donald trumpThe Hush Money criminal trial enters its 16th day on Monday in New York with the potential for bombshell testimony as his former fixer turns prosecution witness, michael cohenmust take a position.
Cohen is key in the case against Trump, as he is accused of transferring $130,000 to the adult film star Stormy Daniels days before the 2016 election – in exchange for her silence about an alleged sexual encounter with Trump 10 years earlier.
Prosecutors claim that Trump’s 2017 reimbursement of Cohen was criminal, in that he listed the reimbursements as legal expenses on financial documents. In fact, Trump is accused of criminal falsification of business records.
The indictment alleges that Trump, Cohen and former tabloid boss David Pecker met at Trump Tower in the summer of 2015, shortly after the real estate mogul announced his presidential candidacy. Pecker testified in court that he promised to warn them about any damaging information about Trump.
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Cohen’s expected testimony comes on the heels of a particularly difficult week of trial for Trump. Daniels testified for nearly two days about her alleged hookup with Trump following a celebrity golf tournament in Lake Tahoe.
Daniels told jurors that after initially deciding against it, she accepted Trump’s dinner invitation. She met him in his hotel room, she said, genuinely believing they would eat.
After hours of conversation, in which she said he repeatedly asked her if she had sexually transmitted infections and about using a condom, Daniels said she excused herself to go to the bathroom. When she returned, she said, Trump was in bed, wearing boxer shorts and a T-shirt.
As Daniels tried to get out of the situation, Trump put before her the possibility of career development — with gross condescension, she testified.
“He said, I thought we were getting somewhere. I thought you were serious about what you wanted, if you want to get out of that trailer park…” Daniels recalled him saying. “I was offended because I’ve never lived in a trailer park.”
Daniels said they had sex, revealed the position to the jury – prompting an objection – and said he did not use a condom. More embarrassing for Trump, perhaps, was the fact that his comments came shortly after Daniels testified about Trump’s remarks about the family.
Not long before he allegedly had sex with Daniels, Trump allegedly referred to Ivanka, his daughter, by telling her, “You remind me of my daughter. She’s smart, blonde and pretty, and people underestimate her too.” Also before the alleged involvement, Trump also said he and his wife Melania slept in separate bedrooms, Daniels told jurors.
The emotional testimony seemed to have taken its toll on Trump. When he entered the courtroom around 9:30 a.m. on Friday, he behaved with an apparent air of frustration.
Trump’s comments in the hallway appeared to corroborate his annoyance, with him complaining about his inability to comment on a witness’ testimony due to a gag order preventing him from doing so.
Frustrating or not for Trump, his trial is moving at a rapid pace. At the end of the week, prosecutor Joshua Steinglass said: “We hope to call two witnesses and it is entirely possible that we will rest until the end of next week.”
