Third week of testimony in Trump’s hush money trial draws to a close, with Michael Cohen yet to come

AP

New York, May 10

The third week of testimony in Donald Trump’s hush money trial draws to a close Friday after jurors heard the dramatic, if not downright seamy, account of porn actor Stormy Daniels, while prosecutors gear up for their most crucial witness: Michael Cohen, Trump’s former attorney.

Daniels’ story of an alleged sexual encounter with Trump was a crucial building block for prosecutors, who are seeking to show that the Republican and his allies buried unflattering stories in the waning weeks of the 2016 presidential election in an effort to illegally influence the race.

Trump, who denies the sexual encounter ever happened, walked out of the court in a rage Thursday, angrily telling reporters, “I’m innocent.” His attorneys pushed for a mistrial over the level of tawdry details Daniels went into on the witness stand, but Judge Juan M Merchan denied the request.

Over more than seven-and-a-half hours of testimony, Daniels relayed in graphic detail what she says happened after the two met at a celebrity golf outing at Lake Tahoe where sponsors included the adult film studio where she worked. Daniels explained how she felt surprise, fear and discomfort, even as she consented to sex with Trump.

During combative cross-examination, Trump’s lawyers sought to paint Daniels as a liar and extortionist who’s trying to take down the former president after drawing money and fame from her claims. Trump attorney Susan Necheles pressed Daniels on why she accepted the payout to keep quiet instead of going public, and the two women traded barbs over what Necheles said were inconsistencies in Daniels’ story over the years.

“You made all this up, right?” Necheles asked Daniels.

“No,” Daniels shot back.

The defence has sought to show that the hush money payments made on his behalf were an effort to protect his reputation and family — not his campaign — by shielding them from embarrassing stories about his personal life.

After Daniels stepped down from the stand Thursday, Trump’s attorneys pressed the judge to amend the gag order that prevents him from talking about witnesses in the case so he could publicly respond to what she told jurors. The judge denied that request too.

Trump on Friday also lost a bid to get records from Mark Pomerantz, a former Manhattan prosecutor who authored a book last year detailing tensions with District Attorney Alvin Bragg over whether to seek Trump's indictment.

Prosecutors in Bragg’s office asked Merchan to reject the subpoena of Pomerantz, and the judge agreed, writing in an order that the defence requests are either overly broad and part of a “fishing expedition” or they seek information that is irrelevant to the case.

This is all before Trump and jurors are faced with Cohen, who arranged a USD 1,30,000 payout to Daniels. It’s not clear when prosecutors will put on the stand their star witness, who pleaded guilty to federal charges and went to prison for his role in the hush money scheme.

Trump is charged with 34 counts of falsifying internal Trump Organisation business records. The charges stem from paperwork such as invoices and checks that were deemed legal expenses in company records. Prosecutors say those payments largely were reimbursements to Cohen for Daniels’ hush money payment.

Back on the witness stand Friday morning is Madeleine Westerhout, a Trump aide who was working at the Republican National Committee (RNC) when Trump’s infamous “Access Hollywood” tape leaked right before the 2016 election. That tape is important because prosecutors say the political firestorm it caused hastened the payment to Daniels.

Westerhout, who went on to serve as Trump’s personal secretary, told jurors Thursday that the tape rattled RNC leadership so much that “there were conversations about how it would be possible to replace him as the candidate, if it came to that.” 

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