White House sidesteps questions on Michael Cohen

White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders denied on Monday any knowledge of conversations between President Trump and his lawyer about an alleged six-figure payment made to an adult film star in 2016. 

Asked about a report published in The Wall Street Journal that Trump’s personal lawyer Michael Cohen had expressed frustration about not being reimbursed for the payment, Sanders said she was not “aware” of any conversations between Cohen and Trump about the payment.

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She referred additional questions to Cohen. 

Cohen acknowledged last month that he used his “personal funds” to pay adult film star Stormy Daniels a $130,000 payment. Daniels has claimed she had a sexual encounter with Trump years ago, which Trump has denied, and has reportedly been subject to a nondisclosure agreement. 

On Monday, the Journal subsequently reported that Cohen had trouble getting in touch with Trump as he was finalizing the payment and that he had expressed frustration that he hadn’t been reimbursed. 

Cohen denied that charge in a brief statement to the paper, panning it as “fake news.”