Lanny Jesse Davis is an American lawyer, consultant, lobbyist, author, and television commentator. He is the co-founder and partner of the law firm of Davis Goldberg & Galper PLLC, and co-founder and partner of the public relations firm Trident DMG.

Background

Davis has previously served as special counsel to former president Bill Clinton as well as working for former Secretary of State Hilary Clinton in 2016. He is also known for representing former attorney for Donald Trump, Michael Cohen. Davis also donated to President Joe Biden’s campaign in 2020. ¹

Davis represented Cohen during the investigation by special counselor Robert Mueller into alleged ties between former President Donald Trump and Russia. Davis also revealed in 2018 that he misled reporters by claiming that his client Michael Cohen could prove that former president Donald Trump knew in advance of a meeting in June 2016 where his son Donald Trump Jr. allegedly met with a Russian lawyer to find information to be used against Hilary Clinton during her 2016 presidential campaign against Trump. Davis later admitted that Cohen had no such information nor was he himself a source regarding any related stories. ^{1 2}

Trump Hush Money Investigation

In March 2023, Davis interviewed with Politico and admitted to playing a role in starting the investigation overseen by Manhattan district attorney Alvin Bragg (D) about alleged hush money paid by former president Donald Trump to Stephanie Clifford, also known as Stormy Daniels. ^{1 3} Davis stated that he had connections to former Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance Jr. as he knew the latter’s father when working in the Carter Administration. In addition, Davis claimed that after Cohen was sentenced in 2019 for federal tax evasion, he arranged interviews between Cohen and Manhattan prosecutors and, according to Davis, “…that’s how it all began.” ¹

1. Ross, Chuck. “Democratic Operative Takes Credit for Sparking Trump Hush Money Probe.” The Washington Free Beacon, March 24, 2023. https://freebeacon.com/democrats/democratic-operative-takes-credit-for-sparking-trump-hush-money-probe/?utm_source=actengage&utm_campaign=FreedomMail&utm_medium=email
2. Schwartz, Jason. “Lanny Davis burns reporters. Should they still give him a megaphone?” Politico, August 29, 2018. https://www.politico.com/story/2018/08/29/lanny-davis-reporters-media-anonymous-sources-michael-cohen-white-house-803920
3. Shamsian, Jacob and Natalie Musumeci. “Manhattan DA lawyers feared Stormy Daniels case against Trump was too weak to bring without other criminal charges, report says.” Business Insider, March 29, 2023. https://www.businessinsider.com/manhattan-da-lawyers-feared-stormy-daniels-trump-indictment-weak-standalone-2023-3