President Donald Trump sat for a radio interview with Michael Cohen, his former personal attorney, marking the first public conversation between the two men since their bitter falling out.
President Donald Trump sat for a taped radio interview with Michael Cohen, his former personal attorney, marking the first public conversation between the two men in nearly a decade. The interview airs Thursday evening and again Sunday on Cohen's 77 WABC program in New York, capping a stunning reconciliation between one-time allies who spent years as bitter enemies.
Cohen confirmed the sit-down in announcements Thursday morning, saying part one airs at 6 p.m. ET Thursday and the remainder airs Sunday at 5 p.m. ET on his show "When You Know... You Know." Trump's official schedule showed him taping a radio interview Thursday morning.
Few political relationships have swung as violently as the one between Trump and Cohen. Cohen spent more than a decade as Trump's personal lawyer and fixer, a fiercely loyal defender who once said he would take a bullet for his boss. Then came the collapse.
Cohen turned on Trump amid federal investigations, pleaded guilty to charges including campaign finance violations and tax evasion, and served prison time. He told a judge he acted to cover up Trump's "dirty deeds." He testified against Trump in court and before Congress, and once described the president as a "Cheeto-dusted cartoon villain."
That era is apparently over. Cohen said he and Trump have met privately three times and reconciled, and that the radio interview is the culmination of months of effort to rebuild the relationship. In a newsletter post promoting the interview, Cohen said that while their relationship became "political blood sport," it was built on 15 years of close friendship.
For Trump, the decision to sit with a man who testified against him and spent years attacking him is a striking display of magnanimity. Rather than holding a grudge, the president engaged directly with a former adversary -- a move consistent with his willingness to deal with people across the political spectrum and bring even estranged figures back into the fold.
Cohen told Fox News Digital the conversation lasted roughly 40 minutes and will be presented in two parts. He said he is not certain whether he will use the interview to discuss presidential clemency for the conviction that sent him to prison, and indicated he may not even press the issue.
The White House did not comment on the substance of the interview, but the president's schedule for Thursday listed a pretaped radio appearance in the morning, and the broadcast was confirmed by Cohen.
Cohen launched his radio career last month, taking over the 77 WABC slot with a news conference in New York. The show has given him a platform to reenter public life, and landing the president as a guest is a remarkable full-circle moment for a man who spent years on the political fringe after his falling out with Trump.
Listeners can hear part one of the interview Thursday at 6 p.m. ET and the rest Sunday at 5 p.m. ET on WABC Radio, WABCRadio.com, or the 77 WABC app.
The interview will be the first extended public exchange between the two men since their split, and the biggest question is what Cohen says when the microphone is live. He has hinted at forgiveness and reconciliation, but he built his post-Trump career on criticism of the president, and listeners will be watching to see which version of Cohen shows up.
Either way, the appearance is a win for Trump. It puts the president back on New York airwaves, shows a willingness to extend grace even to former enemies, and reminds voters that the man who once led the charge against him now speaks of friendship and forgiveness.
President Donald Trump sat for a radio interview with Michael Cohen, his former personal attorney, marking the first public conversation between the two men since their bitter falling out.
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