Robert Mueller is counting on Michael Cohen to deliver evidence of White House criminality

After years of criminal and unethical conduct, it appears that, at age 52, Michael Cohen is in search of his better self. Before his sentencing, President Donald Trump’s former personal lawyer and fixer pledged to the court to “become the best version of myself." It is hard to gauge what that version might look like since we have never seen even the hint of it in Cohen.

However, there is one person who clearly believes that there is a better version of Cohen: special counsel Robert Mueller. Buried in the recent filings involving Cohen is one line that may explain why Mueller departed from the prosecutors in the Southern District of New York to seek a shorter sentence for Cohen. Cohen could be the key to achieving what has eluded Mueller up until now: bringing a criminal act within the confines of the White House.

In the Cohen filings, the special counsel included the following line: “Cohen provided relevant and useful information concerning his contacts with persons connected to the White House during the 2017–18 time period.”

That time frame is critical. In August 2017, Cohen gave false information to Congress on the timeline and context of his dealings in Moscow on behalf of Trump and his corporation. Thus, during the period of those false statements, Mueller says Cohen was communicating with multiple persons connected to the White House.

Cohen lied to cover up Trump's 'dirty deeds'

We also know that Cohen remained in regular communication with Trump, who (as late as this April) was still referring to Cohen as his lawyer and referring inquiries to him. In March, with the scandal raging over Cohen’s payment of hush money to a former porn star and a former Playboy bunny, Trump inexplicably met with Cohen in a very public dinner at his resort at Mar-a-Lago.

Among his various crimes, Cohen pleaded guilty to two felonies of note. First, Cohen committed perjury to Congress in what he described as an effort to alter the facts to be consistent with the White House account on the Moscow dealings. Second, he violated federal election laws in an effort, he claims, to cover up Trump's “dirty deeds.”

Now the question is who communicated with Cohen during 2017-18 and what they discussed. Cohen says he knowingly lied on both issues. If he made that intent clear or coordinated a false account with lawyers or officials in the White House, this scandal will have metastasized within the White House, and criminal conduct could extend to the Oval Office.

Moreover, due to the crime-fraud exception for attorney-client privilege, prosecutors could seek to strip lawyers of privilege protections and turn them into witnesses. Mueller has already done precisely that with lawyers for targets like Paul Manafort.

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The three most dangerous scenarios involve related crimes:

►Subornation of perjury: Under 18 U.S.C. 1622, “whoever procures another to commit any perjury” is subject to up to five years in prison. If Cohen tells Mueller that he was encouraged by Trump or his associates to maintain a false account to Congress, it could be charged as subornation.

►Witness tampering: Under 18 U.S.C. 1512, there can be a charge of witness tampering for anyone who, through intimidation, threats or corrupt means, seeks to “influence, delay, or prevent” testimony or induce anyone to withhold testimony or evidence from an official proceeding.

►Obstruction of justice: There is a number of obstruction crimes under the federal code, but the most relevant charge would apply to an effort to "corruptly ... influence, obstruct, or impede the due and proper administration of the law."

These crimes join such widely used crimes as false statements to federal investigators (18 U.S.C. 1001) that Mueller has used broadly in this investigation.

While it is commonly observed that Cohen is damaged goods and hardly a compelling witness, he does not have to be especially credible to give Mueller what he needs. If Cohen can support any of these crimes by figures in the White House, Mueller could use that testimony to strip away the privilege protections of lawyers associated with Trump. Moreover, Cohen has a well-documented penchant for taping people without their knowledge and keeping other forms of incriminating evidence.

Mueller doesn't need Cohen's 'best' self

None of this means that Cohen will be the “best version” of himself, but Mueller’s curious departure from the New York prosecutors may signal that he harbors precisely that hope. One reason for such hopefulness could be a disturbing pattern in Trump’s prior representational posture. There has been a continued failure to act pre-emptively to protect against conflicts or damage from people like Cohen. To the contrary, when most attorneys would have created walls around risks, the Trump team seemed to pull those risks closer.

Thus, many months ago, I wrote that the Daniels and McDougal scandals presented a far more serious threat to Trump than the collusion allegations, and that he had to immediately sever Cohen. Instead, Trump pulled Cohen closer, and Mueller says Cohen continued to coordinate his moves with people associated with the White House.

Likewise, despite being clearly guilty of an impressive array of crimes around the world, Manafort also continued to communicate with White House officials, even after he became a cooperating witness. Manafort reportedly approved such contacts and may have even had direct secret communications himself.

If true, that was remarkably moronic for any Trump lawyer. Whatever was gained in terms of insider information on Mueller’s investigation was not worth the allegation of potential obstruction or tampering. Rather than confine the damage, the team would have pulled it within the White House.

Whatever faith Mueller holds in Cohen, it is doubtful that it is based on his new claim of redemption. The future version of Michael Cohen will be defined by the future plans of Robert Mueller.

Jonathan Turley is the Shapiro Professor of Public Interest Law at George Washington University and a member of USA TODAY's Board of Contributors. He is also a practicing defense attorney and was the lead defense counsel in a 2010 impeachment trial in the U.S. Senate. Follow him on Twitter: @JonathanTurley

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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Robert Mueller is counting on Michael Cohen to deliver evidence of White House criminality