Michael Cohen is delaying his testimony before the House Oversight Committee, in part because of threats that President Donald Trump and Trump’s personal lawyer have made against his family, Cohen’s spokesman said Wednesday.
“This is a time where Mr. Cohen had to put his family and their safety first,” Cohen spokesman Lanny Davis said in a statement.
Cohen had been due to appear in front of the committee on Feb. 7 in an open session. He pleaded guilty to lying to Congress about a project Trump had been working on in Moscow during the presidential campaign, and is now cooperating with special counsel Robert Mueller.
Trump has referred to Cohen’s father-in-law several times on Twitter. Last week, Trump tweeted that Cohen was “Lying to reduce his jail time!” and added, “Watch father-in-law!”
Davis’ statement referred to that tweet in Wednesday’s statement. It said Cohen “looks forward to testifying.”
“Due to ongoing threats against his family from President Trump and Mr. [Rudolph] Giuliani, as recently as this weekend, as well as Mr. Cohen’s continued cooperation with ongoing investigations, by advice of counsel, Mr. Cohen’s appearance will be postponed to a later date,” Davis said.
NBC has reached out to the oversight committee and the White House for comment.
Source : Nbcnewyork
