Yes, Michael Cohen’s plea deal includes cooperation against Donald Trump
Today is one of those days where the news is coming in so fast and furious, we’re seeing conflicting and confusing details reported by major media outlets left and right. First, NBC News and ABC News confirmed that Michael Cohen has cut a plea deal. Then CNN reported that Cohen’s plea deal won’t include any cooperation. Then an MSNBC commentator said there would be no way for anyone to know that. Then another MSNBC commentator said that there won’t be any cooperation. Then yet another MSNBC commentator said there is no way to know if he’s cooperating. So what’s really going on here?
First, the Feds would never have agreed to a deal with Michael Cohen unless it included cooperation, because the entire point of squeezing Cohen was to get him to flip on Donald Trump. Second, Michael Avenatti – who is knee deep in the Cohen saga due to the ongoing civil case between them – appeared on MSNBC and confirmed that Cohen has been cooperating and will continue to cooperate.
Third, the New York Times says that as part of the deal, the Feds are having Cohen plead guilty to the charge of making an illegal payment to Stormy Daniels – the one charge that just happens to directly involve Donald Trump – while letting Cohen slide on the various bank fraud charges that don’t involve Trump. This could’t be a much more clear signal that Cohen’s deal is all about incriminating Trump.
We still don’t know precisely what’s going on here. It could be that the Feds are feeding the media false information right now about Michael Cohen’s deal supposedly not including cooperation, in order to keep Donald Trump from panicking and trying to pardon Cohen. But what is clear is that the Feds would not give Cohen a plea deal unless he’s agreed to cooperate against Trump. Anything you’re hearing about Cohen not having to cooperate is laugh-out-loud nonsense, no matter how many cable news pundits “confirm” it.
