Friendly is a tone. A pardon is an act.

Cohen explained the reunion with three words: “We forgave.” During the program he spoke about forgiveness and addressed Trump as “Boss.” Trump told Cohen that prosecutors had “weaponized” him and said he respected that Cohen had “recanted everything.” (Michael Cohen, AP)

That last phrase was Trump’s characterization. The cited reporting does not establish that Cohen formally recanted testimony in court, that a conviction was vacated, or that a court accepted Cohen’s later account. Praise spoken into a microphone does not amend a court record. (AP)

Then there is the pardon application.

CNN’s Jake Tapper asked Cohen whether he had asked Trump for a pardon. Cohen answered, “I have not.” He then said he had submitted an application addressed to Trump. According to Cohen, he reused an earlier Biden-era application and its documentation, changing the president’s name in the cover letter. (Newsweek)

A direct request to a person and paperwork sent through an institutional channel are not precisely the same thing. The available reporting does not explain the channel. It also does not provide the application, either cover letter, a delivery receipt or an administrative record.

Cohen said he had received no acknowledgment and intended to follow up. No cited source confirms that the follow-up occurred. Newsweek later reported that a White House official said the clemency team was not tracking the request at that time. (Newsweek, AP)

This leaves several facts that are facts:

  • Trump appeared on Cohen’s program.
  • The public exchange was cordial.
  • Cohen says he submitted a pardon application.
  • Cohen says nobody acknowledged it.

It also leaves several things that are not established:

  • A pardon.
  • A promise.
  • A review.
  • A bargain.

Cohen said he had met with Trump three times during the previous year, and AP reported multiple conversations over that period. The radio booking therefore was not necessarily the beginning of their renewed contact. It does not disclose why the relationship changed. (USA Today, AP)

Events placed beside one another can look like an agreement. Sometimes they are merely events placed beside one another.

For now, the reunion is documented. The pardon is not.