WASHINGTON- U.S. President Donald Trump could face impeachment and jail time if hush money payments reported by his former lawyer are proven to be campaign finance violations, Democratic lawmakers said yesterday.

Court filings on Friday in cases that stemmed from a federal probe into Russian activities during the 2016 presidential election pointed to potential problem areas for Trump, including whether he instructed six-figure payments to two women during the campaign to keep quiet about affairs. Federal prosecutors sought prison time for longtime Trump “fixer” Michael Cohen for paying off an adult film star and a former Playboy model at Trump’s behest, evading taxes and lying to Congress about a proposed Trump Organization building in Moscow.

If the payments are proven to be felony campaign finance violations, Democratic U.S. Representative Jerrold Nadler told CNN those would be grounds for impeachment.

“Well, they would be impeachable offenses. Whether they are important enough to justify an impeachment is a different question,” said Nadler, who will lead the Judiciary Committee when Democrats take control of the House of Representatives in January.(REUTERS)…[+]