“We had an interesting nucleus of people when I was in the White House — the initial team. We were not bashful. It was a group that was willing to tell the President what he needed to know, whether he wanted to hear it or not,” Cohn told CNN’s David Axelrod in an interview on “The Axe Files” podcast released Monday.

“None of us are there any more. So I am concerned that the atmosphere in the White House is no longer conducive, or no one has the personality to stand up and tell the President what he doesn’t want to hear,” he said…

“I thought I could potentially sway him, and I also know, historically, that sometimes what you run on is not exactly what you mean when you come to govern,” he said. “In my mind, having a seat on the inside and trying to influence was better than being on the outside and trying to get to a more positive outcome on, you know, climate, on trade, on immigration.”