Attorney Michael Cohen went against ethics guidelines by allegedly making a secret recording of a conversation he had with then-candidate Donald Trump in 2016, Freedom Watch founder Larry Klayman told Newsmax TV.
During an appearance on "America Talks Live," Klayman — a former federal prosecutor — said if The New York Times report is true, Cohen made an unethical decision.
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"He's always struck me as kind of a slippery character," Klayman said of Cohen. "And even though there's one party consent in the state of New York — you can record telephone conversations — it's not the ethical thing to do with your client.
"To be recording him and then turning it over, even it was under court order, to a federal prosecutor, they should've been resistant. They should have taken this up the line to the Appellate Court, the Supreme Court, if necessary."
The Times reported that Cohen made the tape two months before the 2016 presidential election. The two men allegedly had a conversation about a payment to a former Playboy model who claimed to have had an affair with Trump years earlier. The conversation was confirmed by Trump lawyer Rudy Giuliani, who said it was less than two minutes in length.
American Media Inc., the parent company of the National Enquirer, made a $150,000 payment to the Playboy model for her story but never ran the piece, which effectively served to keep her quiet before the election. Trump has maintained that he was unaware of that payment and others at the time.
"Nothing in that conversation suggests that he had any knowledge of it in advance," Giuliani said.
The recording was taken from Cohen when federal agents raided two offices, a hotel room and an apartment connected to him earlier this year. According to CNN, Trump became aware of the tape this week.
Klayman was asked whether it's commonplace for the wealthy to pay money to keep people quiet about allegations whether or not they are true.
"It's commonplace and it's not illegal, but it's something that I would not do because it's like dealing with terrorists. Once you make that kind of entertainment they're gonna come back," Klayman said.
"I wouldn't recommend it to a client to pay extortion money. I wouldn't. I'd fight it."
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