Michael Cohen says he’s willing to testify that Donald Trump is lying about his knowledge of the 2016 Trump Tower meeting between his son and Russian operatives offering “dirt” on Hillary Clinton

Remember that suspicious June 9, 2016 meeting that took place at Trump Tower between senior members of the Trump campaign, including Donald Trump Jr., and a delegation of Russians with ties to the Kremlin? And remember how, prior to that meeting, Donald Trump, Jr. had been told that these Russians would be coming to discuss the transfer of “dirt” on Hillary Clinton, to which he replied, “I love it“? And do you also remember how, after the news broke about the meeting, which even Steve Bannon referred to as being “treasonous,” the White House came out with a firm statement about how the President hadn’t known anything about it?

Well, it’s being reported this evening that Donald Trump’s former fixer, Michael Cohen, is now willing to go on the record with Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s team, stating under oath that Trump not only knew about the offer of assistance from the Russians, but encouraged his son, son-in-law, and campaign manager to take the meeting. And, what’s more, Cohen is apparently saying that he’s willing to name others who can corroborate that Donald Trump was aware.

So it looks as though Donald Trump didn’t just oversee the coverup, ghostwriting Don Jr.’s laughably pathetic letter to the press attempting to explain the Trump Tower meeting as having been about international adoption policy, but also knew ahead of time that the Russians were coming to offer ill-gotten “dirt” on Clinton.

Here’s video from CNN.

Michael Cohen claims then-candidate Donald Trump knew in advance of 2016 Trump Tower meeting in which Russians were expected to offer his campaign dirt on Hillary Clinton, sources say https://t.co/ArWjKn7KR2 pic.twitter.com/Onc6MC79gC

— CNN Politics (@CNNPolitics) July 27, 2018

And here’s an excerpt from CNN’s accompanying story.

Michael Cohen, President Donald Trump’s former personal attorney, claims that then-candidate Trump knew in advance about the June 2016 meeting in Trump Tower in which Russians were expected to offer his campaign dirt on Hillary Clinton, sources with knowledge tell CNN. Cohen is willing to make that assertion to special counsel Robert Mueller, the sources said.

Cohen’s claim would contradict repeated denials by Trump, Donald Trump Jr., their lawyers and other administration officials who have said that the President knew nothing about the Trump Tower meeting until he was approached about it by The New York Times in July 2017.

Cohen alleges that he was present, along with several others, when Trump was informed of the Russians’ offer by Trump Jr. By Cohen’s account, Trump approved going ahead with the meeting with the Russians, according to sources…

If true, this would certainly seem to indicate an intent to collude on the part of the President, who, this evening, sent his attorney, Rudy Giuliani, out to discredit Cohen in the press. “He has lied all his life,” Giuliani said of Cohen on CNN, adding he’s “an incredible liar.”

Adam Schiff, for one, doesn’t seem so willing to just take Giuliani’s word. “If (the) allegation Trump OK’d June 9 meeting is true, it means he not only publicly appealed to Russia for help, but privately approved receiving it,” said the Congressman in a tweet, “…the conspiracy case may have just gotten stronger.”

Oh, and if this does prove to be true, it also means that Donald Trump, Jr., who told the the Senate Judiciary Committee under oath on May 6 of this year that his father didn’t know about the meeting, could be going to jail for perjury.

update: Donald Trump has responded.

“Sounds to me like someone is trying to make up stories in order to get himself out of a jam.” Yes, yes it does sound like that, doesn’t it?