The second day of Donald Trump's criminal trial began on Tuesday, with New York prosecutors announcing a “catch me” campaign allegedly devised by the former president and the publisher of the National Enquirer to limit the damage from unfavorable revelations. He appears to be emphasizing “a plan to kill him.”
The plan was developed in the run-up to the 2016 election, in which President Trump faced a close race against his Democratic rival for the White House, Hillary Clinton. Prosecutors said the damage control effort led to hush money payments to former adult film actress Stormy Daniels, who claims she had a sexual relationship with Trump. The Manhattan district attorney alleged that President Trump falsified business documents to conceal the payments and that the payments were part of a broader scheme to influence the 2016 election.
Trump, a potential 2024 Republican nominee, has denied any relationship with Daniels. He has been charged with 34 felonies for falsifying business documents related to payments to Daniels, making him the first former president in U.S. history to face criminal charges.
The falsification charges specifically relate to President Trump's misrepresentation of repayments to attorney Michael Cohen, who took over $130,000 in exchange for Daniels' silence. However, for a felony charge to be established, prosecutors must convince a jury that the false statements were made with the intent to commit another crime.
Assistant District Attorney Matthew Colangelo said in opening statements Monday that prosecutors will focus on what they describe as a widespread scheme to “undermine” the 2016 presidential election.
Meanwhile, Trump's defense maintains that the former president is innocent, with attorney Todd Blanche saying, “There's nothing wrong with trying to influence an election… that's what we call democracy.'' ' he claimed.
Prosecutors on Tuesday began questioning David Pecker, the former publisher of the National Enquirer and a longtime friend of Trump, in an effort to uncover patterns in Trump's behavior.
In addition to the payments to Daniels, prosecutors said Trump received negative publicity through his relationship with Pecker, a tabloid editor known for publishing stories about scandalous celebrity affairs and cheating. It also detailed two other cases of alleged attempts to cover up.
The payments included $150,000 paid by American Media, the parent company of the National Enquirer, to Karen McDougall, who also claimed to have had an affair with President Trump. The company acknowledged that the payments were used specifically to acquire and bury the article.
American Media also paid a Trump Tower doorman $30,000 for an article alleging that Trump fathered a child out of wedlock.
The defense argued that neither the hush-money payments nor the so-called “catch-and-kill” scheme were per se illegal.
Prosecutors say the collaboration between Mr. Pecker and Mr. Trump, and the timing of the plan to capture and kill Mr. Trump in the final weeks of the 2016 presidential election, when Mr. Trump was facing political fallout from another scandal, were linked to the House hearings. They claim it was evidence of a large-scale criminal act. New York state law “facilitates or discourages election to public office by unlawful means.”
They also allege that the falsification of documents related to the hush money was paid to cover up violations of federal campaign finance law and New York state tax law.
But before witnesses took the stand Tuesday, the hearing began with a discussion of the gag order that Judge Juan Melchán imposed on President Trump last month. The law prohibited former presidents from commenting or posting on social media about potential witnesses in a trial.
Prosecutors argued that Mr. Trump repeatedly violated the order and called for action against Mr. Marchand.
The defense argued that Trump's social media posts were a defense against personal attacks.
During the back-and-forth, Judge Marchan warned Mr. Trump's lawyer, Branch, that he had “lost all credibility in the court.”
During the break, Trump blasted the judges on his Truth Social platform, calling them “very contradictory.”
“Everyone is allowed to talk and lie about me, but I'm not allowed to defend myself?” he wrote. “This is a kangaroo court. The judge should step aside.”
President Trump currently faces three other criminal cases, but the New York trial is the only one expected to conclude before the November election.
In Georgia, President Trump is facing state charges for allegedly pressuring election officials to change the state's vote tally in the 2020 election.
He faces a federal criminal case in Florida related to classified documents allegedly taken from the White House and another federal criminal case in Washington, D.C. related to his alleged attempt to overturn the 2020 election results. facing an incident.
