He also pleaded guilty to one count of making an excessive campaign contribution on Oct. 27, 2016, which is the same date Cohen finalized a payment to adult-film star Stormy Daniels as part of a nondisclosure agreement over an affair Daniels alleges she had with Trump. Cohen said he did so at the direction of “a candidate for federal office.” He did not mention Trump by name.
The judge set a sentencing hearing of Dec. 12 for Cohen, who was released on $500,000 bond.
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The $130,000 payment to Daniels, whose real name is Stephanie Clifford, was completed just weeks before the 2016 election. She is now suing Cohen and the president for defamation and to void the nondisclosure agreement.
In addition to the $130,000 payment to Clifford, Cohen also admitted to making an illegal contribution of $150,000. That figure matches up with the amount former Playboy model Karen McDougal was paid by publishers of the National Enquirer for exclusive rights to her story about her alleged affair with Trump.
“What he did was he worked to pay money to silence two women who had information that he believed would be detrimental to the 2016 campaign, to the candidate and the campaign,” Khuzami said.