Associated Press
Donald Trump returns to the hush money trial Tuesday facing a threat of jail time for additional gag order violations as prosecutors gear up to summon big-name witnesses including porn actor Stormy Daniels.
An attorney for Daniels, Clark Brewster, told The Associated Press that the porn actor, whose real name is Stephanie Clifford, is “likely” to be called as a witness in the trial on Tuesday. Trump said earlier Tuesday that he was “recently told” who the witness would be on Tuesday and complained he should’ve been given more notice.
In the final weeks of Trump’s 2016 Republican presidential campaign, his then-lawyer and personal fixer, Michael Cohen, paid Daniels $130,000 to keep quiet about what she says was an awkward and unexpected sexual encounter with Trump at a celebrity golf outing in Lake Tahoe in July 2006. Trump denies having sex with Daniels.
Trump and his campaign were reeling from the Oct. 7, 2016, publication of the never-before-seen 2005 “Access Hollywood” footage in which he boasted about grabbing women’s genitals. He spoke with Cohen and Hope Hicks, his campaign’s Press Secretary, by phone the next day as they sought to limit damage from the tape and keep his alleged affairs out of the press.
Cohen paid Daniels after her lawyer at the time, Keith Davidson, indicated she was willing to make on-the-record statements to the National Enquirer or on television confirming a sexual encounter with Trump. National Enquirer editor Dylan Howard alerted Pecker and then, at Pecker’s direction, told Cohen that Daniels was agitating to go public with her claims, prosecutors said. Daniels had previously sought to sell her story to another celebrity gossip magazine, Life & Style, in 2011.
The testimony from Jeffrey McConney yielded an important building block for prosecutors trying to pull back the curtain on what they say was a corporate records cover-up of transactions designed to protect Trump’s Republican presidential bid during a pivotal stretch of the race. It focused on a $130,000 payment from Cohen to Daniels and the subsequent reimbursement Cohen received.
McConney and another witness testified that the reimbursement checks were drawn from Trump’s personal account. Yet even as jurors witnessed the checks and other documentary evidence, prosecutors did not elicit testimony Monday showing that Trump dictated that the payments would be logged as legal expenses, a designation that prosecutors contend was intentionally deceptive.
McConney acknowledged during cross-examination that Trump never asked him to log the reimbursements as legal expenses or discussed the matter with him at all. Another witness, Deborah Tarasoff, a Trump Organization accounts payable supervisor, said under questioning that she did not get permission to cut the checks in question from Trump himself.
“You never had any reason to believe that President Trump was hiding anything or anything like that?” Trump attorney Todd Blanche asked.
”Correct,” Tarasoff replied.
The testimony followed a stern warning from Judge Juan M. Merchan that additional violations of a gag order barring Trump from inflammatory out-of-court comments about witnesses, jurors and others closely connected to the case could result in jail time.
The $1,000 fine imposed Monday marks the second time since the trial began last month that Trump has been sanctioned for violating the gag order. He was fined $9,000 last week, $1,000 for each of nine violations.
“It appears that the $1,000 fines are not serving as a deterrent. Therefore going forward, this court will have to consider a jail sanction,” Merchan said before jurors were brought into the courtroom. Trump’s statements, the Judge added, “threaten to interfere with the fair administration of justice and constitute a direct attack on the rule of law. I cannot allow that to continue.”
Trump sat forward in his seat, glowering at the Judge as he handed down the ruling. When the Judge finished speaking, Trump shook his head twice and crossed his arms.
Yet even as Merchan warned of jail time in his most pointed and direct admonition, he also made clear his reservations about a step that he described as a “last resort.”
“The last thing I want to do is put you in jail,” Merchan said. “You are the former President of the United States and possibly the next President as well. There are many reasons why incarceration is truly a last resort for me. To take that step would be disruptive to these proceedings.”
The latest violation stems from an April 22 interview with television channel Real America’s Voice in which Trump criticized the speed at which the jury was picked and claimed, without evidence, that it was stacked with Democrats.
Prosecutors are continuing to build toward their star witness, Cohen, who pleaded guilty to federal charges related to the hush money payments. He is expected to undergo a bruising cross-examination from defense attorneys seeking to undermine his credibility with jurors.
Trump, the Republican Party’s presumptive presidential nominee, is charged with 34 felony counts of falsifying business records in connection with the hush money payments but has pleaded not guilty and denied any wrongdoing. The trial, the first of his four criminal cases to come before a jury, is expected to last another month or more.
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Republished with permission of The Associated Press.
22 comments
Impeach Biden
May 7, 2024 at 9:34 am
Stormy out of cash. They should let Avenatti out of jail for the day so those two lunatics can run around screaming and hollering for the day. I guess Avenatti is no longer one of the Demo golden children. Hilarious!
This one’s about Trump, period
May 7, 2024 at 10:50 am
Judge can prevent delay of trial by designating any jail time for contempt to begin after a verdict has been rendered.
