Top Democrats Say Trump May Face Impeachment, Jail Over Hush Money

Philadelphia, PA, United States of America; President Donald Trump is alongside Naval Academy aspirants at halftime for the 119th Army-Navy match at the Lincoln Financial Field.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - US President Donald Trump could be indicted and sentenced to prison if his former lawyer's allegations of money are seen as violations of campaign funding, Democrat lawmakers said Sunday . .

Friday's court appearances in cases resulting from a federal investigation into Russian activities during the 2016 presidential election revealed potential problems for Trump, even though he ordered that the six-figure payout at two women during the campaign be calm.

Federal prosecutors have long condemned Michael Cohen, Trump's "repairer," for paying an adult movie star and a former Playboy model at Trump's request.

If it turns out that the payments are campaign financing violations, US Democrat Representative Jerrold Nadler told CNN that this would be grounds for challenge.

"Well, they would be questionable crimes if they were big enough to justify dismissal as another matter," said Nadler, who will lead the Judiciary Committee when Democrats take control of the House of Representatives in January.

Under US law, campaign contributions, defined as valuable elements attributed to a campaign to influence an election, must be disclosed. These payments are also limited to $ 2,700 per person.

The White House did not immediately return a request for comment. Sarah Sanders, press secretary, said Friday that Cohen had lied several times and that the presentation was insignificant.

The court records on Friday also revealed new information about contacts between people working for Trump and Russians in the cases of Cohen, Trump's former personal attorney, and Paul Manafort, president of the short-term campaign. Trump's term, sentenced in August for tax charges and bank. fraud.

According to the special lawyer Robert Mueller, Manafort lied to the investigators about his relations with a Russian related to the Russian intelligence services. Mueller's office said the lie had pushed prosecutors last week to withdraw a plea agreement with Manafort on two separate conspiracy charges.

"I think these accusations and presentations show that the president was at the center of massive fraud, massive fraud, against the American people," CNR told Nadler.

Mueller investigates Russia's interference in the 2016 presidential election and wonders if the Trump campaign has joined forces with Moscow to influence the elections. Russia denies having interfered in the 2016 elections and Trump has denied any collusion.

The investigation eclipsed Trump's presidency, suggesting that Moscow could have participated in his victory at the White House. The Republican President has repeatedly expressed his impatience with the investigation opened by Mueller in March 2017, saying he had a political motivation.

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Trump said the documents presented showed no collusion with Russia and called for an end to the investigation.

"It's time for the witch hunt to end!" Trump said in a Twitter post on Saturday.

However, the end of the Mueller probe could be the beginning of major problems for Trump.

"It is quite possible that the day Donald Trump leaves office, the Justice Ministry may accuse him of being the first president to face the real possibility of going to jail," said Democrat Adam Schiff. it will lead the House's intelligence committee next year, CBS told Face the Nation.

Legal experts are divided on whether an acting president can be charged with a crime and whether a violation of the campaign finance law could be a prosecutable offense.

Republican Senator Rand Paul warned against excessive criminalization of campaign financing offenses and told "Meet the Press" (NBC) that disclosure errors should be punished by fines and not penalties. imprisonment.

Republican Senator Marco Rubio told CNN he was awaiting the results of the Russian investigation and related federal investigations. However, he warned that "no one should be above the law".

Rubio said it would be a "terrible mistake" if Trump forgave Manafort, saying "it could trigger a debate about whether to change the power of forgiveness".

Trump did not exclude a pardon for Manafort, praising him as a good man. On the other hand, he said that Cohen, who has cooperated with federal prosecutors, should go to jail.

Schiff said Trump may need a pardon for the next president of the United States. Democrats in the House of Representatives promised a series of investigations into Trump's activities.

"What is also clear is that the Republican Congress has absolutely tried to protect the president," Nadler said. "The new Congress will not try to protect the president."