WaPo's coverage (like the NYT, they are currently headlining the story):

FBI seized recording of Trump and Cohen discussing payments for story of ex-model who alleged affair

The recording captures a fall 2016 conversation between then-presidential candidate Donald Trump and his personal lawyer Michael Cohen about making payments for the story of Playboy centerfold Karen McDougal, who allegedly had an affair with Trump, according to two people familiar with the tape.

• By Carol D. Leonnig and Rosalind S. Helderman

The Fix: 2 troubling questions for Trump in light of the Cohen tape revelation

Top Trump Donor Paid Michael Cohen to Score Him a $5 Billion Federal Loan

By Eric Levitz @ NYMag.com, Aug. 2

Back when Michael Cohen was still the president’s personal lawyer – and, arguably, Washington’s sketchiest unregistered lobbyist – a major Trump donor promised to pay him $10 million if he successfully persuaded the White House to give said donor a $5 billion loan.

Specifically, Franklin L. Haney, a real-estate mogul and Donald Trump campaign patron, was looking for Uncle Sam to chip in on the construction of a couple nuclear reactors that he’d recently purchased in Alabama. To further that end, he offered the president’s personal attorney a monthly retainer to lobby the White House on his behalf, along with a $10 million “success fee” if the $5 billion loan came through – or so, the Wall Street Journal reports.

In a statement to the paper, Haney’s attorney denied that the mogul ever entered into such a contract. On the other hand, the Journal’s previous reporting on Cohen’s sordid, secret lobbying contracts with well-heeled business interests has all held up.

Remarkably, it’s unclear whether it is actually illegal for the president’s personal attorney to try and score a client a $5 billion loan in exchange for a $10 million kickback. As the Journal explains: [....]