Donald Trump’s attorney Todd Blanche began his confrontation with Michael Cohen on Tuesday by throwing the former fixer’s language back in his face.
Blanche confirmed the two had never spoken, but asked Cohen whether he knew who he was already since Cohen “went on TikTok and called me a crying little sh*t” just before the trial began.
“Sounds like something I would say,” responded Cohen, Trump’s former lawyer and fixer.
The question set the tone for the cross-examination of the Manhattan district attorney’s key witness in the hush money trial. For roughly two hours, Blanche began a cross-examination to discredit Cohen’s allegations against Trump. Blanche confirmed his questioning will take most of the day when court picks up on Thursday.
Here are the key takeaways:
- Blanche tries to use Cohen’s words to discredit him: Blanche’s opening question was just the first in a series of colorful quotes from Cohen that Blanche raised to try to paint Cohen as someone who hated Trump and who was hellbent on getting revenge while making money off the former president and trying to get his prison sentence reviewed. Blanche had plenty of material to work with. Cohen has written two books and recorded hundreds of podcasts. The upshot of the questioning was that Cohen was making a living off attacking Trump after he lost his law license following his 2018 guilty plea to charges including campaign finance violations linked to the hush money scheme.
- Cohen's shifting views: Blanche pinpointed the shift from admiration to hatred of Trump in the summer of 2018 when Cohen turned on his former boss. Blanche read a list of compliments Cohen paid Trump publicly in 2015 and 2016, including calling Trump “a good man,” “a man who cares deeply about his family” and “a man who tells it straight.” Trump’s attorney pushed Cohen on his motivations since turning on the former president, suggesting Cohen is now driven by revenge and money.
- Cohen walks jurors through his decision to cease being loyal to Trump: In the morning, prosecutors wrapped up their questioning of Cohen, walking him in detail through his decision to stop being loyal to Trump – and to stop lying for Trump – when he pleaded guilty to federal charges in 2018. Ultimately, Cohen said a conversation with his family in August 2018 convinced him to change his tune, plead guilty and tell the truth about Trump.
- More Trump allies flock to court: Tuesday saw the biggest group of politicians making the trek to the Manhattan courthouse to show their support of Trump. The list included Trump’s onetime presidential-rival-turned-VP-hopeful North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum, Ohio Sen. J.D. Vance, along with House Speaker Mike Johnson, Florida Reps. Byron Donalds and Cory Mills, and former presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy.