Topline
President Donald Trump will sit for an interview with his former fixer-turned-nemesis Michael Cohen on Thursday, according to multiple reports—after Cohen said last month the two were reconciling.
Key Facts
Trump will record the interview with Cohen for his weekly talk radio show, which is also recorded for a podcast, Cohen told MS NOW.
The interview comes after Cohen and Trump have reportedly mended their relationship over the past year, meeting at least twice in person.
Cohen—the star witness in the hush-money trial and civil fraud case against Trump—began to claim this year he felt pressured and coerced to testify in the cases.
Cohen told The New York Times last month that the two were reconciling, after Trump attacked Cohen for years as a “rat” and disparaged his credibility, while Cohen called Trump a “cheat, a liar, a fraud, a bully, a racist, a predator, a con man.”
Trump’s lawyers have cited Cohen’s claims that his testimony was coerced in appealing the civil fraud case that found him liable for overly inflating his net worth to secure more favorable business deals.
Tangent
Cohen is filling in for former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, who is taking the summer off from hosting his weekly radio show on the Trump-friendly WABC. The station’s owner, Trump friend and billionaire John Catsimatidis, told Tthe New York Post he checked with the White House before giving Cohen the spot and they “had no objection.” Catsimatidis said he would likely give Cohen a permanent five-day show.
Crucial Quote
Cohen told Tthe New York Post he reached out to Trump after he heard the president “expressed empathy” over criticism Cohen said he received after claiming his testimony was coerced. “As a direct result, I wrote to him in a text thanking him for expressing his sentiment and that it would be nice for us to have an opportunity to reestablish our long lost friendship. To which he responded, ‘That would be nice. Let’s do it,’” Cohen said.
Key Background
Cohen admitted in federal court that he arranged payments ahead of the 2016 presidential election to porn star Stormy Daniels in exchange for her silence about an affair she allegedly had with Trump. Trump has denied the affair and any knowledge of the payments, but Cohen testified they were made at Trump’s discretion. Trump was convicted on 34 counts of falsifying business records for labeling the reimbursements to Cohen as legal expenses, making him the first ever former president in history to be convicted of a crime. Cohen pleaded guilty to campaign finance violations in connection with the payments. Cohen subsequently testified in Trump’s 2024 civil fraud trial about the methods Trump allegedly used to inflate his net worth and value of his assets. Trump and his businesses were found liable for civil fraud in the case and ordered to pay a judgement that ballooned to more than $500 million with fines and penalties. The judgement was thrown out by an appeals court that found it was “excessive,” but upheld the ruling that he engaged in fraud.
further reading
Michael Cohen Admitted He ‘Stole’ $30,000 From Trump Org—But Legal Experts Say He Probably Won’t Face Charges (Forbes)
Here’s Why Key Trump Witness Michael Cohen Was Sentenced To Prison (Forbes)
Michael Cohen Testifies: Ex-Fixer’s Testimony Undercut By A 14-Year-Old Prank Caller As Trump Lawyers Attack Credibility (Forbes)