White House Calls Cohen 'Liar' After Lawyer Says Trump Knew Hush Payments Were Illegal

President Donald Trump's attorney Michael Cohen is a known "liar" and his allegations about hush payments during the 2016 presidential campaign should not be trusted, Deputy Press Secretary Hogan Gidley told reporters on Friday.

WASHINGTON (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 14th December, 2018) President Donald Trump's attorney Michael Cohen is a known "liar" and his allegations about hush payments during the 2016 presidential campaign should not be trusted, Deputy Press Secretary Hogan Gidley told reporters on Friday.

Cohen told ABC news in an interview that Trump was aware that making payments to women who claimed to have had affairs with him was wrong. The US president earlier said that Cohen as a lawyer was responsible for explaining� whether the actions could be illegal.

"The fact that, I think, the media is giving credence to a convicted criminal ... the fact that you're giving credence to someone who's a convicted, self-admitted liar quite frankly," Gidley said.

The payments were allegedly made to silence two women, adult movie actress Stephanie Clifford, known by her stage name "Stormy Daniels," and former Playboy model Karen McDougal, so they would not damage Trump's reputation before the election.

Cohen admitted earlier this month to providing false statements to the US Congress about Trump's�real estate project in Moscow. In the interview with ABC, Cohen said he has taken full responsibility for his own actions while the president has not done the same.

"I am done with the lying," Cohen said. "I am done being loyal to President Trump."

The attorney also suggested that Trump is not telling the truth in the Russia probe. The probe is looking into allegations of Russian meddling in the 2016 election, charges Moscow has repeatedly denied. Trump has also denied any collusion with Moscow during the 2016 campaign and called the investigation led by the Office of Special Counsel Robert Mueller "a witch hunt."