Michael Avenatti, the attorney for adult film actress Stormy Daniels, said on Tuesday that President Trump's personal lawyer, Michael Cohen, received about $500,000 from a company controlled by Viktor Vekselberg, a Russian oligarch under sanctions with ties to Russian President Vladimir Putin.
The money was given to Cohen in the months after the 2016 presidential election, Avenatti said, and may have reimbursed Cohen for the $130,000 payment he made to Daniels in exchange for her silence regarding an affair she said she had with Trump in 2006. Cohen had said he used his own money for the payment, and Trump claimed he knew nothing about it, but last week, Trump's new lawyer, Rudy Giuliani, said Trump reimbursed Cohen the $130,000 he paid Daniels.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
Why Bhutan hopes tourists will put a smile back on its faceUnder The Radar The 'kingdom of happiness' is facing economic problems and unprecedented emigration
-
7 beautiful towns to visit in Switzerland during the holidaysThe Week Recommends Find bliss in these charming Swiss locales that blend the traditional with the modern
-
The Week contest: Werewolf billPuzzles and Quizzes
-
Biden visits Amazon, says climate legacy irreversibleSpeed Read Nobody can reverse America's 'clean energy revolution,' said the president, despite the incoming Trump administration's promises to dismantle climate policies
-
At least 95 dead in Spain flash floodsSpeed Read Torrential rainfall caused the country's worst flooding since 1996
-
Cuba roiled by island-wide blackouts, Hurricane OscarSpeed Read The country's power grid collapsed for the fourth time in just two days
-
Wildlife populations drop a 'catastrophic' 73%Speed Read The decline occurred between 1970 and 2020
-
Floridians flee oncoming Hurricane MiltonSpeed Read The hurricane is expected to cause widespread damage in the state
-
Beryl kills 4, knocks out power to 2.7M in TexasSpeed Read Millions now face sweltering heat without air conditioning
-
Arid Gulf states hit with year's worth of rainSpeed Read The historic flooding in Dubai is tied to climate change
-
EPA limits carcinogenic emissions at 218 US plantsSpeed Read The new rule aims to reduce cancer-causing air pollution in areas like Louisiana's 'Cancer Alley'
