Michael Cohen Has a Hilarious New Nickname for Trump's Attorney Todd Blanche

Former President Donald Trump faced serious felony charges on Thursday, largely due to the testimony provided by his ex-associate Michael Cohen. Cohen, who was recently a key witness in the first-ever criminal trial involving a former US president, testified earlier this month against Trump. Following Trump's conviction, Cohen appeared in his first live television interview since the trial. During this interview, he criticized the legal strategy employed by Trump's lawyer, Todd Blanche, as reported by HuffPost. Cohen also cleverly countered an insult from Blanche.

From the closing arguments, Cohen highlighted a particular moment when Blanche referred to him as the “GLOAT: Greatest Liar of All Time.” Cohen said, “It’s a Donald Trump, fourth-grade, playground-bullying type of tactic." Shortly after he said this, Cohen's lawyer, Danya Perry, encouraged Cohen to share his nickname for Trump's attorney. As others on the panel laughed, Cohen said, “I was going to call him a SLOAT, which is the ‘Stupidest Lawyer of All Time.'" He further said, “You cannot listen to your client when you are trying to create a defense ― a defense that is as important as this one is.”

As reported by The Daily Beast, he also added, “That is not how you run a good defense. I would never have allowed it if I was still with him.” When asked by Maddow about the defense's apparent attempt to make the trial a referendum on him, Cohen brushed off Blanche's strategy. He said, “I didn’t really care, nor do I care, what Todd Blanche says about me." He added, “I know who I am, and I knew what I needed to do, so in this specific case it was a very—and I have said it—it was a very foolish strategy, and he is not really known as a defense attorney."

He continued, "I think it is only his second defense trial. Not a good strategy and proof positive of that is the 34-count verdict.” Additionally, Cohen expressed no surprise at former President Trump's conviction on all 34 felony charges. During an interview with George Stephanopoulos on Good Morning America, Cohen described his 21 hours on the stand during the trial as incredibly challenging. As reported by ABC News, he said, “Whether it was on direct or on cross-examination, the whole thing was very tough. It was emotionally draining. You have to be perfect."

He added, "I knew that any mistake that I made would … become the topic of conversation that would just explode. And so I really just needed to stay focused. It wasn't easy with Todd Blanche. He's a meanderer as it goes to questioning.” Furthermore, he also added, “I want people to also remember, I take responsibility for what I did … I shouldn't have done it. I don't ignore my responsibility. I accepted it and in part went to prison for it.” Meanwhile, the former president maintained his plea of not guilty and denied any wrongdoing. Following the reading of the verdict, Trump lashed out against the judge, denouncing the trial as rigged and disgraceful.