Trump again denies knowing in advance of Trump Tower meeting

Michael Cohen claimed Thursday that then–presidential candidate Donald Trump approved the June 2016 meeting in Trump Tower between Donald Trump Jr. and Russian officials offering dirt on campaign rival Hillary Clinton. Cohen, formerly Trump’s lawyer, claimed he and others were in the room when Trump Jr. informed his father of the Russian offer to meet, CNN reported.

Cohen is reportedly ready to speak to special counsel Robert Mueller about his story, which supports the allegation that the president tried to aid Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election his favor. But Cohen’s uncorroborated assertion is not “hefty evidence,” St. John’s University law professor John Barrett told The Atlantic. “I can’t imagine a prosecutor basing a charge on something that thin.” The FBI and the Justice Department are investigating Cohen over New York business dealings and other matters. In a tweet Friday, President Trump again denied knowing about the meeting: “Sounds to me like someone is trying to make up stories in order to get himself out of an unrelated jam.”