CNN
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Adult film star Stormy Daniels on Tuesday revealed sordid details from the witness stand of an alleged sexual encounter she had with former President Donald Trump in 2006, including how they met at a celebrity golf tournament. He then described what happened when he went to President Trump’s Lake Tahoe hotel. room.
In an almost casual, conversational tone, Mr. Daniels detailed everything from the flooring and furniture in Mr. Trump’s hotel room to the contents of the toiletry set in his bathroom. At one point in the courtroom, Ms. Daniels threw her arms behind her back on the witness stand, put her legs up, and the moment President Trump posed for her in his underwear on a hotel bed. He said he had reproduced it.
But some of the details Daniels gave were so revealing that Judge Juan Mercian cut her off at several points. And Trump’s lawyers argued that Daniels unfairly prejudiced the jury and asked Marchand to declare her a mistrial. The judge rejected the request, but added that some details from Daniels were “better left unsaid.”
But importantly, Daniels also revealed that Trump and his former lawyer Michael Cohen were interested in buying her story after the “Access Hollywood” tape was released just before the 2016 election. He testified that he appeared to have a .
The adult film star is expected to take the stand again when the trial resumes on Thursday. Trump’s lawyer Susan Necheres resumed cross-examining Daniels on Tuesday afternoon after nearly 90 minutes of tense questioning.
Here are the highlights from the 13th day of the Trump hush money trial:
On Tuesday morning, Mr. Daniels gave the jury details of his encounter with Mr. Trump in a hotel room in 2006. Daniels said he slept with Trump there. (Mr. Trump has denied having an affair with her.)
Daniels described what Trump’s hotel room had, including the black-and-white tile floor and the large mahogany table in the center of the entryway. She described a dinner conversation and said she was impressed that Trump asked questions not just about sex but about the business of the adult film industry.
She also told jurors about the time she “smacked” Trump “directly in the butt” with a copy of Trump’s magazine.
Daniels said she found Trump in his hotel bed wearing boxers and a T-shirt after going to the bathroom. “At first I just freaked out and had a jump scare. I didn’t expect anyone to be there, especially not with the large amount of clothing,” she testified.
She said Trump was “standing between me and the door.” It’s not a threatening attitude. He didn’t come at me, he didn’t lunge at me. Nothing like that. Daniels said she passed out during sex and “had no clothes or shoes off. I took off my bra. We were in missionary position.”
01:51 – Source: CNN
Caitlan Collins talks about Trump’s reaction to Daniels’ testimony
At this point, the judge blocked Daniels from going into further details. It was one of several objections he raised on his own or at the request of Trump’s lawyers.
Daniels went on to testify that she was “shaking” as she changed her clothes, and that she would try to meet with President Trump in public in the future. Daniels said she had told many people that she had met Trump in his hotel room, but that he had been “embarrassed” and that few had confided in them about the sexual encounter.
Overall, the testimony was so long and detailed that Marchand repeatedly warned Daniels to slow down, listen to questions, and answer questions concisely. Prosecutors also specifically instructed Daniels to remain focused when answering questions.
Daniels went on to talk about how she kept in touch with Trump, including briefly meeting him at Trump Tower to talk about his reality show, “Celebrity Apprentice.”
Daniels said that in 2015, when Trump was starting his presidential campaign, then-publicist Gina Rodriguez tried to sell her story. But Rodriguez didn’t show much interest until President Trump’s “Access Hollywood” tape was released in October 2016. She ultimately led to talks with AMI, which led to talks with Michael Cohen, who paid Daniels $130,000 not to publicize his case.
Ms. Daniels acknowledged that a contract agreement between Peggy Peterson and David Dennison used false names for her and Mr. Trump, and that Mr. Daniels signed the agreement.
Under the agreement, Mr. Daniels said he felt bound by a non-disclosure agreement he signed with Mr. Cohen and did not comment on news about his dealings with AMI or other matters.
She also explained how a statement she released in 2018 after the hush money payments became public, in which she denied having an affair with Trump, was untrue. She signed her statement in a way she had never signed before as a “snitch” to the late night talk show host before she appeared on “Jimmy Kimmel Live” she said she did.
“Is this statement a lie?” Prosecutor Susan Hoffinger asked Tuesday.
“Yeah,” Daniels said.
Trump’s lawyers argued that the judge should declare a mistrial after Daniels’ sordid testimony that morning.
Trump’s lawyer, Todd Blanche, said the president still vehemently denies the allegations and argued there was no way to “ring a bell” to jurors who were hearing unfairly prejudicial testimony. Blanche argued that this testimony had nothing to do with the district attorney’s case regarding falsification of business records.
“This is the kind of testimony that makes it impossible to recover from, not even talking about the fact that we’re talking about someone who’s going out campaigning this afternoon,” Blanche said, adding that news outlets added. They were already reporting on Daniels’ story of events during lunch.
“How can we recover from this situation in a way that is fair to President Trump?” Blanche challenged.
01:37 – Source: CNN
Reporter details the moment that made President Trump laugh in court
Hoffinger said the testimony was highly proof of “the defendant’s intent” and President Trump’s “motive to repay this.”
Marchand ultimately denied the mistrial claim, but said he felt Daniels was a difficult witness to control.
“I think there are things I would have been better off not saying. Having said that, I don’t think we’ve reached the point where a miscarriage of justice is warranted,” he said.
Marchan also said he demonstrated collaboration with the defense by supporting most of the defense’s objections during his testimony, and was surprised there were no further objections.
“The defense has to take some responsibility for that,” Marchand said.
During his lunch break, President Trump hinted at his lawyers’ strategy by posting the following on Truth Social: “The prosecution, which has no case, went too far. Mistrial!
Trump’s lawyer, Necheles, quickly challenged Daniels’ story during cross-examination and accused the adult film actress of hating Trump.
“Are you correct in saying that you hate President Trump?” Necheres asked.
“Yeah,” Daniels said.
“Do you want him in jail?” Necheres continued.
“I want him to be held accountable,” Daniels responded.
Daniels’ body language was tense and her tone changed noticeably as Necheres tried to shatter her trust. Mr. Daniels gave short, concise answers to many of her questions, opening the door with “lies” and “no,” while denying Mr. Necheres’ claims that she made up details of the story or was trying to extort Mr. Trump. objected to.
For example, Ms. Necheres confronted Mr. Daniels about disobeying a court order to pay Mr. Trump’s legal fees for a frivolous lawsuit, and about whether he was making money by telling his story.
“You’ve been making money for over 10 years claiming you had a sexual relationship with President Trump,” Necheres asked.
“I make money by telling my story of what happened to me,” Daniels said.
“You made a lot of money off that story, right?” Necheres asked.
“It also cost a lot of money,” Daniels replied.
Daniels has been repeatedly combative with Necheles, with Trump’s lawyers claiming she made up a story about being threatened by a man in Las Vegas in 2011 and then changed her story depending on who was paying the money. .
Near the end of Tuesday’s questioning, Necheres equated the $130,000 payment before the 2016 election to extortion. This is a similar line of questioning that Mr. Trump’s lawyers gave to Mr. Daniels’ lawyer, Keith Davidson.
“Are you trying to extort money from President Trump?” Necheres asked.
“That’s a lie,” Daniels said aloud.
“That’s what you did, right?” Necheres followed.
“Incorrect,” Daniels said again.
