Michael Cohen, former personal attorney to Donald Trump, recently reversed his prior claim that he would leave the country if Trump won the 2024 presidential election.

Michael Cohen, President Donald Trump’s longtime personal attorney, testifies before the House Committee on Oversight and Reform on Feb. 27, 2019, in Washington. He is expected to testify in Donald Trump’s hush money case starting April 15, 2024.

Back in September, Cohen appeared on MSNBC’s “Deadline: White House,” where he told host Nicolle Wallace he was preparing to relocate and even change his name should Trump secure a second term.

“What do you think happens to you if he wins?” Wallace asked. “Well, I’m out of here,” Cohen responded.

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He explained he was working on obtaining a foreign passport with a new name, although he expressed concerns about how his family might be impacted by such a move. “I don’t know how it’s going to work as far as dealing with my wife and my children. I certainly don’t want them moving to where I’m looking to go,” Cohen elaborated.

Cohen also suggested he wasn’t the only one planning to leave if Trump returned to office, naming figures like MSNBC’s leadership, former General Mark Milley, and former Representative Liz Cheney as individuals he believed might be in danger of retribution under another Trump administration.

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He expressed alarm over the recent Supreme Court decision that granted Trump presidential immunity, calling it “a get-out-of-jail-free card solely for the president.”

However, following Trump’s election win, Cohen did not follow through on his intentions.

During a TikTok livestream, he addressed his decision to stay, in a broadcast that became notable for an unexpected twist: viewers repeatedly applied filters to his face, much to Cohen’s irritation.

“Alright. I did. I said I was leaving, and then the following day—I turned around and I said that there’s no chance in the world that I’m leaving my country,” he stated emphatically. Cohen grew visibly frustrated with viewers altering his appearance during the broadcast and addressed them directly, saying, “Thank you very much. Alright? Not leaving anywhere. You leave. This is my country.”

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Cohen’s backtracking has drawn attention to a recurring trend of public figures making dramatic declarations about leaving the U.S. over political results but then choosing to remain.

Over recent years, numerous celebrities and public figures have stated they would move abroad if Trump won the presidency, only to later abandon the idea.

Critics argue that such statements serve as “virtue signaling,” projecting fear about a Trump presidency to influence public opinion, even though there is often no intent to follow through on these threats.

In the aftermath of Trump’s victory, Cohen’s comments add to a series of public reactions and recalibrations by various figures who previously indicated they would leave if he returned to office.

With a second Trump administration set to begin, these instances of retracted threats are expected to continue to draw attention.