Trump Receives Stark Warning: Cohen Might Flip

One of president's longtime legal advisers, Jay Goldberg, cautioned the president
By John Johnson,  Newser Staff
Posted Apr 19, 2018 6:57 AM CDT
Trump Receives Stark Warning: Cohen Might Flip
Michael Cohen, President Trump's personal attorney, center, leaves federal court, in New York in April 16.   (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer, File)

Attorney Michael Cohen is seen as a fiercely loyal ally to President Trump. Indeed, he tweeted this month, "I will always protect our @POTUS." But when Trump called another longtime legal adviser last week, that adviser gave the president a clear warning: Don't trust Cohen, because he will almost certainly flip for prosecutors, reports the Wall Street Journal. On a scale of 1 to 100, with 100 being the most loyal, Cohen "isn't even a 1," Jay Goldberg says he told the president in a phone call on Friday. He also warned Trump that Cohen might wear a wire in conversations with the president. "Anyone who is facing 30 years doesn't stand up," said Goldberg, per CNN. Cohen could indeed face serious jail time on charges of bank fraud and campaign finance fraud following the unprecedented FBI raid on his offices.

Politico also reports that Trump and his allies are growing more and more concerned about the possibility of Cohen flipping. "They’re going to threaten him with a long prison term and try to turn him into a canary that sings," says Alan Dershowitz. The story notes that the White House found it a little worrisome that Cohen referred to the raiding agents as "courteous and respectful" instead of being his usual bombastic self, and it also notes that spokesperson Sarah Huckabee Sanders seemed to create a bit of distance between the two men by pointing out that Trump has many attorneys. One other point: While the White House insists Trump's pardon of Scooter Libby was not meant to send a message to Cohen, it "could go a long way toward reassuring" him, write Darren Samuelsohn and Andrew Restuccia at Politico. (More Michael Cohen stories.)

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