Tuesday was the most dramatic day in former President Trump’s criminal trial when Stormy Daniels took the stand.
The porn actress is at the center of the case over her claim that she and Trump had sex at a celebrity golf event in Lake Tahoe in 2006.
Daniels would end up receiving $130,000 in the final stretch of the 2016 presidential campaign, with the intention of preventing her from telling this story publicly.
It was paid by Trump’s then-lawyer and fixer, Michael Cohen, who was later reimbursed by Trump and a Trump-related fund.
The prosecution’s argument is that the reimbursements to Cohen were falsely categorized as legal expenses to hide their true purpose – to silence Daniels to help Trump prevail over Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton in the election.
Trump denies having sex with Daniels. He also denies any criminal wrongdoing, arguing that the money paid to Cohen was in fact for legal services.
Trump is charged with 34 felony counts of falsifying business records. If he was convicted, he could be imprisoned, although a sentence of imprisonment was unusual for a first-time offender.
Here are the key takeaways from Tuesday’s proceedings.
Stormy Daniels tells her story
The biggest news of the day was the most obvious: Stormy Daniels told her story.
It was an extraordinary — and sometimes surreal — occasion with Daniels detailing everything from her difficult upbringing and early days in the adult industry to her eventual alleged sexual encounter with Trump.
Trump is almost 33 years older than Daniels. In 2006, he was a businessman and reality TV star, a decade away from being elected president.
Daniels laid out his story in considerable detail and with vivid asides. She said she earned more when she started stripping than when she “did manure.” Years later, regarding her fateful encounter with Trump, she recalled highly specific details, such as seeing a toiletry bag, apparently belonging to him, containing Old Spice.
Daniels stressed that she was not coerced into having sex with Trump, although she suggested he offered the possibility of a spot on NBC’s “The Apprentice” to take her to bed.
She also said she hadn’t seen Trump since June 2007 — until Tuesday, when she identified him in court.
Team Trump tries to mistrial – and fails
The New York case is the first criminal trial of a former president. It could have ended prematurely on Tuesday.
The former president’s lawyers pressured Judge Juan Merchan to declare a mistrial amid Daniels’ testimony.
The defense’s argument was that Daniels had gone into gratuitous details that were “extremely damaging” to Trump and were intended for “pure embarrassment” rather than a legitimate legal purpose. One of the details in question appears to have been the adult actress’ claim that Trump did not use a condom during the alleged encounter.
Merchan denied the request for a mistrial, saying such a move was “not justified.”
The judge also expressed surprise that there were not more objections from the defense during Daniels’ testimony — a remark that is unlikely to endear Trump’s lawyers to the bellicose former president.
Merchan seemed uncomfortable with some elements of Daniels’ testimony. He encouraged her to keep her answers to questions asked and also ordered that her comments about the position in which she and Trump allegedly had sex be removed from official records.
Trump is ridiculed
One of the most notable elements of Daniels’ testimony was his willingness to mock Trump.
The adult actress said that when she went to Trump’s suite in 2006, he was wearing satin or silk pajamas.
“Does Mr. Hefner know you stole his pajamas?” Daniels said taunted Trump. He wore a suit after her reference to Playboy founder Hugh Hefner, she said.
She also said that after the meeting, Trump called her “honey.”
There was further embarrassment for Trump when Daniels testified that after asking Trump about his wife Melania, he said they did not sleep in the same room.
According to the Associated Press, at this point Trump “shaked his head at the defense table and appeared to say something under his breath.”
‘Do you hate President Trump?’ – The defense hits the motives
Daniels’ interrogation was predictably aggressive, with Trump’s lawyers trying to portray the pornographic actor as motivated by a desire for personal revenge and financial gain.
A striking moment came when Trump lawyer Susan Necheles asked Daniels, “Am I sure you hate President Trump?”
“Yes,” Daniels replied.
Trump’s team also focused on a later case in which Daniels sued Trump for defamation and lost. She refused to pay the money she owed him.
Necheles sought to highlight a key point later in the day when he harshly accused Daniels of “seeking to extort money” from Trump.
Daniels responded that the accusation was “false.”
Much may depend on the jury’s instinctive reaction to Daniels’ testimony. Wednesday is a day off on the testing calendar, but she will be back on Thursday.
New York Mayor Says Rikers Island Is Ready for Trump If Needed
The day was dominated by Daniels, but she wasn’t the only new addition.
In a separate press conference, New York City Mayor Eric Adams (D) said the city’s corrections commissioner was “prepared for whatever comes” in terms of Trump’s possible incarceration.
Merchan on Monday floated the possibility of arresting Trump if he continues to violate a gag order. Trump has broken the order 10 times so far, resulting in total fines of $10,000.
“They are professionals, they will be ready,” Adams said, apparently referring to prison staff.
Rikers Island is home to New York’s largest prison, opened almost 100 years ago.
The New York Times noted that Rikers is “a notoriously violent and dilapidated facility.”
This story originally appeared on thehill.com read the full story
