Following a volatile period that saw him testify against his former boss in court, Michael Cohen is now speaking out about a surprising "reconciliation" with President Donald Trump. Ahead of a radio interview conducted on August 20, Cohen stated that the two men have reached a point where they "forgave" each other.
Writing in a Substack post regarding how the conversation materialized, Cohen remarked that it requires more courage to reach across a divide than to remain critical from behind a keyboard. He questioned how two individuals who engaged in a years-long public war—exchanging verbal missiles across a vast legal and political canyon—could sit down together again. According to Cohen, the answer is simple: they forgave one another.
A portion of the interview aired on the evening of August 20, with the full broadcast scheduled for Sunday, August 23. During the 15-minute segment played on his show, Cohen allowed the president to discuss administration priorities, including ongoing operations in Iran, military efforts in Venezuela, and a decrease in border crossings.
This interview represents a dramatic turn in a relationship that spanned decades but imploded following the 2016 presidential election. Cohen, once a close aide and fixer for Trump, eventually became a vocal critic. In 2018, he pleaded guilty to multiple criminal charges, including campaign finance violations tied to hush money payments made to Karen McDougal and Stormy Daniels, which he stated were carried out at Trump's direction. During his sentencing, Cohen expressed remorse for his "blind loyalty" to the former president, describing it as a path of darkness he felt compelled to cover up.
Before reporting to prison, Cohen provided testimony to Congress, characterizing Trump as a "racist," a "con man," and a "cheat." Furthermore, during his 2024 testimony in the criminal case regarding falsified business records, Cohen stated that Trump approved the $130,000 payment to Daniels. While Trump was convicted on 34 criminal charges in that case, he later won re-election and received a sentence that did not include jail time or fines.
Throughout their feud, Trump has frequently disparaged Cohen, labeling him a "liar" and a "sleazebag." Despite this, Cohen revealed that the effort to mend their relationship has been ongoing, noting that he has met with the president three times over the past year. In his Substack post, Cohen addressed the difficulty of moving forward, stating that he and Trump had to confront the question of whether the past would dictate their future. He concluded that loyalty does not require ignoring past hurts, nor does forgiveness necessitate surrendering one's principles. When asked about the possibility of seeking presidential clemency for his 2018 conviction, Cohen told Politico that he was uncertain about his future plans, stating, "We’ll see."
