Donald Trump Thinks He's Been Saved From Indictment

Donald Trump said the recent testimony from a lawyer as part of the investigation into alleged hush money paid to Stormy Daniels will protect him from a potential indictment from a New York grand jury.

Robert Costello, who has previously represented a number of Trump allies and was once a legal adviser to former Trump attorney Michael Cohen, gave evidence on Monday as part of the Manhattan district attorney's office probe into the $130,000 given to Daniels to keep an alleged affair she had with the former president a secret ahead of the 2016 Election.

Trump is at risk of becoming the first U.S. president in history to be charged with a crime, with suggestions that an indictment from the jury could be announced in the coming days. Prosecutors are looking into whether the money Trump arranged for Cohen to pay Daniels amounted to a campaign violation, or if any records were falsified when Cohen was reimbursed for the money, which was listed in Trump Organization records as legal fees.

In a Truth Social post on Monday, Trump said that Costello was successful in his attempts to dismiss the credibility of Cohen, a star witness for the prosecution who was convicted in 2018 in connection to hush money he paid on behalf of the former president.

"It is being said that disbarred lawyer Michael Cohen was put out to dry today after his highly respected former attorney and legal adviser, Robert Costello, made a great impression not only on the D.A.'s Office, but the grand jury itself," Trump wrote.

"He is known to be a great lawyer and highly honorable man. He stated to the media that he could no longer listen to the lies that Cohen was spreading. He told the TRUTH, with papers, documents, and backup. He left ZERO doubt. THE D.A. WILL DO THE RIGHT THING!"

Newsweek has contacted Trump's lawyer, Joe Tacopina, and the Manhattan D.A.'s office via email for comment.

Costello's testimony to the Manhattan grand jury lasted around two hours. Speaking to The New York Times after his appearance, Costello confirmed he attempted to dismiss the credibility of Cohen, who also previously pleaded guilty to lying to Congress about work he did on a later abandoned project to build a Trump Tower in Moscow.

"I told the grand jury that this guy couldn't tell the truth if you put a gun to his head," Costello said.

Cohen was summoned by prosecutors to the New York court on Monday in case he needed to rebuke Costello's testimony. However, Cohen was not called to testify, and it is unclear whether the grand jury will be required to hear from him again.

"Mr. Cohen was available for over two hours today, but we are pleased to report Mr. Cohen was not needed," his lawyer, Lanny Davis, told The Times.

"Once again we repeat — the facts and documents speak for themselves. Facts do matter."

Trump, who denies any wrongdoing, said that he will be arrested on Tuesday as part of the hush payment investigation, a claim that has not been corroborated by his legal team or the Manhattan D.A.'s office.

Should an indictment from the grand jury be announced, an arraignment for the former president will reportedly not to occur until next week.