| | | | 3 questions about the canceled Cohen testimony |  | | Since the moment it was announced that former Trump fixer Michael Cohen would appear in front of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, February 7 -- the day of the Cohen appearance -- had been circled on every calendar in Washington.
Until today, that is, when Cohen announced he would not in fact be appearing, due to "ongoing threats against his family from President Trump and Mr. Giuliani," according to his lawyer Lanny Davis.
Which, well, whoa.
But the announcement left a lot of questions -- for me at least. Here are the big ones.
1. What "threats" is Cohen talking about?
Trump lawyer Rudy Giuliani, over the weekend, dropped some hot rhetoric on Cohen's family. "This reason that is important is, he may have ties to something called organized crime," Giuliani told CNN's Jake Tapper by way of explaining why he thought Cohen was lying to protect his father-in-law. He offered no proof of these allegations.
Trump has also pointed to Cohen's father-in-law.
So, are those the threats? Or are we talking about private threats from either the President or his lawyer? That strikes me as VERY unlikely. But in this White House, who knows?
2. Will Cohen be subpoenaed?
Oversight Committee Chairman Elijah Cummings, D-Maryland, wouldn't commit to next steps in regards to Cohen -- up to and including subpoenaing the lawyer to testify. "We will hear from him," Cummings told CNN's Manu Raju, making clear that Congress cannot allow witnesses to be intimidated.
There's also a timing issue here. Cohen is set to begin a three-year prison term in early March, meaning there's only a three-week window between his now-canceled February 7 testimony and when he is incarcerated.
3. What will Cohen say (if anything)?
Let's say Cohen testifies -- whether he is compelled to by subpoena or not. It's not at all clear to me what he will be allowed to say. It had already been leaked that Cohen wasn't going to address anything related to his role in the Russia investigation, even before he canceled his testimony.
In the statement by Davis, he noted that aside from the threats, there was also "Mr. Cohen's continued cooperation with ongoing investigations" to think about. Cohen is cooperating with both the Southern District of New York and special counsel Robert Mueller's probe into Russian interference.
So, what could -- or would -- Cohen say, even if he decides to sit in front of the Oversight Committee at all?
The Point: Cohen is at the center of so much in Trump's world that hearing anything from him would likely shed at least some light on a still very opaque situation.
-- Chris | | "It would be so very sad for our Country if the State of the Union were not delivered on time, on schedule, and very importantly, on location!"
-- President Donald Trump, in a letter addressed to Nancy Pelosi today, stating he plans to deliver the State of the Union from the House -- as planned pre-shutdown.
"The House of Representatives will not consider a concurrent resolution authorizing the President's State of the Union address in the House Chamber until the government has opened."
-- Pelosi, making clear in a letter that Trump definitely cannot deliver the speech from the House floor until the shutdown ends.
"She doesn't want to hear the truth. ... That's a great blotch on the incredible country we love. It's a great, great, horrible mark."
-- Trump, responding to Pelosi | | | WHAT'S IN A NAME? BORDER WALL EDITION | | | CNN's Abby Phillip pressed White House counselor to the President Kellyanne Conway on President Trump's characterization of the barrier as a wall versus other names today.
Conway offered up a comprehensive, if slightly confusing, explanation.
Abby Phillip: So why can't we call it a wall when he calls it a wall? Kellyanne Conway: "Right, he calls it a wall, steel slat barrier, physical barrier, anything. In other words, we need a physical barrier that you can't crawl under, climb over, drive through or walk around. That's why I have doors in my house, I assume you do also and they actually have locks on them. In other words it's to protect the people on the inside, so I don't understand why it's so difficult to get beyond what you all, most of you want to make a four-letter word, 'wall,' when the President said to Chuck Schumer very specifically and the President has said many times since, publicly called it what you want to call it, but let's secure our border."
And speaking of names for the border wall: Don't forget Trump said you can call it "Peaches" for all he cares. | | | Vampire Weekend is releasing two new songs Thursday morning, and in anticipation also posted two hours of guitar licks from one of the songs. Lauren (obvi) listened to the entire thing -- and now you can, too! | |  | | Today's topic: Donald Trump dared Nancy Pelosi to cancel his State of the Union speech. So she did. | | Pete Buttigieg: The former mayor of South Bend, Indiana, has gone the Elizabeth Warren route and entered the presidential fray with an exploratory committee. The 37-year-old acknowledged he's waging an "underdog campaign" in his announcement email to supporters.
John Hickenlooper: The former Colorado governor (and potential presidential candidate) is headed to Iowa this weekend -- his first out-of-state stop after leaving office this month. | |
A SIMPLE LACK OF CONSISTENCY! | | Paul Manafort's legal team is pushing back against Robert Mueller's prosecutors' claim that Manafort lied.
Instead, it's merely "a lack of consistency in Mr. Manafort's recollection of certain facts and events," lawyers for Donald Trump's former campaign chairman wrote today.
Prosecutors have presented evidence to a judge that Manafort lied about five topics during his cooperation interviews and grand jury testimony.
They also say Manafort lied about his interactions with Konstantin Kilimnik. Mueller has said Kilimnik has ties to the Russian military intelligence unit accused of hacking the Democrats, and officials have previously outlined how the two men may have worked together to tamper with witnesses after Manafort's arrest last year. | | As she grapples with difficult details of what she says was a physically abusive marriage coming to light from divorce filings, Iowa Sen. Joni Ernst is keeping her head high.
"What I want people to understand is that I am the same person as I was last week. You just know more about what's inside of me now," Ernst said today.
Ernst says she turned down the possibility of being Donald Trump's VP out of concern for her husband in 2016, according to the divorce proceedings made public this week. | |  | | From Brenna: "This was basically me when I learned that the only useful thing I got out of going to Notre Dame is knowing the proper pronunciation of South Bend Mayor Pete Buttigieg's name. I am partial to the "Boot-edge-edge" pronouncer. Share The Point with your friend whose name everyone gets wrong. (KEER-sten/KER-stens of the world, this one's for you.)" | | | | | | |
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