Trump attacks former fixer Michael Cohen: 'What kind of a lawyer would tape a client?'

Show Caption Hide Caption CNN releases exclusive audio of Trump and Michael Cohen The audio, released by Cohen's attorney exclusively to CNN, allegedly reveals plans between Cohen and President Trump to keep a story about Trump's affair out of the National Enquirer.

WASHINGTON – President Donald Trump went on the attack Wednesday against his former close associate Michael Cohen over a new tape in which the two appeared to discuss a possible payment to a woman who claimed to have had an affair with Trump.

"What kind of a lawyer would tape a client?" Trump tweeted. "So sad! Is this a first, never heard of it before?"

Trump was responding to a tape aired on CNN featuring a conversation between him and Cohen about Karen McDougal, a former Playboy model who said she had an affair with Trump about a decade ago.

At one point, Cohen tells Trump, "we'll have to pay;" while Trump can be heard at one point saying "pay with cash," the tape is muddled and it's unclear whether Trump talked about paying by cash or check, or no payment at all.

The tape, recorded in September of 2016, two months before the election, also ends abruptly, a point Trump made in his tweet.

"Why was the tape so abruptly terminated (cut) while I was presumably saying positive things?" Trump said, going on to say that "I hear there are other clients and many reporters that are taped – can this be so? Too bad!"

More: Timeline: What Donald Trump, Michael Cohen have said about payments to porn star Stormy Daniels and Playboy model Karen McDougal

More: Recording of Trump and Michael Cohen discussing payment for Playboy model's story obtained by CNN

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In the recording, Cohen tells then-candidate Trump, "I need to open up a company for the transfer of all of that info regarding our friend, David."

"What financing?" Trump can be heard to ask after a number of other, inaudible comments.

"We'll have to pay," Cohen says.

Trump then says something about whether or not to "pay with cash" to which Cohen responds, "No. No, no, no, no. I got (inaudible). No, no no."

The David who Cohen refers to is believed to be David Pecker, the CEO of American Media, which owns the National Enquirer. The Enquirer paid former Playboy model Karen McDougal $150,000 for her story about an alleged 10-month affair between herself and Trump that began in 2006.

Pecker is a longtime friend of Trump and American Media never published the story.

Federal prosecutors seized a dozen recordings that were secretly made by Cohen when the FBI raided his office, home and hotel room in April.

Democrats mocked Trump's complaint about the tape.

"What kind of husband has pervy affairs with multiple porn stars?" tweeted Democratic strategist Jesse Ferguson. "What kind of candidate for office pays hundreds of thousands to conceal those affairs from voters before an election?"

The president's lawyer, Rudy Giuliani, told Fox News that "there’s no indication of any crime being committed on this tape and that's absolutely right."

Cohen's attorney, Lanny Davis, provided the tape to CNN, and told the network that it concerns "honesty versus false disparagement of Michael Cohen" by Trump and his allies.

"What do they fear," Davis told CNN. "They fear that he has the truth about Donald Trump. He will someday speak the truth about Donald Trump."