cnn newsroom. we re grateful to you have this afternoon. i m boris sanchez. hi, everyone. it i m jessica dean. political lines deepening, law enforcement preparing for what would be a first in american history. the criminal indictment of a former president. the key witness in a case against donald trump is expected to be challenged today before a grand jury in new york. a former legal advisor to michael cohen telling cnn testifying at the request of donald trump s attorneys. look at video of costello arriving at the courthouse moments ago. robert costello saying he ll offer evidence that contradicts cohen. cohen, who once labeled himself trump s fixer said he paid adult film actress stormy daniels $130,000 in the weeks before the 2016 election for her silence on an alleged affair with donald trump. now, that was a campaign finance violation, as cohen lied on forms to cover up that payment. in 2018. you may recall. cohen cut a deal with federal prosecutors and adds mitte
it s the top of the hour on cnn newsroom. and we re so glad you re with us, hi, everyone, i m jessica dean. and i m boris sanchez. jessica, great to share an afternoon with you, albeit a busy one, right? the nation is bracing to see if an american president is going to be indicted in coming days. that s never happened in u.s. history. it s unprecedented. and the outcome hinges on what happens outside of this courthouse in manhattan. just a short time ago, a man who may be one of the final grand jury witnesses in a case against former president donald trump arrived at the courthouse. this car transporting robert costello, he s appearing at the request of trump s attorneys and he is there, essentially to contradict michael cohen, trump s former fixer. of course, cohen is a key witness as the new york district attorney investigates trump s alleged role in a hush money scheme to cover up a $130,000 payment in 2016 to adult film star stormy daniels. it was to keep her quiet
leaders scrambling to secure the u.s. capitol on january 6th. we ll be joined by someone who was there, congressman james clyburn is standing by live. and we re closing in on the start of a crucial debate in the high-stakes georgia senate race. will the abortion controversy hanging over republican herschel walker be a factor in the face-off? welcome to our viewers here in the united states and around the world. i m wolf blitzer. you re in the situation room. new legal move tonight in one of the many investigations of former president trump involving the special master review of documents seized from his florida home. our justice correspondent, jessica schneider is following this story and here with me in the situation room. jessica, tell us about this formal appeal by the u.s. department. wolf, this is the justice department appealing everything about the appointment of the special master. they re first saying that the judge in this case, aileen cannon, never had the
cnn newsroom. we re grateful to you have this afternoon. i m boris sanchez. hi, everyone. it i m jessica dean. political lines deepening, law enforcement preparing for what would be a first in american history. the criminal indictment of a former president. the key witness in a case against donald trump is expected to be challenged today before a grand jury in new york. a former legal advisor to michael cohen telling cnn testifying at the request of donald trump s attorneys. look at video of costello arriving at the courthouse moments ago. robert costello saying he ll offer evidence that contradicts cohen. cohen, who once labeled himself trump s fixer said he paid adult film actress stormy daniels $130,000 in the weeks before the 2016 election for her silence on an alleged affair with donald trump. now, that was a campaign finance violation, as cohen lied on forms to cover up that payment. in 2018. you may recall. cohen cut a deal with federal
conspiracy theories are now playing against him. so, i m not too worried about whether we re confronting a january 6th again. there will be hoopla, but there won t be the january 6 kind. that s such an interesting point. ron, an indictment is going to test this truism of the republican party in the age of trump. and his grip is so strong that his most fervent supporters have to support him. that lawmakers and officials feel they must appease him. and we ve seen the house gop jumping out in front of this. calling on the manhattan d.a. to testify to see if there are any federal funds used in this. we ve seen as melanie zanona was reporting a number of them batting down how serious this is. yet the fact remains if he s indicted this would be a first in american history. is america ready for this? well, thinking about the impact on the republican party