Former Donald Trump lawyer Michael Cohen on Tuesday recalled the three and a half years he spent in prison as a result of his loyalty to the former president during a discussion on ex-Trump adviser Peter Navarro's prison sentence — which he began this week in Miami.
The Associated Press notes Cohen served his time after "pleading guilty to campaign finance charges and lying to Congress, among other crimes, while Navarro "was sentenced to four months in prison in January for contempt of Congress after defying a subpoena from the House select committee investigating the Jan. 6 riot," according to the New York Times.
Speaking with Cohen Tuesday, CNN's Erin Burnett Burnett mentioned that Navarro claimed that "he's defending the country," and "standing by" Donald Trump, by going to prison. "You were once — to some extent — in his shoes, right?" Burnett asked the Trump's former fixer. "As you see Navarro go to prison, what do you see?"
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Cohen replied, "It makes me recall an old adage troubled people cause trouble donald, is that troubled person and he's causing trouble. Peter Navarro has no idea just how bad prison actually is. And I'm speaking from experience not once but twice when i was unconstitutionally remanded the second time back. It's terrible, but there's more implications that people aren't even aware of. All your bank accounts end up getting closed. You can't get credit cards and you can't even open up a bank account at any bank because your name is on the list. your whole life changes and why is it changing? Because he's doing something for Donald Trump, a guy who's 100 miles away from him enjoying a Mar-a-Lago burger, and a bunch of ice scream at his gilded club. I don't know what he's thinking."
Burnett mentioned that Navarro is at FCI [Federal Correctional Institute] Miami, a prison Cohen knows about, although he said hewas in FCI Otisville [New York]. Cohen said he "knew a few people who came from FCI Miami," and, "It is not a cake walk," the ex-Trump lawyer emphasized.
"Any of these FCIs are not. First of all, you come in to these facilities and you have nothing. It's a weird experience, especially for somebody who is of his age you don't even own a toothbrush. You don't have a hair brush, you don't have soap, you don't have shampoo. All you have is what they give to you, which is a pillow or a blanket they give to you a pair of one pair of socks, a pair of underwear, a pair of pants that generally don't fit. They do that on purpose, and a t-shirt, and a regular shirt. That's it. That's what you own. So, coming from the world that Peter Navarro came from, spending time at the gilded casa of Donald, right?"
Burnet added, "A Harvard professor, known economist. I mean, I knew Peter navarro all the way back when I worked at CNBC, hewas a guy who came on regularly."
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Cohen emphasized, "This is not an experience that he that he wanted to have in his memory."
"You said it takes your soul," Burnett added.
"It does," Cohen replied. "Prison takes your soul. The time that you're away from your family, your friends, your life — you never get it back. You never get it back. On top of that, i don't know what their rules are right now, in terms of COVID, do they hold them the first five days, ten days, 14 days — in solitary? That's another issue in and of itself. Remember, I did 51 days of solitary confinement."
Burnett pointed to Navarro's press conference Tuesday before heading to prison, in which a reporter asked if he was nervous andwhether or not he'd spoken to Donald Trump.
"I am not nervous," Navarro said. "I'm going to claim executive privilege on the Donald Trump conversations. I've had the greatest amount out of from Donald Trump and his team."
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Burnett asked Cohen, "What do you say that — 'the greatest amount of support from Donald Trump and his team' as he's heading to prison — of course, as Trump is not."
Cohen replied, "And trust me, it's easy to be a television tough-guy when you're on the outside. When you're on the inside, there are rules, whether you're in a satellite camp, a low, like I was in, or you're in a maximum security. The rules are still the rules. He doesn't live by those rules. He's never had to live by those rules. This is an adjustment that he has no idea what he's in store for."
Watch the video below or at this link.
'Television tough-guy': Michael Cohen says Peter Navarro 'has no idea what he's in store for' www.youtube.com
