1/ There is nothing in today’s VF piece by Emily Jane Fox about #MichaelCohen’s motives in holding the interview that couldn’t have been predicted, but it should help to dispel some of the confusion and errors that have been circulating today on Twitter.
2/ According to Vanity Fair, Cohen had been contemplating holding such an interview as part of a media cum legal strategy for MONTHS. Normally such interviews are planned by media savvy attorneys well in advance, but this one was precipitated
3/ by concerns that Trump and his defenders would act to damage Cohen’s cred as a witness before *he* had had a chance to shape the narrative.
4/ VF emphasizes that Cohen did have the advice of his new criminal defense attorney Guy Petrillo, not only to hold the interview, but about the details. (According to Fox, Petrillo didn’t want any *theatrics,* so the interview was only audiotaped instead of videotaped.)
5/ So much for the claim made by .@SethAbramson in a thread that has received a lot of attention today. Abramson has made the astonishing claim that “no criminal defense attorney would let Michael Cohen give the interview he gave today”
6/ WTF? Guy Petrillo is the former head of the criminal division of the US attorney’s office in SDNY--the very office that is currently investigating Cohen. He is also an experienced trial lawyer.

Is .@SethAbramson claiming that Petrillo is an incompetent defense attorney?
7/ Abramson’s thread is all the more puzzling because SA himself gives a compelling reason why Cohen would try to refurbish his image now: i.e., that he will not have the same freedom of action once he becomes a cooperating witness.
8/ Nor is it surprising that Cohen tried in the interview to exculpate himself. Every target and potential defendant in Cohen’s position does THAT.
9/ Cohen is up to his eyeballs in deep sh*t, and there’s no reason to think that his desire to refurbish his image will be successful. But it certainly isn’t surprising that he is trying (with the advice and likely encouragement of Petrillo) to do just that.
10/ There have been no contacts between Cohen and the feds yet. As I’ve argued in a previous thread, the feds (and Mueller) will not be interested in talking to Cohen until they have had a chance to thoroughly review all the materials collected in the raids.
11/ As we have learned from all those who have reported on their own interviews with Team Trump (e.g., Nunberg, Caputo), the Team does not hold interviews to learn anything. When they interview someone, they already KNOW the answers.
12/ When Mueller and the feds are ready, they will call Cohen and Petrillo, not the other way around. All we learned today is that Cohen and Petrillo have sent a clear signal that they are waiting for the call. #michaelcohen #mueller
13/ There can be no doubt that Cohen is flipping. This is terrible news for Trump.
14/ Quite uncharacteristically, Trump was completely silent today about Cohen--no doubt on the advice of his attorneys. This must be very hard on Trump, who will want to reassure his base. But that is no longer possible. Sad!

• • •

Missing some Tweet in this thread? You can try to force a refresh
 

Keep Current with Thomas Wood 🇺🇸 🌊 🇺🇦

Thomas Wood 🇺🇸 🌊 🇺🇦 Profile picture

Stay in touch and get notified when new unrolls are available from this author!

Read all threads

This Thread may be Removed Anytime!

PDF

Twitter may remove this content at anytime! Save it as PDF for later use!

Try unrolling a thread yourself!

how to unroll video
  1. Follow @ThreadReaderApp to mention us!

  2. From a Twitter thread mention us with a keyword "unroll"
@threadreaderapp unroll

Practice here first or read more on our help page!

More from @twoodiac

Oct 9, 2018
One key to getting to the bottom of this is the private-wealth office of Deutsche Bank. @NatashaBertrand

tinyurl.com/y8vhvm68
I posted this to Twitter a long time ago. It’s from Yuri Felshtinsky and Vladimir Pribylovsky, The Corporation: Russia and the KGB in the Age of President Putin. Encounter Books. 2008, pp. 40-41 (not available online):
Read 4 tweets
Oct 6, 2018
Let’s try to clear up some confusion here.

We need to be clear about terms like “investigation,” “inquiry,” and “background check.”

Let’s begin with a relatively unloaded term: “inquiry.” 1/16
Here’s the question: Should the INQUIRY re #Kavanaugh have been conducted as a standard FBI BACKGROUND CHECK or as an FBI INVESTIGATION? 2/16
An FBI background check is not the same thing as an FBI investigation (though the former might very well lead to the latter). 3/16
Read 16 tweets
Oct 5, 2018
(THREAD) Collins votes YES, so Kavanaugh’s confirmed.

This is the finale of the confirmation VOTE, but it is NOT the end of the #Kavanaugh ISSUE. 1/14
The FBI “investigation” was a sham, and that makes Collins’ special pleading for her YES vote a sham. It was a sickening performance. 2/14
The fatal weakness of her defense of her vote is that there was no meaningful investigation. Merely seeking corroboration in the form of direct, eyewitness testimony from the participants of the 1 Jul 1982 meeting does not constitute a meaningful investigation. 3/14
Read 14 tweets
Oct 4, 2018
A subjective impression, admittedly, but in the pics and videos I have seen, Senate Rs look grim and worried--even, on occasion, angry.

D claim that this was a cover-up (20+ witnesses not called) is getting traction. No adequate push back from Rs yet.
McConnell saying on the floor that the Senate must vote to confirm b/c “in this country you’re not guilty until proven innocent” has this whole matter so wrong (it’s a job interview, Mitch, not a trial) that he must be feeling a little desperate.
Read 4 tweets
Oct 2, 2018
(THREAD) The predicted early conclusion of the FBI background check on #Kavanaugh that has been reported by Politico and the WSJ is surprising and cause for anxiety and concern, but let’s look try hard to look on the (possibly) bright side. 1/8
We must keep in mind that this investigation is essentially a background check on #Kavanaugh, in light of newly surfaced allegations of belligerent drunkenness and sexual violence alleged against him by Ford and others. 2/8
So this investigation is more about Kavanaugh and his nomination than it is about Ford or any other accusers, and while the FBI does not reach conclusions, it does uncovers facts, and presents those facts to others so they can better reach their own conclusions. 3/8
Read 8 tweets
Oct 1, 2018
THREAD: THIS JUST OCCURRED TO ME. HOW DID I MISS IT? WHY HAS NO ONE ELSE NOTICED IT?

CHRIS GARRETT MUST BE INTERVIEWED ASAP
1/ Dr Blasey: The party where the assault occurred was attended by Smyth (P.J.), Judge, Kavanaugh, another boy she can’t recall…
2/ Remember: Kavanaugh’s calendar (July 1) has Chris Garrett, her boyfriend at the time (she was at least dating him) at that party.
Read 15 tweets

Did Thread Reader help you today?

Support us! We are indie developers!


This site is made by just two indie developers on a laptop doing marketing, support and development! Read more about the story.

Become a Premium Member ($3/month or $30/year) and get exclusive features!

Become Premium

Don't want to be a Premium member but still want to support us?

Make a small donation by buying us coffee ($5) or help with server cost ($10)

Donate via Paypal

Or Donate anonymously using crypto!

Ethereum

0xfe58350B80634f60Fa6Dc149a72b4DFbc17D341E copy

Bitcoin

3ATGMxNzCUFzxpMCHL5sWSt4DVtS8UqXpi copy

Thank you for your support!

Follow Us on Twitter!

:(