Donald Trump’s lawyer has defended the former president and said he lied about payments made to adult film star Stormy Daniels to avoid breaking a confidentiality agreement.
In an interview with MSNBC on Tuesday, Mr Trump’s lawyer Joe Tacopina was asked to address the former president denying a $130,000 payment made to Ms Daniels during the 2016 presidential election to buy her silence over an alleged affair.
“He lied about it,” said MSNBC host Ari Melber, referring to the hush payment allegedly made to Ms Daniels.
Mr Tacopina responded that a lie is only one when said under oath.
“A lie to me is something material, under oath, in a proceeding,” he was quoted as saying by Rolling Stone magazine.
When Mr Melber clarified that he hadn’t asked if Mr Trump perjured himself, but only if his statements were false, Mr Tacopina said: “It’s not a lie because it was a confidential settlement. So if he acknowledged that he would be violating the confidential settlement.”
“So is it the truth? Of course it’s not the truth. Was he supposed to tell the truth? He would be in violation of the agreement if he told the truth. So by him doing that he was abiding not only by his rights but Stormy Daniels’ rights,” he added.
“I would advise my client to do the same thing.”
Last week, Manhattan district attorney Alvin Bragg’s office invited Mr Trump to testify in the probe sometime this week.
On Monday, Mr Tacopina told ABC News that the former president has “no plans” to participate in the probe – as possible criminal charges loom against him.
Mr Tacopina had also told ABC News that the hush money sent to the adult film star was not directly related to Mr Trump’s presidential campaign and insisted there were “absolutely no false records made, to my knowledge” of the payment.
If prosecuted, Mr Trump would become the first former president in American history to face criminal charges.
