NBC News: Michael Cohen says he paid tech firm to rig online polls ‘at the direction of’ Trump

Michael Cohen, President Donald Trump’s former personal lawyer and fixer, confirmed on Thursday that he paid a small tech firm to rig online polls before the 2016 presidential campaign got underway “at the direction of and the sole benefit of” Trump. …

When Cohen asked for the $50,000 reimbursement, he cited technology services but did not tell Trump Organization executives what services specifically were performed, the Journal reported, citing people familiar with the matter. …

However, building a case against Cohen for these potential campaign finance violations would have been much more difficult than the case made over hush payments Cohen facilitated to women who alleged affairs with Trump, Paul S. Ryan, vice president for policy and litigation at the watchdog group Common Cause, tweeted.