As Hannity tries to downplay the relationship with Trump attorney Michael Cohen that they both tried to keep secret, let’s not forget that Hannity could well be knee-deep in Michael Cohen affairs without being a client.

Tonight, after Michael Cohen revealed in federal court that Sean Hannity is the mystery client he had been trying to keep secret, Hannity insisted he had only informally sought advice from Cohen and had therefore been justified in never mentioning their relationship to viewers.

As I previously posted, this story just doesn’t add up. If Hannity was not a client and did not think he needed to inform viewers of his relationship with Cohen, then why did Hannity say on the radio earlier today, “I requested attorney-client privilege with him”? And what did Hannity mean, exactly, when he said, also on the radio today, “I may have handed [Cohen] $10 once.” You tip a doorman or yes, a coffee boy $10 when he does you a solid, not a lawyer.

But, predictably, Hannity used his moment in the spotlight to attack the media for its “wild speculation” over his name being announced in court. Actually, there’s no speculation. Before being ordered to name Hannity, Cohen’s attorney argued that Hannity is “a ‘prominent person’ who wanted to keep his identity a secret because he would be ‘embarrassed’ to be identified as having sought Mr. Cohen’s counsel.”

But now, Hannity insists there’s nothing to see here so we should all move along. Even as he hinted there was more to Cohen's role than just answering real estate questions.

HANNITY: Now, predictably, without knowing or any of the facts, the media went absolutely insane. Wall-to-wall, hour-by-hour coverage of yours truly.

[…]

Let me set the record straight, here’s the truth. Michael Cohen never represented me in any legal matter. I never retained his services, I never received an invoice, I never paid Michael Cohen for legal fees. I did have occasional, brief conversations with Michael Cohen – he’s a great attorney – about legal questions I had where I was looking for input and perspective. My discussions with Michael Cohen never rose to any level that I needed to tell anyone that I was asking him questions. And to be absolutely clear, they never involved any matter, any – sorry to disappoint so many – matter between me, or a third party a third group at all. And our, my questions exclusively, almost, focused on real estate. I’ve said many times on my radio show, I hate the stock market, I prefer real estate. Michael knows real estate.

So, in response to all the wild speculation, I want to set the record straight here tonight. I never asked Michael Cohen to bring this proceeding on my behalf. I have no personal interest in this legal matter. That’s all there is. Nothing more. So maybe the media could try and start focusing on the biggest abuse of power scandal in this country and maybe the forgotten men and women in this country who the 2016 election was about. You know, jobs, getting off poverty, getting out of foodstamps, maybe we’ll focus on that. National security – a hundred and five out of a hundred and five missiles hit their targets [in Syria last week].

Of course, it was Hannity who kept the facts from the public. Had he told viewers of his supposedly very informal relationship with Cohen, there would not be such speculation. What’s worse is that Hannity complained on the air about the FBI raid on Cohen as a violation of the attorney-client privilege without disclosing his own desire for the same.

Even Trump/Fox News suck-up Alan Dershowitz rebuked Hannity, albeit gently and with a lot of sympathy, as you can see below.

As for Hannity’s sudden concern for the “forgotten men and women of this country,” (you know, the people Hannity and Trump are dying to kick off Obamacare and Medicaid, to pay for tax cuts for wealthy people like themselves) maybe he could spare a few minutes from sucking up to Trump and attacking the FBI and DOJ on their behalf. But don’t hold your breath.

Watch Hannity’s not-quite-convincing argument about Cohen as well as his protestations to Dershowitz about it below, from the April 16, 2018 Hannity.