Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility

Poorest Americans Dealt Biggest Blow Under Senate Republican Tax Package

7 hours ago

Trump Vowed to Dismantle MS-13. His Deal With Bukele Threatens That Effort.

11 hours ago

Ukraine Voices Concern as US Halts Some Missile Shipments

11 hours ago

Poll: Most Americans Say National Divide, Political Violence Threaten Democracy

11 hours ago

Paramount Settles With Trump Over ‘60 Minutes’ Interview for $16 Million

11 hours ago

Republicans Tee up House Vote on Trump Bill, Outcome Uncertain

12 hours ago

What’s Next for Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs After His Sex Trafficking Trial?

12 hours ago

Dalai Lama Says He Will Be Reincarnated, Trust Will Identify Successor

12 hours ago
Cohen Admits Rigging Polls for Trump in 2014 and 2015
gvw_ap_news
By Associated Press
Published 6 years ago on
January 17, 2019

Share

NEW YORK — President Donald Trump’s estranged former lawyer acknowledged Thursday that he paid a technology company to rig Trump’s standing in two online polls before the presidential campaign.
Michael Cohen tweeted that “what I did was at the direction of and for the sole benefit of” Trump.

“I truly regret my blind loyalty to a man who doesn’t deserve it.” — Michael Cohen
“I truly regret my blind loyalty to a man who doesn’t deserve it,” he added.
Cohen was responding to an article in The Wall Street Journal that said Cohen stiffed the owner of the technology company out of tens of thousands of dollars he promised for work including using computers to enter fake votes for Trump in a 2014 CNBC poll asking people to identify top business leaders and a 2015 poll of potential presidential candidates.
The company owner, John Gauger, told the newspaper that Cohen promised him $50,000 for the work but instead gave him a blue Walmart bag stuffed with between $12,000 and $13,000 in cash, plus a boxing glove Cohen claimed had been worn by a Brazilian mixed-martial arts fighter.
Cohen disputed he paid cash, telling the Journal that “all monies paid to Mr. Gauger were by check.” He offered no further comment.

Cohen Recently Sentenced to Three Years in Prison

Federal prosecutors referred to a payment to Gauger’s company— though not by name— when Cohen was charged last summer with violating campaign-finance laws by arranging hush-money payments to two women who claim they had extramarital affairs with Trump. They said in a charging document that Cohen had sought reimbursement from the Trump Organization for those payments with a handwritten note requesting $50,000 for “tech services.”

“If one thing has been established, it’s that Michael Cohen is completely untrustworthy.” — Rudy Giuliani, Trump’s lawyer
The Trump Organization paid the full amount, prosecutors said.
Messages seeking comment were sent to the Trump Organization Thursday.
Trump’s lawyer, Rudy Giuliani, didn’t immediately respond to a message from The Associated Press, but told the Journal that Cohen was a thief for seeking reimbursement for more money than he’d paid Gauger’s company, RedFinch Solutions LLC.
“If one thing has been established, it’s that Michael Cohen is completely untrustworthy,” he said.
Gauger is also the chief information officer at Liberty University in Lynchburg, Virginia. His attorney declined to comment.
Cohen was recently sentenced to three years in prison after pleading guilty to charges that were not related to his dealings with Gauger and the technology company.

DON'T MISS

What Are Fresno Real Estate Experts Predicting for 2025 and Beyond?

DON'T MISS

First California EV Mandates Hit Automakers This Year. Most Are Not Even Close

DON'T MISS

House Republicans Say They Expect to Vote Tonight on Trump’s Tax-Cut Bill

DON'T MISS

San Luis Obispo’s Madre Fire Grows to 8,300 Acres, Prompts Evacuations

DON'T MISS

SLO Deputies Fatally Shoot Man in Los Osos Weeks After US Marshal Impersonation Arrest

DON'T MISS

Madera County Deputy Injured, Wanted Felon Arrested After Violent Struggle

DON'T MISS

San Luis Obispo County Wildfire Burns More Than 3,000 Acres. No Containment Yet

DON'T MISS

Wired Wednesday: Why Is State Lawmaker Taking Aim at Rooftop Solar?

