New York, United States:
Stormy Daniels will return to the witness stand Thursday at Donald Trump's historic hush money trial for another round of expected hard grilling by lawyers for the former president.
The
Trump, 77, is accused of falsifying business records to reimburse his lawyer Michael Cohen for a $130,000 payment to Daniels on the eve of the 2016 presidential election, when the lurid story of marital infidelity skewered his campaign against Hillary Clinton. could have sunk.
The extraordinary courtroom showdown between Daniels and Trump comes six months before the November election, when the Republican hopeful will try to defeat Democratic President Joe Biden.
Speaking at a machine-gun pace with the judge occasionally telling her to slow down, Daniels led the New York jury through the one-night stand she said she had with Trump at a celebrity golf tournament.
She described his pajamas, his boxer shorts, the sexual position and that he was not wearing a condom.
And while she “wasn't threatened verbally or physically,” she said she was “embarrassed that I didn't stop and say no.”
Trump has denied having sex with Daniels and his lawyers asked the judge for a mistrial because her testimony was “extremely prejudicial” in what is essentially a financial administration and election-related case.
Judge Juan Merchan denied the request for annulment, but said that some of Daniels' testimony was indeed “better left unsaid.”
Merchan also at one point called Trump's lawyers to court to complain that the ex-president was “swearing audibly” and shaking his head over her testimony, and that they needed to rein in his behavior.
Trump's visible reactions have “the potential to intimidate the witness,” the judge said, and “I will not tolerate that.”
“I will talk to him,” promised Todd Blanche, one of Trump's lawyers.
'False!'
Speaking to reporters after court adjourned on Tuesday, Trump called the case a “disgrace” and said he should be “campaigning now.”
Merchan has imposed a gag order on Trump that prohibits him from publicly attacking witnesses, and the ex-president — who has traded insults with Daniels for years, calling her “horsehead” and other crude insults — did not comment directly on her testimony.
In a post on Truth Social on Wednesday, Trump complained about the silence order, saying his “constitutional right to free speech” had been “unjustly taken away.”
“It is difficult to sit back and listen to lies and false statements made against you, knowing that if you respond, even in the most modest way, you will be told by a corrupt and highly conflicted judge that you may end up in jail are put. for a long period of time,” he said.
Daniels was aggressively questioned by one of Trump's lawyers, Susan Necheles, as court wrapped up on Tuesday and she will be back in the line of fire on Thursday.
In an attempt to damage Daniels' credibility, Necheles accused her of trying to “extort” money from Trump by claiming to have had sex with him.
“False!” Daniels said.
In addition to the New York case, Trump has been indicted in Washington and Georgia on charges of conspiring to overturn the results of the 2020 election.
He was also charged in Florida with mishandling classified documents after leaving the White House, but that case has been postponed indefinitely.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by DailyExpertNews staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)