WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump's disclosure that he "reimbursed" personal attorney Michael Cohen for as much as $250,000 last year comes in a footnote to his financial disclosure report.
No mention was made of a $130,000 paid to porn star Stormy Daniels to keep her quiet about an alleged affair. A footnote in tiny type on page 45 of the 92 page document says the president "fully reimbursed" Cohen for "expenses" ranging from $100,001 to $250,000. The report says Trump did not have to disclose the payment but is doing so "in the interest of transparency."
The footnote appears in a report giving the first extended look at Trump's income from his properties since he became president. Among his holdings, he took in $25 million from his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida.
Trump attorney Rudy Giuliani revealed earlier this month that Trump repaid Cohen for a $130,000 hush money payment to porn star Stormy Daniels. Daniels says she had an affair with the president. Trump denies it.
The mandatory filing says that "in 2016 expenses were incurred by one of Donald J. Trump's attorneys, Michael Cohen." It says Trump "fully reimbursed Mr. Cohen in 2017."
The Office of Government Ethics has also concluded that the payment to Cohen "meets the disclosure requirement for a reportable liability." The disclosure was not included in Trump's 2017 filing.