Trump vented frustration in a combative interview with Fox News aired later Thursday when asked why he hired somebody like Cohen
?Well, it happens. Look it happens. I hire usually good people,? he responded, adding that Cohen mostly did ?very low-level work? that was more public relations than law.
?In retrospect, I made a mistake,? the president added.
Those comments appeared to undercut Trump's claim that Cohen was acting as his attorney in making the pay-offs.
Prosecutors said the payments to Daniels and McDougal, which Cohen arranged, broke the law because they were made through corporate entities and were not reported on financial-disclosure forms.
But Trump and his legal team argue the payments, which the president initially denied knowledge of, were made to spare him personal embarrassment and thus do not violate campaign finance laws.
That argument was complicated on Wednesday when prosecutors revealed they have secured the cooperation of American Media, Inc. (AMI), the parent company of the National Enquirer that was involved in the payment to McDougal.
