Donald Trump Stuns His Staff With Michael Cohen Radio Interview: 'They’re Not Happy,' Says CNN Contributor Maggie Haberman

Donald Trump's staff allegedly felt blindsided after his 40-minute radio interview with former foe Michael Cohen.

The president sat down with his former attorney for the first time in nearly a decade on Thursday, August 20, a reconciliation his staff reportedly did not approve of.

The New York Times' White House Correspondent Maggie Haberman told CNN that Cohen had been considered "unforgivable" in Trump's circle.

"Trump really never closes the door on almost anyone entirely. Actually, I always said — and others in Trump's world, who would say too when having this conversation — was that, except for Michael Cohen," she revealed. "That was because most people believed around Trump that there was just no way that Trump was ever going to get past that trial in 2024."

Cohen testified against Trump in his hush money trial, leading to his criminal conviction, though Cohen is in the midst of applying for a presidential pardon.

"There are a number of people in Trump's world, his staff, former staff, extended advisers, who are — even if they are staying silent about it — within Trump's world; they're not happy about this," Haberman explained.

"They feel like Cohen, with his various forms of testimony, caused a lot of problems for a bunch of other people," she pointed out.

In a preview of the bombshell conversation, Cohen appeared to drop all past issues with the president. He even referred to Trump as "boss" and "sir" while praising his second term.

"[They] are kind of stunned to see him walking away from his own role and that Trump is going on this radio show," Haberman said of his allies.

"Cohen is one of the only people who actually did prison time during all of this," she also noted of the hush money scandal. "And Trump has expressed some empathy over that, believe it or not."

Cohen was sentenced to three years in federal prison after pleading guilty to campaign finance violations, tax evasion, bank fraud and lying to Congress in 2018.

The full interview between the former foes will air on Sunday, August 23. Cohen spoke briefly about its contents in a Substack post.

"It takes far more courage to extend a hand across a divide than it does to throw stones from behind a keyboard," Cohen wrote, noting the once-close confidants had "forgiven" one another.

"How can two men who spent years in a very public war, who hurled verbal missiles across an enormous legal and political canyon, ever sit down together again?” he continued. “The answer is actually much simpler than people want it to be. We forgave.”