DON'T MISS

Two Visalia Men Sentenced in 2021 Motel Killing

DON'T MISS

Ex-Jan. 6 Defendant Gets Life in Prison for Plot to Kill FBI Agents

DON'T MISS

Del Monte Files for Bankruptcy. Gets Nearly $1B to Keep Producing Through Process

DON'T MISS

Who is Running for Fresno Area Offices in 2026? An Updated Look

UP NEXT

Poll: Most Americans Say National Divide, Political Violence Threaten Democracy

UP NEXT

Trump Pulls Back 150 Guard Troops From Federal Duties in California

UP NEXT

Suspect Identified in Ambush Shooting That Killed 2 Idaho Firefighters

UP NEXT

Suspect Identified in Ambush Shooting That Killed 2 Idaho Firefighters

UP NEXT

US Supreme Court Lets Parents Take Kids Out of Classes With LGBT Storybooks

UP NEXT

Bill Moyers, Broadcaster and LBJ’s White House Press Secretary, Dies at 91

UP NEXT

Tesla Executive, Elon Musk Confidant Leaves EV Maker, Bloomberg News Reports

UP NEXT

How a Birthday Boat Ride on Lake Tahoe Turned Tragic

UP NEXT

Cuomo Concedes to Mamdani in New York City Democratic Mayoral Contest

UP NEXT

Mamdani Holds Lead Over Cuomo in Democratic Primary for NYC Mayor

Madera County Deputy Injured, Wanted Felon Arrested After Violent Struggle

5 hours ago

San Luis Obispo County Wildfire Burns More Than 3,000 Acres. No Containment Yet

5 hours ago

Wired Wednesday: Why Is State Lawmaker Taking Aim at Rooftop Solar?

5 hours ago

Two Visalia Men Sentenced in 2021 Motel Killing

6 hours ago

Ex-Jan. 6 Defendant Gets Life in Prison for Plot to Kill FBI Agents

6 hours ago

Del Monte Files for Bankruptcy. Gets Nearly $1B to Keep Producing Through Process

6 hours ago

Who is Running for Fresno Area Offices in 2026? An Updated Look

7 hours ago

CIA Review Finds Flaws but Does Not Dispute Finding Putin Sought to Sway 2016 Vote to Trump

7 hours ago

Poorest Americans Dealt Biggest Blow Under Senate Republican Tax Package

7 hours ago

Check Out Newest Downtown Mural. It’s a Spectacular Tribute to Fresno Artisans

8 hours ago

House Republicans Say They Expect to Vote Tonight on Trump’s Tax-Cut Bill

WASHINGTON – Republicans in the House of Representatives on Wednesday struggled to pass President Donald Trump’s massive tax-cut...

4 hours ago

Speaker of the House Mike Johnson speaks to the press, as Republican lawmakers struggle to pass U.S. President Donald Trump's sweeping spending and tax bill, on Capitol Hill, in Washington, D.C., U.S., July 2, 2025. (Reuters/Annabelle Gordon)
4 hours ago

House Republicans Say They Expect to Vote Tonight on Trump’s Tax-Cut Bill

The Madre Fire in San Luis Obispo County has rapidly expanded to 8,396 acres with no containment, prompting evacuation orders and warnings near New Cuyama. (CalFire)
4 hours ago

San Luis Obispo’s Madre Fire Grows to 8,300 Acres, Prompts Evacuations

Andrew Biscay, 40, was arrested Friday, June 20, 2025, after deputies found him with a fake U.S. Marshal’s badge, homemade firearm, and law enforcement-style gear during a warrant arrest. (Madera County SO)
4 hours ago

SLO Deputies Fatally Shoot Man in Los Osos Weeks After US Marshal Impersonation Arrest

On Tuesday, July 1, 2025, a Madera County sheriff’s deputy was injured while trying to arrest a wanted felon, Felix Adrian Nucamendi Carrasco, 40, who later fled and was captured near Raymond Road. (Madera County SO)
5 hours ago

Madera County Deputy Injured, Wanted Felon Arrested After Violent Struggle

A wildfire dubbed the Madre Fire has burned over 3,300 acres near New Cuyama with 0% containment, officials said Wednesday, July 2, 2025. (CalFire)
5 hours ago

San Luis Obispo County Wildfire Burns More Than 3,000 Acres. No Containment Yet

5 hours ago

Wired Wednesday: Why Is State Lawmaker Taking Aim at Rooftop Solar?

Jose Luna (left), 33, and Ralph Grajeda, 45, both of Visalia, have been sentenced for their roles in the 2020 shotgun killing of Robert Soto at a local motel. (Tulare County DA)
6 hours ago

Two Visalia Men Sentenced in 2021 Motel Killing

A U.S. Justice Department logo or seal showing Justice Department headquarters, known as "Main Justice," is seen behind the podium in the Department's headquarters briefing room before a news conference with the Attorney General in Washington, January 24, 2023. (Reuters File)
6 hours ago

Ex-Jan. 6 Defendant Gets Life in Prison for Plot to Kill FBI Agents

Help continue the work that gets you the news that matters most.

Search

Send this to a friend