Michael Cohen’s WABC comeback draws a “next Rush Limbaugh” comparison

“The next Rush Limbaugh” is how Michael Cohen says President Donald Trump described his potential at 770 WABC. The comparison arrived as Cohen, Trump’s former personal lawyer and later a key witness against him, launched a Sunday radio show on the Trump-friendly New York station. It also capped a striking public reversal: Cohen now says he and Trump are rebuilding a relationship that collapsed into courtroom testimony, prison time and years of attacks.

The Bottom Line

• Cohen launched a Sunday program on 770 WABC, replacing former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo during his summer break.
• WABC owner John Catsimatidis said Trump supported the hiring and believed Cohen could become “the next Rush Limbaugh.”
• Cohen says he and Trump reconciled after an intermediary conveyed Trump’s empathy over criticism Cohen was receiving.
• Later accounts say the two met at Trump properties, though an earlier CNN report said Cohen was still hoping for a one-on-one meeting.
• The station may expand Cohen into a five-day show, but that move is not final.

Breaking It Down

Cohen’s route back to conservative talk radio began with his own political repositioning. In a January Substack post, he said he felt pressured and coerced by New York Attorney General Letitia James and Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg to provide testimony that would help cases against Trump. He also said he never witnessed Trump communicating with Jeffrey Epstein, comments Cohen says triggered fierce criticism and the loss of roughly 30,000 Substack followers.

According to Cohen, an unnamed mutual contact then relayed that Trump understood the backlash. Cohen responded by texting Trump and proposing an end to their feud. He said Trump replied almost immediately and agreed they should meet, describing the moment this way: “The ice between us, it didn’t just melt, it broke.”

The supplied reports do not fully align on the timing of face-to-face meetings. CNN reported on July 7 that Cohen hoped to return to the White House for a future meeting. Later reports from the New York Post and TMZ said Cohen described two earlier encounters, including a longer meeting at Mar-a-Lago. None of those accounts included a detailed description of what the two discussed.

Cohen’s new program, “When You Know, You Know…,” places him inside a station with a Trump-aligned audience. He says the show is aimed at a “tired majority” exhausted by partisan fighting, while also using airtime to answer critics who see his return as opportunistic. Catsimatidis said the White House had no objection to the hire.

Why This Matters

The Rush Limbaugh comparison signals how large WABC’s ambitions may be for Cohen. Yet he enters conservative radio from an unusually complicated position: he once said he would take a bullet for Trump, later called him a con man and testified in the case that ended with Trump’s conviction on 34 counts of falsifying business records.

For US listeners, the story shows how a public figure can attempt a rapid political and media reinvention. Cohen brings insider knowledge, a reported online following of 1.5 million and a history that attracts attention while creating distrust. WABC is betting that tension can become programming: supporters may listen to hear a former enemy defend Trump, while critics may tune in to challenge him.

The reconciliation also changes how one of the most visible witnesses from Trump’s New York cases presents his role. Cohen now emphasizes alleged pressure from prosecutors and shared feelings of betrayal, a shift Trump allies can cite when questioning his earlier testimony. The supplied reports do not say that any court ruling has been reversed because of Cohen’s new statements.

What Comes Next

Cohen is continuing in WABC’s Sunday slot, and Catsimatidis has said he will “probably” give him a five-day show. That expansion has not been formally announced. The status of any future private meeting with Trump is also unclear because the reports differ on whether the pair have already met twice or are still planning another conversation.