Impeach Biden
May 7, 2024 at 10:56 am
This is actually an attempt to keep Trump on the sidelines because Joe is incapable of campaigning, debating, etc. His White House staff has put the mumbling, shuffling, stumbling fool on ice. Cheat sheets, teleprompters, and hand picked reporters. Back to the basement for Joe.
TJC
May 7, 2024 at 11:00 am
No, this is a criminal trial, and it won’t be Trump’s last. All the name-calling and false portrayals of Biden won’t change that, but you keep on trying if it makes you feel better.
Impeach Biden
May 7, 2024 at 11:15 am
False portrayals of Biden? Do watch the news? This site just the other day had a picture of Joe and Netanyahu siting in the White House next to each other. Joe had his stack of cue cards and Netanyahu had nothing. Biden is simply incapable but you and others run cover for him. What is truly frustrating is that if he is re-elected, Ka Mana Wanna will probably finish the term as CIC.
Tom
May 7, 2024 at 2:12 pm
So vote for trump then. What’s Biden got to do with Stormy Daniels testifying against don snoreleone? I know … whatabout … whatabout.
rick whitaker
May 7, 2024 at 8:03 pm
HOWLER MONKEY, WHAT’S GOT INTO YOU?
Dont Say FLA
May 8, 2024 at 3:49 pm
Why did the G0P pick such a “winner” to be their candidate?
Trump’s prosecutions were all in the works prior to him declaring a candidacy, and declaring it incredibly early.
Since no party ever has re-run a one term President after a loss, nobody at all considered how any of Trumps prosecutions could ever be considered as political.
Estimating by normal US history, Trump’s political career was over and he would just be some guy on trail for some alleged crimes, same as with any other prosecution.
It’s the foolish G0P that’s running Trump again. Talk to them about why they chose the guy with so many legal troubles whose political career was, by normal measures and also by common sense, over and done.
Trump’was Game Over but the GOP became the Game Over Party and here we go again, but now with claims of political persecution added into the mix with claims of rigged stolen elections, rigged and stolen by G0Ps but then given to the Democrats despite zero motive for any G0P to do that.
rick whitaker
May 8, 2024 at 10:15 pm
DSF, you stated that so well. if HOWLER MONKEY can’t see that then he is maga blind.
Dont Say FLA
May 7, 2024 at 5:04 pm
Inmates being in jail doesn’t delay their trials. The sheriffs department bus delivers inmates to court for their trials every day court’s in session. Also there are some courts that kept their inmate trial by video systems after Covid, finding them to be mighty convenient and safer for everyone.
PeterH
May 7, 2024 at 11:46 am
In every possible situation or example Donald Trump is a horrible role model of the American experience for America’s youth.
Republicans have no shame.
Republicans are America’s worst enemy!
Vote all Republicans out of office.
Monday news
May 9, 2024 at 1:34 pm
I guess she needs to be the star ⭐⭐⭐. And sell her vag molds to the USA
Michael K
May 7, 2024 at 2:31 pm
Some role model, that Mr. Trump. He’s a pathological liar, and serial adulterer, with multiple bankruptcies (including a casino!), with thousands of contractors stiffed in his wake, and convicted of multiple scams, including a fake “university” and a bogus philanthropic “foundation.” Who does that?
And yet, so-called “Christians” embrace him as their savior who launched a hostile takeover of what used to be a principled Republican party. Astonishing how a con man has gotten this far.
rick whitaker
May 7, 2024 at 8:13 pm
MICHAEL K, christianity is a huge con. so to mix the maga con with the jesus con is not at all a stretch. those people that don’t know christianity to be a 100% con, may be surprised about the mindmeld between to con groups, i’m not surprised, cons go where money and power are.
My Take
May 8, 2024 at 12:40 pm
Most Trumpvangelicals were already used tl following some honking conman preacher, often distant on TV. Trump is just a grand version of the familiar position.
History
May 7, 2024 at 4:10 pm
Really is this about how they rattled the bed and the foundation broke
Like don was supposed to be non sexual thing at his age
Tom
May 8, 2024 at 7:41 am
No. It’s about how he falsified his business records to pay hush money which is illegal in New York State. People get caught doing it all the time and they get convicted all the time as well.
rick whitaker
May 8, 2024 at 11:21 pm
TOM, you know what this is about, it’s about a lying crook.
rick whitaker
May 7, 2024 at 8:25 pm
HOWLER MONKEY, tjc’s comment summed you up well. he’s saying you have a weak argument.
Monday news
May 9, 2024 at 10:44 am
The play time is ending the acts are not working or getting ahead of any of the teams
Monday news
May 9, 2024 at 11:04 am
Mars just came in with a report (alien technology)
Beep beep. Donald cannot control Satan
My Take
May 9, 2024 at 12:08 pm
Stormy’s apparently got Trumpy rattled.
Which must please her.
I wonder how much Melania is following this?