Major Trump donor reportedly agreed to pay Cohen $10 million for help securing a federal loan

Earlier this year, Franklin L. Haney, one of President Trump's major donors, agreed to pay Michael Cohen $10 million if he could secure funding for a nuclear power project in Alabama, people familiar with the matter told The Wall Street Journal.

Haney gave Cohen, then Trump's personal lawyer, the contract in April. The agreement would have involved Cohen helping Haney obtain a $5 billion loan from the Department of Energy in order to complete the construction of nuclear reactors at the Bellefonte Nuclear Power Plant, the Journal reports. People familiar with the agreement told the Journal it was finalized right before FBI agents raided Cohen's home, office, and hotel room, and it's no longer in effect.

Under the contract, Cohen would have been paid a monthly retainer, plus $10 million if he got the full funding for the project; otherwise the amount would have been reduced depending on how much he was able to secure. Haney's lawyer, Larry Blust, told the Journal that "neither Mr. Haney nor Nuclear Development LLC ever entered into a contract with Michael Cohen or his affiliate for lobbying services related to the Bellefonte project." Cohen did call Energy Department officials to ask about the loan guarantee process, a person familiar with the matter told the Journal, but never spoke with Energy Secretary Rick Perry. The Journal was not able to determine if Cohen was ever paid any monthly retainer fees.

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After the election, Cohen worked as a consultant to several companies, including AT&T and Novartis, touting his close ties to Trump. Federal investigators in New York are reportedly looking into whether Cohen participated in unregistered lobbying in connection with this work. Read more about the deal with Haney at The Wall Street Journal.

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Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.