Trump has a new version of his business deals with Russia during the 2016 campaign

Donald Trump.
(Image credit: BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP/Getty Images)

Early Friday, tweeting from Argentina, President Trump laid out a breezy new version of his interactions with Russia during the 2016 presidential election, following revelations from longtime lawyer Michael Cohen that Trump's company was negotiating the construction of a Trump Tower Moscow until mid-June 2016, that Cohen had updated him regularly on the progress of those talks, and reports that Cohen had proposed to Kremlin officials gifting Russian President Vladimir Putin a $50 million penthouse in the building.

Throughout 2016 and 2017, Trump had denied having any business dealings with Russia; on Thursday afternoon, he claimed Cohen is lying but said "there would have been nothing wrong if I did do it," because "when I'm running for president, that doesn't mean I'm not allowed to do business." Trump elaborated in his new tweets:

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Peter Weber, The Week US

Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.