7:27 p.m. ET, May 9, 2024
Here are some key takeaways from day 14 of Trump’s hush money criminal trial
By CNN’s Jeremy Herb, Lauren del Valle and Kara Scannell
Former President Donald Trump watches the testimony of Madeleine Westerhout, a former Donald Trump White House staffer, during Trump’s hush money criminal trial on May 9.
Jeanne Rosenberg
Jeanne Rosenberg
Former President Donald Trump’s lawyers continued their attacks on Stormy Daniels’ credibility for several hours Thursday, with defense attorney Susan Necheles accusing the adult film star of making up the story of her sexual encounters with Trump.
Today we also saw testimony from a woman who was once one of the closest people working with Trump in the White House, and the defense’s unsuccessful efforts to secure a mistrial and an exception to the accused’s order of silence.
Here are some key takeaways from Trump’s Day 14 silent money test:
Controversial testimony: Daniels responded combatively and provocatively to Necheles’ questions, insisting that her story of a sexual encounter with Trump was true. Trump has denied the affair.
Trump’s lawyer asked about minor inconsistencies in interviews Daniels gave about his interactions with Trump. Necheles also explained how Daniels previously described the encounter..
Necheles also insinuated that Daniels used his skills as a porn writer to make up the story. “You have a lot of experience making fake stories about sex seem real,” Trump’s lawyer asked.
“Wow,” Daniels said, with a pause. “That’s not how I would say it. Sex in movies is very real, just like what happened to me in that room.
Lawyers are concerned about Daniels’ financial situation: Beyond the details of the alleged encounter itself, Trump’s lawyers and prosecutors have asked Daniels to tell conflicting accounts about his financial situation.
Necheles continued to suggest that Daniels made money by saying she had sex with Trump, pointing to a tweet in which she said she made $1 million and others where she directed her supporters to her online store after Trump’s indictment.
Prosecutors, meanwhile, asked Daniels to recount how telling her story also cost her, from her daughter’s move and security services to the attorney fees she was ordered to pay after sued Trump and lost.
A former aide takes us inside the Trump White House: Former White House aide Madeleine Westerhout described the inner workings of Trump’s West Wing, where she worked for more than two years, sitting just outside the Oval Office.
Westerhout described Trump’s work habits, from his affinity for sharp objects and hard copies of documents, to his tight control over his social media posts and his preference for talking to people in person or on the phone — and not by email.
Although she did not testify to direct knowledge of the checks Trump signed to his former fixer Michael Cohen, which are cited in the charges against Trump, her story adds to the prosecution’s narrative of her involvement in checks in 2017.
Two failed efforts by the Trump team: Judge Juan Merchan rejected Trump’s lawyers’ request to make an exception to the silence order allowing him to speak publicly about Daniels, saying he must protect the integrity of the proceedings and that he does not trust to Trump for not violating an order if he was. to modify it.
The judge also denied Trump’s renewed motion for a mistrial over Daniels’ salacious testimony, which his lawyers say unfairly prejudices the jury against Trump. Merchan said specificity is important to help the jury make a decision.
Read a full recap of today’s proceedings here.
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News Source : amp.cnn.com
