(AFP) – A key witness in the criminal trial of Donald Trump detailed Thursday how he worked with the former president’s personal lawyer to kill a Playboy model’s story about a sexual relationship with the Republican.
It’s the third day of testimony in the trial of Trump, whom prosecutors accuse of falsifying business records to pay off adult film actress Stormy Daniels in exchange for her silence over a 2006 sexual encounter that could have derailed his 2016 White House campaign.
He is the first former US head of state to face criminal charges. The high-stakes trial demands Trump report to the drafty Manhattan courtroom multiple times a week, less than seven months before his election rematch with President Joe Biden.
Prosecutors say Trump engaged in “election fraud” by having his then-personal lawyer Michael Cohen make a $130,000 payment to Daniels on the eve of the 2016 election, in which he defeated Hillary Clinton.
The latest testimony from David Pecker — the 72-year-old former publisher of the National Enquirer tabloid — points to a hush money payment to Karen McDougal, a former Playboy model, that was a precursor to the Daniels saga.
The affable Pecker candidly explained to jurors how transfers to the tune of $150,000 were made to “catch and kill” McDougal’s story and suppress its publication, calling it a “large purchase.”
He said payments were disguised as services to American Media, the tabloid’s parent company, to avoid violating campaign finance laws.
The “catch and kill” tactic is core to the case — buying the silence of figures with potentially damaging information, with the alleged broader goal of influencing the 2016 election.
“We purchased the story so it would not be published by any other organization,” Pecker told jurors. “We didn’t want the story to embarrass Mr. Trump or hurt his campaign.”
He said Cohen had encouraged him to purchase the story, and when he asked how he would get reimbursed, Cohen said “the boss will take care of it.”
Pecker said that not only did McDougal receive payment, but that the deal also guaranteed her magazine covers and the possibility to publish fitness columns.
– ‘Agreement among friends’ –
Pecker explained previously how formulating the plan — an “agreement among friends” — went down at an August 2015 meeting at Trump Tower with Trump, Cohen and Trump’s personal assistant Hope Hicks.
He said National Enquirer readers “loved” Trump, who starred in the hit reality television series “The Apprentice” and its star-studded spinoff before going into politics in 2015.
Trump’s own celebrity coupled with his presidential bid would be a boon for the magazine’s sales when it ran positive stories on him, Pecker said, while suppressing negative coverage would simultaneously help the aspiring president.
As a real estate scion making a name for himself in 1980s and 90s Manhattan, Trump relied heavily on tabloids to grease his ascent to celebrity.
The testimony has thrown into relief how gossip mags could now play a key role in his fate.
Trump has appeared increasingly disgruntled, angry even, as he’s forced to sit silently under the glaring fluorescent lights of the courtroom and listen to both prosecutors and Pecker deliver accounts of his alleged misdeeds.
He has also borne witness to Judge Juan Merchan admonishing the former president’s lead lawyer Todd Blanche, who blustered through his defense of the Republican as prosecutors asked to hold him in contempt of court.
They say Trump has repeatedly violated a partial gag order barring him from publicly attacking witnesses, jurors and court staff.
“You’re losing all credibility with the court,” Merchan told Blanche as the defense attorney sidestepped the judge’s questions regarding the accusations.
Merchan heard arguments over the accusation Tuesday but did not issue an immediate ruling, which he could drop at any moment.
Daniels, whose real name is Stephanie Clifford, and Cohen are both expected to appear as prosecution witnesses at the trial.
Trump has repeatedly attacked them on Truth Social, calling them, for example, “sleaze bags who have, with their lies and misrepresentations, cost our country dearly.” – Andréa BAMBINO, Maggy DONALDSON
© 2024 AFP
