on the fearsome Lauberhorn slopes.
It was enough to edge out Feuz by 0.14sec to claim the fourth win of Kriechmayr's career and climb to second in the downhill standings, but he still trails the Swiss by almost 100 points.
"I'm really proud. It means a lot (to win here)," said Kriechmayr.
"It's my first victory in a classic downhill race. It's the second toughest after Kitzbuehel and I'm really proud to be with the guys on the podium."
Feuz elicited the loudest cheers of the afternoon when he briefly took the lead.
"I didn't feel that well actually and made some mistakes at key moments. Anyways, Kriechmayr put in a fabulous run," the Swiss said.
Norwegian Aleksander Aamodt Kilde finished third while Olympic champion Aksel Lund Svindal, a two-time former overall World Cup winner, came fourth.
The race was held up for over 15 minutes when Italy's Emanuele Buzzi flew over the line in sixth but fell awkwardly and got stuck under hoardings right beneath the spectators at the finish line.
The 27-year-old Kriechmayr is the fifth different winner in five downhill races this season.
Fans of the fast slopes will be eagerly awaiting next week's events as well as the World Cup visits Kitzbuehel in Austria, home to the most feared piste in skiing.
Rough return as speed queen Vonn battles for winning form
AFP / Tiziana FABILindsey Vonn finished ninth in the second downhill in Cortina d'Ampezzo
US speed queen Lindsey Vonn conceded it's a daily battle to regain her winning form after trailing home joint-ninth in Saturday's World Cup downhill in Cortina d'Ampezzo, her second race after a two-month knee injury layoff.
The 34-year-old American, wearing knee braces, improved on her 15th place in Friday's race in the Italian Dolomites, but remains far from the lightning form that has reaped 82 World Cup wins.
"It's a little bit rougher than I expected, but today was a step in the right direction," said Vonn.
Her final chance in Cortina where she has won a record 12 times -- six downhill and six Super-G -- will be in Sunday's Super-G for which US teammate Mikaela Shiffrin is the hot favourite.
But for Vonn the challenge is how to become competitive as she targets Swedish great Ingemar Stenmark's all-time record of 86 World Cup wins before retiring at Lake Louise next December.
"I always hope to win races, but when you come down and you're 0.2sec off the lead it's not really a positive experience," said a disappointed Vonn.
"I know it's not going to get better, it's trying to figure out how best to deal with it.
"I just have to try and get the swelling out of my knee and keep the muscles going.
"It's a pretty extensive process."
The former Olympic downhill champion refuses to be discouraged.
After Cortina she heads to the World Cup in Garmisch, Germany, where she has won nine times and then on to the world championships in Sweden from February 5.
"I still have a lot more races this season, it's taking me a bit longer to be up and running," she continued.
"Garmisch is always a good track for me. There's not much I can do, it's mostly figuring out how I can create power on the leg.
"Swimming helps, at 9.30 last night I was in the pool by myself. I'm working to put myself in as good a position as I can to win races."
Vonn has battled back in the past from broken bones and torn ligaments, but her final season is the most challenging.
"I think I have had worse injuries that I have come back from but last year was a tough year.
"Right now it's just building my confidence back up and hopefully my knee will be better for the world championship."
- 'Feels great' -
AFP / Tiziana FABI"Feels great to be here again." Slovenia's Ilka Stuhec is back this season after a 20-month injury layoff
Ramona Siebenhofer made it two downhill wins in as many days, leading an Austrian 1-2 ahead of Nicole Schmidhofer.
Siebenhofer, 27, chalked up just the second World Cup win of her career and finished four hundredths of a second ahead of Schmidhofer, who retains the lead in the World Cup downhill standings.
Ilka Stuhec of Slovenia rounded out the placings at 0.51sec.
The Slovenian, the 2017 World Cup downhill crystal globe champion, followed up her second place from Friday, as she also recently returned from a knee injury that sidelined her for 20 months.
"Not bad I have to say," said Stuhec, who won both the downhill and Super-G in Val Gardena last month.
"I'm really satisfied, it wasn't an easy start for me.
"I imagined I would be on the podium straight away. It feels great to be here again, to trust myself to ski the way I can."
Stuhec will target a tenth World Cup win in Sunday's Super-G, a race she won in Cortina two years ago.
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