“The New York Times reporting is false,” Trump said Wednesday. In a separate tweet posted earlier Wednesday, the president said the news media “has never been more dishonest than it is today.”
The New York Times reporting is false. They are a true ENEMY OF THE PEOPLE!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 20, 2019
The Press has never been more dishonest than it is today. Stories are written that have absolutely no basis in fact. The writers don’t even call asking for verification. They are totally out of control. Sadly, I kept many of them in business. In six years, they all go BUST!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 20, 2019
Citing unidentified sources, the Times reported Tuesday that Trump called Whitaker late last year to ask whether Geoffrey Berman, the U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York, could be put in charge of the investigation. Berman, who was appointed by Trump, had recused himself from the matter earlier in the year, before FBI agents raided the home and office of Trump's former personal attorney, Michael Cohen, ABC News reported.
According to the Times, Whitaker said privately that he believed his chief role at the Justice Department was to "jump on a grenade" for Trump. However, he knew appointing Berman would be impossible because Berman had already recused himself from the investigation, the Times reported.
It was not entirely clear what Whitaker did after Trump made his request, but the Times reported "there is no evidence that he took any direct steps to intervene in the Manhattan investigation." The newspaper added that he did, however, tell some people in the Justice Department that the New York prosecutors needed "adult supervision."
Credit: DaytonDailyNews
While testifying Feb. 8 before the House Judiciary Committee, Whitaker said he had not been asked to interfere in any investigation, including the SDNY probe and special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election and its possible ties to Trump and his campaign officials.
"At no time has the White House asked for, nor have I provided, any promises or commitments concerning the special counsel's investigation, or any other investigation," Whitaker said, according to the Los Angeles Times.
The New York investigation, headed by Deputy U.S. Attorney Robert Khuzami, has thus far led to several charges against Cohen. He pleaded guilty in August to charges including multiple counts of tax evasion and a campaign finance charge stemming from payments made to two women who posed a danger to Trump’s campaign.
He said the payments to adult film star Stormy Daniels and former Playboy playmate Karen McDougal were made at Trump’s direction. He has since agreed to work with investigators.
Several investigations are ongoing into Trump and his campaign.
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