One of President Trump’s former attorneys said he urged the president not to trust Michael Cohen to fully protect him, and warned that Cohen would eventually cooperate with federal prosecutors.
The attorney, Jay Goldberg, told The Wall Street Journal that he spoke to Trump on the phone last Friday. In that call, he reportedly told Trump that on a scale of 1 to 100, where 100 represents full protection of the president, Cohen “isn’t even a 1.”
“Michael will never stand up [for you],” Goldberg said he told Trump.
{mosads}
Goldberg is one of several personal advisers that Trump has reached out to recently about the criminal investigation into Cohen, his longtime personal attorney.
The FBI raided Cohen’s home, hotel room and office last week after federal prosecutors in Manhattan obtained a search warrant, based, in part, on a referral from special counsel Robert Mueller.
Prosecutors later revealed that Cohen has been under criminal investigation for months.
Among the records agents were seeking were documents related to payments to two women — adult-film actress Stormy Daniels and former Playboy model Karen McDougal — who have alleged having affairs with Trump years ago.
Goldberg told the Journal that he does not believe that Trump has done anything wrong. But he also said that he warned Trump that Cohen could agree to cooperate with prosecutors if enough pressure is exerted on him.
Cohen has built a reputation as one of Trump’s most loyal confidants. Earlier this month, he tweeted that he would “always protect our @POTUS.”