Trump appears on former lawyer Michael Cohen's radio show after years of feud

Donald Trump was interviewed on Michael Cohen's 77 WABC-AM radio show on Thursday, a rare public appearance with the former personal attorney who had previously testified against him in criminal and civil cases. The conversation, which aired partially Thursday evening and will be broadcast in full on Sunday, was notably cordial and included only brief references to their past disputes.

"They weaponized you like nobody's ever been weaponized, like few have been," Trump said, adding, "I respect the fact that you recanted everything you said. That's a big thing that you did."

Cohen, who served a prison sentence for lying to Congress and for campaign-finance violations, told CNN that he had resubmitted a pardon application to the White House, replacing Joe Biden’s name with Donald Trump’s, and was awaiting a response.

In a pre-interview statement, Cohen said forgiveness does not erase history but allows the past to no longer dictate the future. He described his earlier relationship with Trump as a 15-year friendship that survived a period he called “political blood sport.”

The interview follows Cohen’s earlier claims that his testimony in the 2024 hush-money trial and a 2023 civil fraud case was given under pressure from prosecutors. He has since sought to restore his standing with Trump, while the former president has not made any direct public comments about the reunion beyond linking to Cohen’s statements on social media.

The meeting reflects a pattern of former allies, such as Elon Musk and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, re-engaging with Trump after prior conflicts.