Michael Cohen has made a stunning reversal, accusing two powerful Democrats of pressuring him to testify against President Donald Trump in what he now describes as a politically driven effort to secure convictions.
Cohen, Trump’s former personal attorney and longtime fixer, leveled the allegations in a new essay published on his Substack, claiming he was “pressured and coerced” by prosecutors to deliver testimony that would damage Trump.
The accusations target New York Attorney General Letitia James and Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, the same officials who spearheaded civil and criminal cases against the President.
“From the time I first began meeting with lawyers from the Manhattan DA’s Office and the New York Attorney General’s Office, I felt pressured to only provide information that satisfied their desire to build cases against President Trump,” Cohen wrote.
Cohen played a central role in two major proceedings against Trump, first in a civil fraud trial and later in the 2024 criminal case that resulted in 34 felony convictions for falsifying business records.
President Trump reacted forcefully to Cohen’s claims, calling the prosecutions a “SET UP” and warning the “Radical Left” would “pay a big price” for what he described as an abuse of the justice system.
“These horrible Radical Left people, doing everything possible to destroy our Country, should pay a big price for this,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
Cohen admitted he entered early meetings with prosecutors hoping cooperation would benefit him personally, including reducing his sentence and allowing him to return home sooner.
“I wanted to know how this would help me,” Cohen wrote, adding that prosecutors asked leading questions designed to fit a predetermined narrative.
He accused James of pursuing Trump for political gain, citing her 2018 campaign promise to “go after” the President.
“Her office made clear they wanted testimony that would take down Trump,” Cohen claimed.
Cohen also accused Bragg of using the criminal case to elevate his national profile rather than pursue justice, per the Daily Mail.
He said the prosecutions reflected how “verdicts are rendered” in modern American politics, not through impartial law enforcement but through ideological pressure.
Cohen said he chose to speak out now as Trump’s legal team continues efforts to overturn the conviction, including attempts to move the case into federal court.
Trump’s attorneys argue the Supreme Court’s ruling on presidential immunity could invalidate the conviction, an argument currently working its way through the appeals process.
Cohen’s credibility has long been a flashpoint, with critics noting his past convictions for lying to Congress and facilitating hush money payments.
Despite that history, his new claims are already fueling renewed scrutiny of the prosecutions and raising questions about political influence inside New York’s justice system.
The revelations add fresh gasoline to Trump’s long-standing claim that the cases against him were never about the law, but about stopping him at any cost.
