Trump 'directed me' to pay Stormy Daniels hush money and knew it was wrong, Michael Cohen claims

Former lawyer claims he’s taking responsibility for president’s ‘dirty deeds’ in TV interview

Donald Trump “directed” Michael Cohen to make hush money payments to Stormy Daniels and another woman during the 2016 election and knew it was wrong to do so, his former personal lawyer has claimed.

In a television interview broadcast on Friday, Cohen said: “He directed me to make the payments. He directed me to become involved in these matters.”

The president’s former lawyer was sentenced to three years in prison this week over campaign finance violations, tax fraud and other charges.

Mr Trump has repeatedly denied ordering the payments.

“I knew what I was doing was wrong,” Cohen told ABC News. “I stood up before the world [on Wednesday] and I accepted the responsibility for my actions.”

When asked if Mr Trump also knew it was wrong to make the payments, Cohen replied: “Of course.”

He said Mr Trump “was very concerned about how this would affect the election,” referring to allegations of sexual affairs.

Cohen also expressed clear regret over his willingness to conduct deals on behalf of his former boss, admitting to “blind loyalty” towards Mr Trump.

“I gave loyalty to someone who, truthfully, does not deserve loyalty,” he said.

President Trump denied telling Cohen to break the law in a series of angry tweets on Thursday. He claimed his former confidant had agreed to plead guilty “in order to embarrass the president and get a much reduced prison sentence, which he did.”

The former attorney – who is not set to go to prison until 6 March next year – said he was “done with the lying. I am done being loyal to President Trump and my first loyalty belongs to my wife, my daughter, my son and this country.”

“He knows the truth. I know the truth. Others know the truth,” he added. “And here is the truth: People of the United States of America, people of the world, don’t believe what he is saying. The man doesn’t tell the truth. And it is sad that I should take responsibility for his dirty deeds.”

Cohen was sentenced to 36 months for tax fraud and for his role in payments made to porn star Stormy Daniels and former Playboy model Karen McDougal.

The New York district court judge also handed him an extra two months for lying to Congress about a proposed Trump Tower project in Russia.

He told ABC News interviewer George Stephanopoulos the pressure of being in the Oval Office had changed Mr Trump, claiming an overwhelmed president did not fully understand his role.

“He’s a very different individual,” he explained. “I think the pressure of the job is much more than what he thought it was going to be. It’s not like the Trump organisation where he would bark out orders and people would blindly follow what he wanted done.

“There’s a system here; he doesn’t understand the system and it’s sad because the country has never been more divisive.”

The convicted attorney also said he would continue to answer questions asked of him by special counsel Robert Mueller, but declined to talk about the Russia investigation.